Taking The Trailer in For Warranty Work

This morning I woke up to Sherri getting ready to leave out. She had to go to Bowie Texas this morning and to get there she had to leave at 5:00 am. She was out the door and down the road a good ways by the time my alarm went off. I had made coffee last night so all I had to do was flip the switch. I jumped in the shower then got my lunch together got dressed and I was off to work.

My day went like all the rest and before I knew it it was time to go home. On the way home Sherri called me to let me know that she was back in town and wanted to meet me at the car rental place so she could return the car and we could get on home. I had to get the 5th wheel ready for the trip to the dealership. Last night we had a hail storm and it stripped all the leaves off the trees over the trailer and deposited them on the roof. I had to go up on the roof and get that all cleaned off before I could slide all the slides in. I flushed the tanks and put up some of the things that we had outside. By 5:00 I had all the prep worked done. Now all we have to do is back up to the trailer in the morning and take off. I hope to be there by 8:00 for my appointment. Being that we live in our 5th wheel we really need to get it back the same day.

Well that is about it for today I have to eat some dinner and get ready to chat for a while...maybe. See ya when I get back....

Somewhere in Time

Day Shift Is Just Like I Remembered It

This morning I woke up to the sound of the heater running...and was it hot...my head was pounding...I cannot sleep with it that hot and when I do I always wake up with a headache. I got up and turned it off and went ahead and made coffee and then went right on back to sleep. It was not too long and the alarm went off and I was back up again headed for the coffee pot. I had a cup of coffee and then slipped into the shower. By this time Sherri was up getting her coffee and we passed in the hallway with a UGH to each other and we both got dressed and readied ourselves for work.

Sherri was heading off to the Texas Motor Speedway and I was off to the going into Dallas speedway. All the other nuts on the road racing to get into work had not changed since I went to the middle shift at the first of the month. Pulled into the parking lot and all the spaces were filled already...I am not liking this shift at all. I want to go back to my shift. Oh well I will just have to put up with it for a while until Tom comes back next Monday.

Today I had to work! Imagine that...having to work and do something...what is that all about eh.
I had to go out on the floor...answer questions...schedule some maintenance on one of the presses and then fixed my lunch. After lunch several other items had to be taken care of and then before I knew it...it was time to head off to home. Wow the day went faster now that we are only working 8 hours. Not bad I can handle this for one week no problem.

Got home and Sherri had made it back from the race track. We sat around and visited for a while and then played on the computers. She was on Yoville visiting with all her friends and I decided
to post today's journal. Not too much going on to write about. We are going to make us some snacks tonight instead of a big meal. I guess we will just sit around and play on the computers and chat some. Wish I had an exciting adventure to post today but that will come...

Somewhere in Time.

Sunday and its Time to Clean

I got in last night about 11:30 and found that my little buddy was spending the night with us. Toys were scattered everywhere and I had to be careful where I stepped. I spent some time cleaning up the living room floor so I wouldn't trip. I made me some toast and drank some milk before I turned in. This morning Kris and I slept in. Sherri was up and drinking coffee when I pulled up. I got me a cup and set down to visit and it was just a short while and here he came bouncing down the stairs ready for the day. Well from then on it was just him and me on the computer playing games. He did not let me finish my coffee or my breakfast...but then what is more important.
His Nonna came over about 11:00 and took him home with her. Now Sherri and I are all alone. It sure is quiet. What do you do when it is this quiet. I have to head outside to straighten up some stuff in the bay. I am going to take my fire pit out and see what it looks like. I need to find someplace to store it. I have more room than some.... being that I don't have much stuff accumulated. Well I found some room for the pit and rearranged some other things to make more room. Washed the windows on the truck vacuumed the inside and cleaned behind the back seats.
OK now it is back inside to eat me a Lean Cuisine sandwich...they are good!...a glass of milk and take my vitamin D for the week. Now I am sitting here posting and helping Sherri Facebook. She has all these things on there today and she is trying to catch up on all of them. She wants to change out her picture so we are going to scan a new one in.
Better go now so we can get her a new look...

Somewhere in Time

A Day With Thomas and Little Buddy

Well this was the day a little guys dreams come true. Kris got to go and see Thomas. All the way from the parking lot to the train station his little neck was craning to see if he could see Thomas. Far across the street Thomas came into view and Kris's eyes lite up with amazement. Poppa there he is...said Kris. Sure enough Thomas could be seen across the street waiting on the little man to see.

We had a wonderful time with Kris on his 3rd birthday. His Nonna went with Sherri and I and we saw all the sites that were there to see. The train ride was fun and Kris enjoyed seeing the Conductor and the Engineer that came down the isle to hand out stickers to the kids.

What a fun day and what great memories for Sherri and I. I hope Kris will remember this day and if not little buddy Poppa is leaving you these pictures made...

Somewhere in Time

Just a Post Script to Todays Post

We are meeting in Rockport in January of 2010. At that time we are talking about planning an

"Adventure In Quartzsite" This will be for the following year. Now that is a ways off to say the least but we should be able to spark some interest from those folks planning on getting on the road at that time. We will plan it for November and December of 2011...Now if anyone is interested in getting together in Q this coming November and December we can put together a plan for that...Somewhere in Time

Adventure in Quartzsite Arizona

Another morning has come forth. The sun is up and I was not. I slept until 8:00...I know...what has Speedy turned into? What a lazy boy you are Speedy. The world is passing you by and you sleep the day away when you could be up being productive and doing what ever someone else my age might do that early. I just slept so hard last night...I really think I got a sound nights sleep for a change without any interruptions. That is good a body needs that kind of night every once in a while to completely relax all the nerves.

Speaking of nerves...last night on the chat we....the Dreamers...came up with an idea about a gathering at Quartzsite Arizona. An exact date has not been finalized as yet but we will be working on it in January when we "Rendezvous at Rockport" http://www.rockportresort.com/

Yes...for many it will take a lot of nerve to try this boondocking thing. Many of our number have done it and most have not so it will take nerve to try it out. I think with all of us there we should be able to pull it off. Boondocking takes special equipment for longer stays and also takes a different mind set when staying for prolonged periods of time in the desert without all our day to day luxury items at hand. With our veteran boondockers there to walk us through the set up and the list of things to bring and have available for this adventure we should all have an interesting time. For those who have little interest in boondocking it will be a time to test the water so to speak and spend a few days off the grid visiting and then when you have had enough off to the full hook up campgrounds.

We are preparing for such a stay right now. We have the generator and I am working on setting up an inverter for my computer and TV. I will start small and then expand after I learn more. While at the "Adventure in Q"...this is what I am calling it...you know it is not a rally. We all can learn from the more experienced hands on what we have to do to make our stay as comfortable as possible. There is so much to learn and through it all Sherri and I plan on getting our home on wheels prepared for staying anywhere we like without hook ups. What freedom this will bring to exploring new places all over the country. Not having to worry about a campground having hook ups will open up all kinds of possibilities of where we can direct our next adventure.

This is just something for all Dreamers out there to think about. Make plans to participate in this get together as it unfolds over the next year. I know that is far in the future and we do not know what the future holds but having something to look forward to keeps us all going.

For those of our number that know what you need to survive in the desert without hook up...we will be looking to you to provide information on what our first time boondockers should come with. This of course would be the least of things for a few days stay all the way up to three months stay. More information will unfold when we all "Rendezvous in Rocport" next January.

I know some are saying Quartzsite!!! that is all the way west and south in the desert!!! Yes but we will have a year and a half to plan for it. Just think of the fun and the stories that we will develop there.

Until the next time I have to get ready for this day and...

Somewhere in Time

Not to know at large of things remote From use, obscure and subtle, but to knowThat which before us lies in daily life,Is the prime wisdom.

This is Hump Day

Well hello my dear friends and family. This morning is kind of cool here...they say it is 54 but it must be 40 in the RV. I turned the fireplace on to warm me up a bit and fixed some coffee to warm the insides. I should be good to go here soon.
I must explain the pictures I am posting. I have no pictures loaded here of places that I have been so I steel them whenever possible to highlight my page. I know that is not right and believe me as soon as I get some of my pictures loaded I will start using them. Not a bad picture, however...I would like to be hiking down that road. Not sure where this is but it is peaceful looking.
OK today is hump day and I have to head over to my daughters house about 11:00 to deliver some things to her that I was suppose to deliver Monday...I Forgot OK...I do that sometimes and then I get in trouble but after all with all that I have to keep track of now days....
I have been working on my adventure tour and pretty well know where I am going up until I get to Jenny's house in Spokane Washington. Now Jenny takes over there so I don't have too much to worry about. She has it all under control. By the way Jenny Sherri and I have never been there so anything you come up with will be a first. Same goes with John and Brenda...whatever you have in mind will be fun and exciting to Sherri and I. We are just elated that we are getting to go on this journey. After all we have waited some 30 years for it and now we are just 2 months away.
Enough of that...I really don't know what our time schedule is...everyone says don't have one it will ruin the fun and the spontaneity of the whole trip. So we have none and will not come up with one until our destination host say otherwise. When they give us a time that they can get off to see us then we will shoot for that time to be there. We are not the type to just "Drop in" on our friends.
Getting back to my discussion yesterday about the inverter...I contacted the best guy to handle that problem... Mr Jack Mayer www.jackdanmayer.com who knows the electrical workings of this type of stuff! Jack did Howard's wiring for his solar panel system and did an excellent job. I presented the problem to Jack and viola he shot me back the answer in no time. Thanks Jack like I said I owe you one. Actually had I just pulled up Jack's web site I would have had the answer. If you have a question about inverters or the like try Jack's page out you will find the answer believe me.
We have an array of smart people in our family that can help us out if only we tap in and ask the question. That is why the forum that Howard and Linda have created is so powerful for us RVing types. I do my part on welcoming folks cause I don't have a lot of knowledge about wiring and so forth but I do know the importance of family members and building our core group. The more people we have to tap into the more information we have at our finger tips.
One last thing is travel tips. We need to get more people out there to write about places to go and see. Where to stay and the price of each. If we get enough folks feeding that kind of information to us we can all benefit from it. I store away every bit of information I can find on places people have been and where they stayed and what there was to see there. Keep that in mind as you travel and write your journal. I sure will when I get out there on the road. I will supply the cheap routes and cheap places to stay....cause I am cheap...HE HE :)
Well here it is again time for me to jump out of my Captain America sleeping shorts and into my traveling attire so I can head out ...

Somewhere in Time

The first step in the acquisition of wisdom is silence, the second listening, the third memory, the fourth practice, the fifth teaching others.

I Want to Move From Here

Last night was a good night...plenty of time to chat and no interruptions while doing so. I like those kind of nights and time seems to go fast. I know I have said this many times....COME ON MAY 29th!!!! I don't want to wish my life away but I really want to be out of that place. I gave them 30 plus years....I need a rest before I take the dirt nap.
The wind is blowing here about 15 to 20 and it is raining off and on...mostly off right now...and it is a gloomy day to say the least. I like a sunny day anytime...life seems brighter...DUH!
This is the time of year that is so unstable here in North Texas. This area of the country is located where the ruminates of the cold north meet the oncoming southern warm breezes and bingo bad weather is the results. Tornado's are one of the biggest problems this time of year and we...being in a RV park have a giant bulls eye painted on us. Yes this is why I wish I could vacate this area for a safer location up north where the weather is more stable. It is probably still too cold up there but it would be less likely to spawn a tornado. We have been real fortunate this last three years here in Carrollton and I just want to get past this last two months so we can leave with our RV in one piece. Maybe this year will be more stable and we can dodge the bullet here. Only time will tell and Mother Natures mood..HE HE :)
OK I really don't have a long entry today due to the fact that I have to spend much time on the Internet looking at inverters. Yes I need to get one but I don't want to pay for some giant unit that I will never be able to afford. I have a generator but would like to get a small inverter to run the computer and TV for about 4 hours in the morning or evening. I could charge my batteries back up when I use the generator to run the bigger appliances. I would think that would be an easy thing to do rather inexpensively...don't you.
Sherri and I will be doing some boondocking next year and the addition of an inverter would be nice. We have several places in mind to stay at that have no hook ups but drop dead beautiful scenery and that would be a trade off for power connections. If we could supplement our electrical needs in that manner we would be fine. I don't want to go with the full blown solar deal now....until I meet with those that have it and spend some time with them to see what it is all about. No need sinking $$$ into something we may not need right now.
I want to get out someplace and enjoy nature without depending on an electrical plug. Having a bigger choice of places to stay would be much more desirable than having electric power. Sherri and I want to live off the grid as much as possible and see places that we may otherwise miss being tied down to conventional parks.
Well better close out here and get to reading some more. I have so little time left to explore this avenue of power. Would love to hear from anyone that lives off the grid...give me your journal address and I will join you...
Somewhere in Time

It is easier to be wise for others than for ourselves.

Things in Common

Have you ever wondered what brings us all together. I am speaking of family and Dreamers. Now family that is a given...we have the same lineage through time. Dreamers...well we have so much in common and blood has nothing to do with it.

What is it that brought us together in Kerrville? Why would any of us travel hundreds of miles to meet in a "Campground" in the middle of Texas? That is something I have been pondering now for some time. I have an idea why I did it so maybe like me all the other Dreamers have the same feelings I do...there you see we have that in common. I know that many of you out there have your own reasons for going miles to meet with other Dreamers but I bet if you poled the masses you would find several that had the same reason for coming.

If you were fortunate enough to be a part of the "Gathering of Dreamers" then you know what it was like when one by one we all came together and hugged and shook hands and you remember the smiles on the faces of all that were there. Yes it was a special time in all our lives that is shared all too often while on the road following our dreams.

As time goes on... Dreamers it will be harder for those of us out on life's highway to go very far without being close to a Dreamer. Gosh it is almost like a cult building out there...this RV thing! People leaving the security of their homes and heading out on the highways to discover this great nation we have spent the biggest part of our lives creating. Finding new places to see and meeting people along the way who become friends. Not friends like the ones you hung out with growing up but friends that like all the things that you like and have something in common with your way of thinking...your life style.

No problem starting a conversation with these type of folks. Hey where you from? Nice rig...how do you like it? Where have you been? Where are you going? Now I know a lot of that sounds like...your way too nosey..HE HE :) but really those are some of the topics of conversation that you have in common and it can be the start of a Dreamer friendship.

Why not...why not have those conversations with your new neighbor. You have to keep in mind there are all types of folks that frequent campgrounds and we all know it. Families take outings on weekends with the kids and you see the couple that have the toy haulers full of equipment to entertain themselves...but then you have the couple next door that have a carved name plate on the hitch and a flag hung out to let you know you are welcome. They have the patio mats and the tables set outside for entertaining purposes and maybe even a map of the United States with all the states they have been in colored. Yes these are kindred spirits people of the highway...Pioneers of this great nation...spending their time exploring and creating adventures in parts of this country they have never been to before.

God I am so blessed to be a part of all of that. Having friends that want to do and dream about doing the same things that I do. Moving from one place to another and living next door to a gypsy explorer...a wanderer loving nature the way that I do.

Even though all these people we meet up with are adventurers and explorers not all do it the same way. We have to remember that all of us have our own way of exploring and finding adventures. We must respect those differences...knowing that we all enjoy the same results but with a different approach. Not all of us travel in the same manner. Some travel without stopping along the way...some stop along the way often and stay longer...yes not all are the same but the results of the journey are the same. We all enjoy the exploration and love to relate the stories of how we got there and what is really great is that we all enjoy hearing others stories. It is not all in the telling of those stories but also in the listening and learning from those stories. From these stories come more dreams of travel and from those dreams of travel come more adventures and from those adventures come more stories. Yes full circle around the campfire we all find that we have so much in common and this is the glue that holds the Dreamers together.

One last thought here that I must share with you all. This is one life style where the cost of your dream has nothing to do with the memories and the stories that you mass together in this life time. You are not required by some rule to have a certain type of home or car or truck or clothes or equipment to fulfill this dream. All you need is the dream itself...all the other things do not matter and will not lessen the adventure in any way. How you spend the time you have left here on this earth is all up to you...wanting things is not the answer to enjoyment... the answer to it lies in how much fun you have with what you have and with the ones you spend time with. In our other life we had to have a certain house built in a certain neighbor hood and drive a certain car to hang with certain people...now that is all behind us. We look past all that and now we hang with people that have all this in common and it does not matter what we live in or drive. What a wonderful way to live. This is what drives me down the road and this is what keeps me wanting to meet again with all the Dreamers.

I guess I better get out of here now and find another adventure to read about. I know there is one out there cause I know the Dreamers are on the road and if they are on the road there is an adventure brewing...I will catch you on the flip side my friends....

Somewher in Time

I have spread my dreams beneath your feet. Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

Sometimes Mornings Sometimes Nights

This morning I was brought out of a deep sleep by the droning sound of the AC unit cooling the bedroom quite efficiently. I had the covers drawn up tight under my chin and could tell that it was rather cool on the other side of them. Sherri was up and had just open the door to the bedroom when my eyes strained to see the time on the radio clock. It was 7:00 am and I had slept for one hour past my need to get up time. But with just one fail swoop I was out of bed and headed toward the sounds and smell of the coffee brewing in the pot. This is my starter fluid in the mornings that gets me into life's tornado and without it in the mornings that tornado can do some big damage on this old Texan

This morning I had to run my two girls...Sherri and Sarah into Wills Point. Sarah returning home to her Mom and Sherri to meet up with Randy for that ride into Louisiana. We had planned on getting on the road about 8:00 this morning but as you can see by the time I got out of bed that was not going to happen. Sarah slept until 11:00 am so 8:00 was pretty much out of the plan by then. We had good intentions but they did not come together. We left at 1:30 and had to drop some shoes off at the store that Sherri no longer had a desire for. We then headed out to look at some land on the North side of Wills Point...we might buy to put our barn on later down the road. Then we headed to Jennifer's house to return her child. We visited for a short while and then it was time to take Sherri out to the highway and drop her off ...HE HE :)

Randy was there waiting on us and I made the exchange and then I headed back over to Jennifer's house to visit for a while. Tried to see if there was anything that I could do to help her out around the place and when she said there was nothing for me to do I gave her a hug and I was out of there heading back to Carrollton.

Got home about 5:45 and made me some dinner of hamburger patties ...baked potato and salad. I sure did a good job. I topped that off with a Kudos candy bar...low cal...and then sat down to chat. Stayed on pretty good tonight only got jammed twice. The final time it was just too much for me so I begged off and came here to post.

Sometimes I Post in the mornings and sometimes I post at night. This is a night post and I can tell it because I am tired and can't think real well....not that I can when I am rested LOL. I do better in the mornings but then I don't have all of the days events to comment on. Well lest I bore you to tears...I must slide on down the slide here and leave you with these words of wisdom....

By associating with wise people you will become wise yourself

Somewhere in Time

One More Week is About to End

Last night before I laid down I had to turn the AC on in the bedroom. It was really warm inside the 5ver. The outside temp was about 75 at 10:00 pm but the inside temp had to be much hotter. Well I turned on the AC and closed the bedroom door and before I knew it I was out like a light. Sherri had said that she did not want to sleep late because she wanted to stay in the habit of getting up early. That was not the case this morning...we got up after 7:00 am and cold did not describe the bedroom well enough!! Maybe frigid would be a better adjective to use in telling you how cold it was. We know that the roof air in the bedroom works for sure.

While Sherri got herself together I went and made coffee. I chipped the ice off my fingers and filled the coffee pot up. It wasn't too long and we were thawing out over a hot cup of coffee and making plans for the morning. Sherri had some items to return to the store and I had some computer stuff to get done. We also had to go and pick up our granddaughter Sarah from her aunts house and bring her back with us. Sarah was suppose to have stayed with us this week over Spring break but she found out that staying with Aunt Janet was more fun so we fell to the wayside. But she is riding back to Wills Point with Sherri and I so she has to be here so we can leave early Sunday morning. I will take her home and drop Sherri off to meet Randy at the Tangier Outlet mall in Terrell Texas. From there they will head to Louisiana to work all week. I will not see her until next Friday. Home Alone....

Yes I return to work Monday at 3:00 pm and by that time will only have 2 months left on the count down clock. Time is going faster the closer that time comes. I am going to ask the company to give me a package so they can get their lives in order and I can do the same. My replacement wants to work my shift instead of the 11:00 pm to 7:00 am shift he is on. Why should they make him suffer for two more months when I can just head on out and turn it over to them. My secretary is well versed in all the Data Entry that I have trained her in and Wayne can run the floor and I can run the roads...Sounds like a deal to me.

We will see...I am sure they will not want to give me anything but heck it is worth a try. I have a lot to get done before we leave out so no matter what they say I can't leave until I get all my ducks in a row. Sherri will probably want to keep working until she gets all the money she wants tucked back and I want to get all the projects at the barn completed before I leave there for 4 months of travel. I want to come back to having a nice place to rest and relax for 3 months before I head out again in January for the coast.

The next time I post I will be all alone here. I wont get home tomorrow until late in the afternoon and will have to get all my stuff ready for work. Until that time I will leave you with this thought....

Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale her infinite variety

Somewhere in Time

Time is Slipping Away

This morning came in around 5:00 am with Sherri's alarm going off and me getting up to go and make the coffee. Sherri is headed to Alvarado Texas this morning to work and she had to rise early enough to get there by 7:00 am. Oh me we both will be so glad to shed this working routine and get into that get up when you feel like it mode. This is not to say that we wont pick up a workamping job down the road...but it wont be an everyday job like the ones we hold now.

We did not get our Passports yesterday as planned. Sherri was balancing her check book yesterday and found out that she was missing a paycheck! She spent most of the morning trying to find out what happen to it...and then she found out we owed for some medical that was never turned into the insurance company...well needless to say that took up most of her morning. We did not even get our walk in so we have to make up for all that this weekend.

I will have to return to work Monday...GRRRRR and that is not making me very happy. My boss called me yesterday and asked if I wanted to switch shifts with the guy that is taking my place. He works 11:00 till 7:00 shift...WELL NO! I am going to ask him Monday if he will go ahead and pay me for April plus my Vacation pay and let me head on out April one. That would put me out two months early but hey that is OK with me. I would have to have the money cause my SS does not start until April one with the first check getting here in May one. I cannot figure out a way to do this without money. I have looked at it from every angle and it keeps coming up that I need funds to pay for STUFF. Oh well such is life.

Sherri and I did get to plan more of our first adventure yesterday. We know where our furthest destination north is and we know we are going by Jenny's in Spokane but we have not got all the roads down that we are to travel. Sherri does not like to pull the 5th wheel over high passes so I have to route us around many...not all...but all that I can so she will be comfortable and I wont have to hear her scream...HE HE :) So far I have done real well and John (JB) has assured Sherri that there will be no high passes on the way to his house. We are trying to go to places that we have never been to and take roads we have never been on. I get excited when we start planning. I think some of the adventure is in the planning. Not that any of the plans come to be just doing it and seeing how it all comes together in the end.

I guess the biggest obstacle that we have is the budget and trying to find the campgrounds with the best price and best accommodations. We want to get the most bang for our buck and have some money to do something on. So far we are accomplishing that and I think all will be well. This being our first adventure...we want it to be memorable in a good way...So if all does not go according to plan I think we can make it enjoyable no matter what. We have a way of turning lemons into lemonade.

Well depending on what they say at the office it wont be too long until we head outa this place and hit the highway pardner. As soon as we do Speedy's Great Adventure will start to unfold before your very eyes. I cannot believe that it is about to come true! GEEEE this will be the best trip Sherri and I ever went on...simply because we know it only ends when we say it ends. The one thing that I have to make sure of is that I have a good Internet connection so I can relay all the sites and travels to my readers. I will have to make due with some bad connections but I can always bring you up to Speed when we have the good ones.

Alrighty then...we have come to the end of another post...

Somewhere in Time

Sherri is Bejeweled

Sherri and I were up this morning at 6:00 am making coffee. We started the day early cause we ended it early last night. Sherri watched the Idol and I tried to get on chat...but you know that did not last long...jammed in about 2 minutes. OK so I watched the Idol too and then we watched the news/weather and then off to bed for the both of us. It has got to where we don't last past 11:00 pm no matter what. Sherri worked yesterday so she was tired when she got in and I can understand that. I am tired after 2 hours of work...

Today we will walk our 2 miles...maybe 1/2 mile we stretch the truth here sometimes...HE HE After the walk we will have to get ready and head to the post office to see what a passport will cost for the two of us. Some say $100.00 some say $150.00??? I don't know we will just have to see. It is sad that you have to have all this documentation to leave the country because some people try to destroy our freedom...Well in some cases they succeeded....now we have to have passports. Anyway no matter what... we have to have one if we want to travel beyond the boundaries of these states. We have friends in Canada that we have to visit and teeth that need to be cleaned in Mexico.

We are still working on our route for June and seems like everything is coming together pretty well. At least we have some idea in what direction we are headed. How long we will stay at any one place is still up in the air...due to rent cost. If we can find a cool place to stay for a month and the rent is right that will be where we squat for a while. I guess you will all know where... when we stop??? HE HE.

Well better pull away from the desk and computer here and start walking with the love of my life...who at this time is Bejeweling herself into a dither! Someone needs to come to her rescue and explain to her how to get 130,000 on this game. I think that she might have a breakdown if she can't figure it out. Stay tuned for more on Sherri and the new game she is wrestling with...

Somewhere in Time

Wednesday home alone but not for long

This morning I was brought out of a deep sleep by noises from the living room. Ahhh it was my bride making coffee...at 5:00 am! Oh that's right she has to go to work today. She is headed to Midalothian Texas, which is South of here about 45 miles.

She was dressed and out the door just a little before 6:00 am and I helped her set the Garmin to her destination. She would be traveling down Loop 12 south to I20 and then take Hwy 67 South. Should not be too bad...most of the traffic will be coming in the other direction.

I have to clean up the house today and get some things put away. Really need to work on my route out of town. Dortha said I should not worry about the route...it would take care of itself. I hope it does but just in case it does not I need to know which way to head the truck...HE HE.

I am not too concerned on where we stay but mostly on what road we will be on. This way I have all my options laid out in case I have to choose one. We plan on heading North for sure...being that it will be June when we leave out and the temps will be climbing about that time. I would not want he be heading South that time of year. We want to do the Northwest United States and finish up on the coast of Oregon. If anyone out there knows a cheap place to stay on the coast holler at me. I see there are many State Parks there and Private parks too. Jenny has us lined out in Spokane Washington and before that John and Brenda are allowing us to come up and see them. That part of the trip has pretty well been taken care of so I just have to fill in the blanks.

Dortha...Mark...Jim and Ellie are planning on being in that area also. We might cross their path depending on the time issue. I still have not got the return route thought out but it looks like we will be heading down toward the Bryce Canyon area. Who knows?? I am making a list of things people have told me are must see but I don't know if we can see them all and we have stay within our budget. Just sounds like fun to me so I am not going to get uptight about it all.

I figured with the truck and the trailer in warranty for the next two to three years now is the time to make the longest trips and break them both in. I hope we don't have any problems but it is better to have them under warranty than not.

I got me a Mountain Directory West book the other day and I know where all the bad passes are and which ones to avoid. This gives me some peace of mind so I wont be surprised by a 7% grade up or down without my knowledge before hand. I ask John Brown what the highways were like in Alberta and in his usual manner wrote back that they were paved and some of them had lines painted on them....Thanks John your the best HE HE. I just like to know as much about the area I will be covering as I can. I guess it comes from my exploring days in the Army over seas... we always liked to know where we were going and what to expect....just felt warm and fuzzy knowing those things. I am sure we will do fine...just have to get out of the vacation mode and into the exploration mode with more time on my hands.

We have a visitor coming today. Sarah, our granddaughter is coming to spend some time with us. It is Spring break in Wills Point and Mom needs some time off from the 5 kids...can you blame her. She has a 15...13...10...3 and 1 1/2 year old. Wow, we had four and thought we were stressed out! She is shipping them out to friends houses grandparents and any one incredibly stupid enough to take them...HE HE. They are all good kids...Mom has been in the Police Academy for the last 7 months and is getting a little stressed out. She is doing real well and will be graduating next month. Sherri and I will be there for sure to applaud her accomplishments.

OK time to get this day started. I have many projects to complete before our guest arrive and Sherri returns from work. Don't want anyone saying that I just sat around all day... I guess I will leave you with this thought for the day...

A road well traveled may have some pot holes in it....and the lines may be wore off...

Somewhere in Time

Here I am at home not working

Still searching for a new picture of Sherri for her Facebook page. I guess I am just a little bit love struck but I think they are all good pictures. If she does not find one soon I will just keep putting them on my journal.

I was asked to leave work yesterday...my replacement was having too much fun. He likes the shift and when I showed up he was surprised and disappointed. Soooo I found myself heading to the house. Sherri was also surprised when I showed up at the door. I did not even know what to do with myself being at home and not at work...is this a sample of how I will feel when it all comes to an end...NOT... I will always have plenty to do.

Sherri and I did some work on our trip plans but nothing went in stone so we are still playing around with all kinds of ideas. Who would know that this would be this hard. I guess we are trying too hard...I guess we need to just set out and let it happen???

Really not much to say about this day. I guess the fact that I was surprised to be at home instead of at work threw me off somewhat. I just don't know what to say today so I guess I will

just fade out of here for now and get back with ya tomorrow...or

Somewhere in Time

Sunday and time to shop

This morning we woke up to a cloudy sky and cool temperatures. Not what we expected but you have to live with what the good Lord provides. I look at it this way...he let me live another day and I will make the best of it.

All I planned for today was to clean out some of the totes I have in the bay. I have accumulated so much stuff over the last three years of living in an RV and now is the time to clear out some things that I do not use anymore.
I had no sooner sat down to work when Sherri stuck her head out the door and asked if I wanted some breakfast...well that was enough for me to head inside out of the cool air. You know a guy has to eat to keep up his strength.

While eating my breakfast the phone rang and it was Sherri's brother Rodney. He and Becky were headed to Camping World to pick up some items that were on sale this week and wanted to know if we wanted to go. Well you know the answer to that....Yes!

We had bought a fire pit while in Kerrville but it was really too large and you could not grill out on it. Ellie and Jim had found two at Camping World and bought one for Mark and Dortha and one for themselves and you could cook on it also. That is really what Sherri and I had in mind so we were going to look for one when we got there. We were also going to look into getting our generator ordered so that we could have it before we headed out in two months.
Well you can see from the picture above we got more than that but then we always do.

After all that hard shopping we headed South back into Dallas to find something to eat. You know how shopping makes you hungry. Well most anything makes me hungry but shopping was as good an excuse this day as any. Rodney just can't live without going to Mercado Juarez when he is in North Dallas so we headed there so he could get his Mexican treat. Sherri got an enchilada and I got a taco salad. We had a real good meal and a wonderful visit. Going back over all the events of the week before and planning for the day when Sherri and I will leave out on the road. Becky is worried about us being all alone out there. I don't think she understands that when you fulltime you are surrounded by like people and your really never alone.

Sherri is really not mad at me in this picture...she is just surprised that I took it in the restaurant. I guess I am in the travel mode today as though we are still out having fun...hey I am having fun! I want all our friends out there to see us so they don't forget what we look like. I would be embarrassed when I see them again and they don't recognize me...HE HE :)

I have to be at work today at 3:00 pm and will be on chat at 7:00 pm. Sherri and I got on last night but we kept getting jammed by our DSL. I don't have that problem at work. So I will be able to catch up with all my friends that have by now reached their destinations. For those of you that are still in Kerrville and for those of you that are headed that way...keep me up to date on all the events that I am missing out on. We sure wish that we could have stayed there with all of you and continued the fun. But all good things must come to an end so that new things can start. I hope that the weather clears out and everyone has a wonderful week. Sherri and I will keep you abreast of all the happenings here....we know you just can't wait. I guess I better rest my fingers and head to the kitchen for something to eat. See ya all later....

Somewhere in Time

Parting is such sweet sorrow

This morning came too soon. Unlike all the other days of our lives we did not want this day to come so quickly. But it did and we were all set to extend one more day but that was not to be. The park informed me that they were booked and had no place to put me for one more day. What a bummer! The last of the group was staying until Sunday and we wanted to stay too but with no where to park the inevitable was to happen….we have to go home.
We put off packing up as long as we could but when time started to draw short we knew we had to get to work on stowing away all our treasures and hook up. In some cases hooking up means going on a new adventure and then in some it means that the adventure is over. This was the “It’s over” kind. I know that we will only have one and one half months left when we start back to work Monday but I still had to leave all my friends and head home and that was what I hated the most.
I cannot start to tell you how much fun Sherri and I had on this “Gathering of Dreamers” I can only leave you with all the pictures we took and the stories that we have stored. I know the next time we all meet we will relay all these stories time and time again followed with gales of laughter. Until that time Sherri and I will tell each other these stories and fine tune the telling there of so when we have the chance to tell others we will be better at telling them…HE HE J
The trip home was uneventful and we saw the same scenery that we had seen the week before . We talked about our plans for next June and all the options we had for our trip. We still have not come to a definite plan of when…where…and how this will go but we are working on it. We also know, from talking to others that even the best plans change as soon as you pull out of your site.
This morning I had the painful duty of emailing our leaders and letting them know that due to budget constraints that Sherri and I would not be able to attend the rally in Kerrville next October. We are saddened to have to back out but we cannot work it into our plans and budget this early on in our retirement year. I was excited to hear that Linda and Howard were having the rally but I was not prudent in weighing out the cost to our monthly budget. I know it comes to no ones surprise that we are limited on our fun's. But being low on fun's does not mean that you have no fun. OK that being said I am counting on all the Dreamers out there to take pictures and notes on all the stories at the rally and deliver them to me so I can see all. If the last rally is any indication of what this one will be I foresee a lot of fun! Now you want have me to dress up for you but I bet someone there out does me and becomes the talk of the rally HE HE J
Well I have to sign off here Sherri and I have some errands to run and things to get done before the work day begins tomorrow. Once again I would like to let everyone know how much fun we had this last week and hope that everyone has a safe trip home today. Please let Sherri and I know that you returned safely by commenting here….we do worry about all our friends and hope they all stay safe…
Somewhere in Time

This is the Breakfast dinner yesterday. We had so much fun visiting and eating a real good meal. We were going to wear our PJs but it was so cold Sherri and I could not wear ours. Ginger and Jesse wore theirs but they have warm jammies.
After the dinner we headed back to our place and Mac and Netters came over to see our house...they had not seen it yet and we visited for a short time and then it was time to head to John and Brenda's for a get together. We visited there until almost 11:00 pm. Wow the fun never stops here but I know the leaving day is coming on quickley and we will have to part company for a while...but we will be back together
Somewhere in Time

Girls Gone Wild Breakfast Dinner and Party

If your not sure about how much fun this group had going shopping then just look at the pictures below and make up your own mind. All the laughing and carrying on that was had by all should be proof enough that they enjoyed this time together. As I said yesterday....bad weather was not a factor in them heading out and sure enough they were off in a cloud and stayed gone most the day.
Us guys just sat around and talked about generators an BLM land and fire pits...you know the Manley things that have to be discussed by guys when on the road....also to take our minds off of how much money the girls were spending.
Not much was spent but the memories were pack on top of each other for this group. I am sure in the future gatherings many of you will have to listen to all these stories.
As the title tells you we also had a Breakfast Dinner at the club house and then met at John and Brenda's home after. They have a lovely home and we had so much fun.

More...What Can I Say

Another W E T one. I guess the folks down here are thrilled over all this rain...see as how they have been without it so long. We Dreamers on the other hand could have had just a little less and been satisfied. It has not dampened the spirits of the women here. They can shop in those stores when the weather is bad and never miss one sale item!
Sherri and I pulled up this morning and got our coffee...a little late I might add but then with the rain and all and it is soooo cold out! We sat back and drank our coffee and started planning out the day when there was a knock at the door. I had forgot I got up late and was still in my BVDs until I threw the door open and saw John and Brenda outside ready for our walk. Me standing there not quite dressed told them that they might have to make a round and come back for us...EH!
We jumped into the get ready fast mode and were out the door before they made one complete round! I would say we are still in good shape getting ready that fast. Only problem was I had downed two cups of coffee by this time and you know what that means. Oh well everyone gets a break when Speedy has to make his pit stops HE HE :)
Walk over we returned to the cabin on wheels and got ready for the day. Sherri got a phone call from Becky asking her if she wanted to go.....Where.....Shopping! My gosh what is this all a boot eh. John and Brenda said I was turning into a Canadian... Hey that is a compliment!
Sherri was off and here I sat...everyone else is staying inside out of the weather so I just joined them and sat here. I down loaded some pictures and updated some stuff on the computer. I then went to reading journals and I have so much to catch up on...hey that is a good thing...gave me something to do.
That evening we were all headed out to a pizza restaurant for more social events...eating...visiting...and general mayhem. Oh yes this Dreamer bunch hits the restaurants and things start popping!! We had another great time. I want to tell you all out there that did not get to attend this "Gathering of Dreamers" that you missed a wild all day every day party! This is one event that I thank the Lord that he allowed Sherri and I to go to.
OK we left the pizza pie and headed back home for the Social Center were we planned on playing games and partaking of beverage. Jesse Ginger John Brenda and Sherri and I rode together. Now I will tell you this....I wish I had a recorder to tape this event! How can a ride to and from eating out turn into such a comic event? I have never in all my days of going out to eat laughed so hard as I did. This was just in the truck...we had not even got to where we were going and everyone was in tears. Oh my it would not pay for us to take a trip together we would never get there!! Hey it was fun and I would not trade it for anything! These stories will be saved for the next time we all get together and we must!
That leads me to the next event we had and that was at the social room. We all sat around and played games and some just visited and the others took a class on Facebook. Fun was had by all we soon parted company for our homes. It was such a great day and I know the next one will be even better. Why does this all have to end? I think to myself...if Sherri and I had to be stationary what a group to do it with. Now this would be the gang of people that would have fun no mater what the weather...the place...nor the time. I guess Dreamers we will just have to plan on opening up our own retirement park. Wheelchair races...diaper tossing contest...pill parties. The list is endless...and we could all reminisce on all the travels and adventures we all had.
Don't want to rush things...just a thought...HE HE :)
Better down one more cup of coffee and wake Sherri up. I will be back to up date you on more adventures...
Somewhere in Time



Don just taking in the stories and believing only half of them....why??

Two class clowns...Jesse and Speedy... thinking up the next mischievous story to tell. Hey someone has to do it.

The more serious side of the party. These guys are solving all the problems of the past. John and Mark kept us all in line.

Rodney Rod and Mac talk over a high level subject. They did not cut us in on their discussion.

More Shopping???

The morning was W E T...yes I mean wet in the wettest sense of the word. It rained most of the night on and off and we got up to everything W E T. But did that lower our spirits...did that keep us in doors did we mope around with out lip stuck out....heck no we got up got coffee...big mistake...and met John and Brenda for our morning walk.

We started about 8:00 am and walked to about 9:30...we must have walked 30 miles. OK it started off at about 3 miles and worked its way up to 30 before all the chatters got off last night. How funny some of the ones that came on late could not believe that anyone could walk all that distance...little did they know we didn't. We did walk a long time and the conversations went all over the place. How fun is it to meet our chat friends and then get to really chat while walking for an hour and a half! Thanks John and Brenda for a great morning.

After the walk Sherri and I left John and Brenda and headed over to our place for a shower. We had to get ourselves ready for the day. As we were getting ready our neighbors...Rodney and Becky left and then Rod and Deb left....we noticed that most all the Dreamers were leaving the park? What is this all about. We continued to get dressed and it was not too long Rollie knocked at our door and wanted to know if we would like to go to Fredricksburg with them. Hey sure!! we thought that we would be left alone all day and now we found someone still here. We offered to take our truck so we could park at least a mile from downtown. Rollie's truck might not find a parking spot too close...HE HE :)

We left and stopped at their house and they loaded in and off we went. A good time was had by all and before we could call it a day in Fredricksburg we had to stop at the Wally World up there. You know that is part of fulltiming...you have to stop at all the Wally Worlds in every town you pass through. We picked up more there than all the shops we stopped at in town so it must have been important that we make the stop.

That was not quite enough, however, we stopped at the Gibson's in Kerrville on the way home and made a few purchases there. We are enjoying all this shopping while we can...it wont be long before the ol budget gets tight and we can't do this anymore. Hey why not enjoy it while we can.

Rollie and I were talking and we said that we will have to have a "Gathering of Dreamers" at least once a year so we can all exchange stories of the past years travels. Any thoughts on this?? Please we need to think about it and see if we can all come up with a plan to gather and have this much fun once a year. I would like it to be were the biggest number of Dreamers could get together and have this type of visit...nothing planned day to day other than what we plan at the end of the previous day....What say you Dreamers out there...we need a plan and we can't let this kind of fun fade from our Dreamer Life.

OK that is my spill today can't wait for every ones input on this and I know it will come...

Somewhere in Time

John and Brenda

Gina and Rollie

Mark and Dortha

Anyone remember this couple? I can't recall their names??