Where Has Speedy Been?

I woke up this morning thinking when was the last time that I posted on my journal? When was the last time I got on chat? Where has the time  gone? I made some coffee and sat down in my big recliner the think this all out. I know that it has been some time since I have been so neglectful at posting. There have been many things going on in my life here. I have been focused on one thing and that is getting the list of chores done at the lake property so when we come back we don’t have to work when we get here. One other thing that has been getting in our way is the doctor appointments that I have with the VA. They are not very timely for our schedule so being spread out over a vast period of time makes it seem like it last forever.

We had to go to the VA today come to think about it. I had an appointment for 10:40 so we had to get ready early and get on the road. We had gone by Home Depot and picked up insulation for the barn but they loaded the wrong size. We would have to stop and take back the wrong size and then when returned we would pick up the correct size. I have to get all this in the barn before I can sheet rock.

This has been going on since we arrived here last Friday. It has been me working in the cool of the morning and then staying in during the heat…and I do mean heat. It has been in the 100’s here this week and no way am I going to work in that hot barn. In the evening it does cool off but not enough to want to sit outside. The Internet connection here too is lousy! I am going to try and connect and get this to up load but then I don’t know if it will or not. I just hope next week we can leave here and go somewhere that I can get on line.

Until then I will be working on the barn and hoping to finish…

Somewhere in Time

Talk About Nothing Going On

Sherri was off this morning a little late. She was not feeling well so I let her sleep thinking that she was not going in. She had not set her alarm and when I woke up it was 6:00 so one would think that she had made the decision to stay at home….WRONG. I can’t get it right no matter how hard I tried.

I spent the morning cleaning up the inside the best I could. Men don’t have the knack that women have cleaning things up. We do what we  think is right but most of the time it is so far from right.

With that done I decided to head down to the lake and do some fishing. I had all those worms left and no need in wasting them. I got all my stuff together and loaded it down to my spot. I fished for about two hours and caught several nice size perch. I threw them all back. I had a good  time. Soon I packed it in and went back to the RV. When I got there I noticed that Sherri was already back from work. She was setting inside doing her expense report. I did not know that she would be home this early…but it worked out great so now we can do something. We opted to go to Cristina’s for Mexican food and then back home to rest. Sherri and I both are still fighting these sinus things or colds we are not sure what it is but we sure want them to go away. We watched a little TV and then turned in for the night.

Tomorrow we leave out for Wills Point and our lake lot. We have plenty to do there so maybe I will have more to report. Until then stay safe and come back and visit…

Somewhere in Time

Head Cold Today

Sherri slept in the recliner last night so I could get some rest…She snores so load that I have trouble sleeping and…I’m kidding. She is not feeling well so she wanted to sleep setting up so she could breath. I have no trouble sleeping laying… sitting…standing…stooping…squatting…it does not matter to me where when how I can sleep. She has to be a certain temperature with plenty of room to flounce around in. Me I just need it dark and quiet.

She woke up before me…she had to be to work early again. I was not too far behind her. She had coffee made and was already drinking hers when I stumbled into the kitchen. I poured me a cup and joined her. We did not have much time together due to her schedule. She was up and on the go before I got my first cup down. I pulled up to my computer to read some journals and post mine for the day. Soon she was headed out the door and on the road before the traffic got heavy. I finished up my journal entry and then went to the bedroom made the bed and took my shower. I put on some clean clothes and then washed the dishes.

I have a head cold…or maybe it is just sinus…I can’t tell. I do know that I am not feeling well and need some rest. Sherri got home from work about 2:00…I had just taken two aspirin and laid down to try and shake this headache. When she got here I just went ahead and got up backed the truck down  to the Blue Boy and went to the dump. It took one more dump to get it all empty and then I came back inside.

Sherri wanted me to paint her toenails and I did…yes guys I paint toenails…and I do a good job of it too. Her toes look really nice now so she decided to go out to eat at Babe’s. We invited Rodney and Becky to go with us. They met us here at the park and we drove to the restaurant. We first took them around the park to show them some of the other sites here. Becky really loved it….Rodney as usual was HO HUM about it…HE HE fun guy.

We got home about 9:00 and I jumped on chat for just a short moment to see who was there. I was not feeling real chipper so I said my good-byes and went to take a hot shower. The rest of the night was spent reading a couple of journals…eating a little Ice Cream and then I went to bed….

Somewhere in Time  

Empty Nest Once More

 

Yes today our little house guest goes home.

Sherri worked in Denison today so she was gone by the time that I woke up. I could smell the coffee she had made so it was not to hard getting up and following the aroma down stairs. I poured me a cup and settled in behind the computer to read some journals and start the post on mine.

In reading some of the comments on my blog I noticed how many of you were worried about my condition. I had to laugh some being that I exaggerate somewhat when I write. Not that I didn’t have some pain…I did…but I knew I was not dying just foolish for pulling every muscle in my body. Thanks for being concerned about me. Not too many people around here are…until they find out it will effect them in some way and then they want me whole again.

Today was the day that my side kick was going home. I surely will miss him at my side all day long. We have a lot of conversations about many things and share many adventures up and down the roads of these parks we stay at. It is good to have a friend to share things with. Well until he returns I will just have to go solo on my walks around the park.

We started our adventure this morning with a trip to the slides. He took his toy dirt digger as he calls it and played in the sand. Today I just watched and did not participate in the playing. Soon he lost interest in the sand and wanted to go down to the water and throw rocks. I showed him how to skip a rock across the water. We then took target practice at a stick out in the water. We enjoyed this for some time but soon he tired from that and we moved on.

My side kick

Next we went to the RV…Kris was getting hungry and I fixed him some waffles and syrup. After eating he was ready to go fishing. I had to rig his rod up with a hook and bobber. I got that done even with his expert help…HE HE. We got all our stuff and headed down to the lake. We found a shady spot on the bank and got ready for some serious fishing. Kris does well for about the first fish or two and then he wants to real the line in before he has a fish on. It really did not matter he had fun and that is what taking a kid fishing is all about. I hope that he always has someone to take him fishing. So many kids now days grow up with no one to take them to do things. They are just left for society to swallow up and end up running the streets.

What would I do without his help?

We got through fishing and decided to go back to the RV for some R&R. I got him a glass of chocolate milk and we turned on the History channel. Kris sat in the recliner next to mine and soon he was asleep. I too fell asleep and the next thing I knew there was a knock at the door. Janet had arrived to pick Kris up. I  got his things together got him loaded into the car and I gave him a great big kiss and a hug… waved good-bye and stood there in the road as they disappeared out of site. Yes I cried!!! Am I crazy or what? I just keep telling myself he’ll be back…

Somewhere in Time  

Monday Haircut Playground and Fishing

 

Wake up and smell the coffee…So I did. Wow what a morning. It was actually cool outside. Yes I mean like not hot. Sherri and I poured us a second cup and enjoyed the quite for some time before she had to get ready to go to work. She is working in Frisco this morning and had to be there by 7:00.

Sherri got up and went to shower and change and I did a post on the computer. It was not too long before I heard my little buddy talking to his Maw Maw. Well my day is about to get real interesting. I have to get him out of there so Sherri can get ready.

I got the chocolate milk and the cartoons going and then I got myself ready for the day. Sherri left about 6:15 and Kris and I settled in to watch Disney Channel. Not too long after Sherri left she called to tell me that she was coming home. Evidently someone had already done the work she and here co-worker were assigned to do. Hey that is great we can do something today.

Sherri decided to get her hair cut and then we went to Wally World to buy some hooks and worms for fishing. Oh yes Kris has never been fishing and I wanted to be the first to take him. When we returned to the Park we ate our lunch and then I took Kris to the playground.

This was not the place I wanted to die at. I hope that from now on I will remember this day…but I wont…

Sometimes I think my mind must slip out of gear and run backwards for some reason I have not yet figured out way. Kris wanted me to slid down the slides with him and when my mind is running in the correct direction I would say no I will watch you. But for a moment in time I had lost all rational thought processes and I agreed to slide down the slides and chase him up and down the ladders. After the third time down I found myself at the bottom of the slide paralyzed and unable to move my extremities. This is normally a feeling I have when I wake up in  the morning. Here I am in the late afternoon frozen in position at the bottom of a kiddy slide in a Park loaded with people that have more sense than me. OH please God let me get up and walk away from this. Don’t let this be where I die…not on a slide with my grandson hollering come on Poppa lets do it again. Soon I found the strength way down inside of me…you know that strength you find to raise a car off of a person trapped in a life and death situation. I got to my feet and looked around to be sure no one was filming this event and limped over to the park bench to set down.

Kris all the while was still running up and down like the Energizer Bunny and I spent the rest of the time thanking God that he delivered me from this situation without a call to 911. All was well again when Kris remembered the fishing worms and wanted to leave to go fishing.

Kris waits for that first strike!

Yes Kris caught his very first fish ever and Poppa and Maw Maw were there to help him.  We took pictures of the event…and to think I almost missed this.

This is the first fish that Kris caught…yes there is a fish there…look hard

OK look hard and you can see the fish I caught

What a fun filled day and Sherri was here with us to enjoy this adventure…

Somewhere in Time

Sunday on the Move

 

Sunday was a move day and not much going on except for the usual prep work. Sherri got up and went to the barn to finish all the laundry. I was up exceptionally early to get my post off and to ready the RV for travel. We still have our little buddy with us so it takes twice as long to make a move than when we are solo. Sherri only took on one cup of coffee this morning due to the fact that we do not have a bathroom at the barn. Coffee seems to run through us like water in a fountain.

I did want to take this time to tell all my readers how much I appreciate all the comments that you leave. I do hope that my journal brings some smiles to your lives…I know experiencing all the things that happen to Sherri and I bring smiles to ours. We have a good time out here on the road…even though Sherri is working she is off enough for us to have fun together and see and do many things that we never were able to do when I worked.

We will be leaving out today on the road to a new place and a new adventure. My little buddy goes home and I will be alone for the week. Maybe I will have some adult conversation with someone at the new park.

Well better get to work…more later. And here it is later. We are at Hickory Creek settled in our new pull thru space hooked up and ready for the week ahead. We arrived around 3:00 to find out that the folks in the space we had reserved could not be reached. The ranger apologized for the inconvenience and told us we could have any site that we wanted…or we could take a temp site and wait for them to find the MIA’s in site 98…at which time we could move into that site when they left. Sherri and I opted to find us another site which we would not have to move from at a later time. We found site 60 right on the lake which we took. We had to go back up to the gate to sign into that sight and that meant we had to take the trailer with us….how was I going to turn around? We got signed in and I had to leave the park and turn around on the street that intersected the park road. No big deal for us…we are professionals now.

We really came out better this way. Site 60 has a wonderful view of the lake and we have a big front yard to play in. Sometimes things happen for the best and this is one of them.

Site #60 is really better than #89

This is out our front porch

Will be launching the boat from here soon.

We decided to go exploring this afternoon. They have built a new bridge across the lake here that connects the West side of the Lake to the East side of the Lake. It is a toll bridge and it cuts out many miles of travel from where we are located to where Sherri will be working. We loaded up the truck and found our way over to the bridge took a trip across it and wondered around on the other side of the lake to see what there was there to see. We did not stay long due to hunger overtaking us and we were soon back at the RV to find us something to eat. Sherri whipped up a great meal and we ate like there was no tomorrow.

After my dinner settled I was outside to set up the dish for the TV. It did not take long and we were watching…what else…Cartoons. Hey I know it is not the most interesting thing to watch but if little buddy is occupied watching that Sherri and I can play on the computers. I got on chat for a short bit and then it was time to read some emails and journals that I am behind on. Before I knew it…it was 10:00 and time to get to bed.

Not the most exciting day but tomorrow might bring on an adventure never before experienced…

Somewhere in Time

Happy Birthday Franki

Will someone please pull the knife out of my back. If I roll over I will just drive it further into my spine. I did draw my feet up within reach of my hands and yes they are still there…I am experiencing numbness below my neck. I wonder if all this could be connected to me unloading the cargo trailer and then loading it back up again. Who will ever know…If I don’t get down to the kitchen to make coffee this morning I will not be alive to tell anyone what happened.

Yesterday was one of those days that seems like they will never end. Why is it those type of days are filled with hard work and not extreme merriment. Sherri and I after drinking our coffee and doing our usual prep for the day left the RV and went straight to work at the barn. I had to finish hooking up the washer and dryer and then unloaded the rest of my tools from the trailer. Then I had to take all the yard sale totes and boxes out of Sherri’s side of the barn and load them back in the cargo trailer. At the end of that task is when my back started to twist in pain. One more box…one more bag of clothes…one more sack of trash and I would have to be laid to rest.

We did get most of that done…not all…but most and we are on the home stretch in completing our home base. I have to get my shop into some kind of order and Sherri has to get her side insulated…sheet rocked…and painted. If we had a full week to dedicate to this we could finish it up. I will need some time for my back to heal some before I move anything else.

Yesterday was Franki’s birthday. For those of you just tuning in Franki is my granddaughter. She was 2 years old and we had a party at her house. Sherri Kris and I went to Beall’s and shopped for her some clothes and shoes. Her mom is Jennifer the Constable…and she told us that Franki did not need any toys…she needed clothes…so that was our mission. We arrived at the store and immediately lost Sherri in the clothes department. What is it with women and shopping? You turn your back and they are gone…I turned to find her and then noticed that Kris was missing…WEEE this is fun…let me do this everyday. I looked and listened but could not hear a thing so I found a chair with a view of the front door and the check out counter. I knew no one would make it out of the store without me seeing them so I just sat there until they showed up. It did not take long for me to find them…not by site but by the wails of mournful cries coming from Sherri. “Kris stop that” Kris please put that back” “Kris watch where you are going”. I think I have found the perfect solution to prolong shopping trips with the wife….take Kris. Yes it was not long before she was trying to find me. We were reunited and Sherri’s purchases were made very quickly and we were out of there in short order.

We arrived at Franki’s house and had a wonderful birthday party…gifts and cake…and beer. The beer was for my back and nerves which have been severally damaged these past few days. Sherri drove us home after the party…I mention this for any MADD members out there. I mean after all our kids are in law enforcement… you did not think I would have driven home.

That just about sums up yesterday. We have to move out Sunday. We will  be headed to Hickory Creek COE. Sherri has to finish up the laundry that we did not get to yesterday. I will give you the full rundown on the move….

Somewhere in Time    

Washer and Dryer Arrives

Great! Lowe’s showed up with Sherri’s washer and dryer right on time.

The sun was not up when I rolled over to see the clock across the room. It was quiet and I had to stop and think where I was this morning. I finally cleared the cobwebs from my mind and remembered arriving at Tawakoni State Park. OK now I can go and make coffee without having to worry about where I am.

You know when you full time in an RV and you move as much as Sherri and I do you have to stop and think….Where are we this morning. When you stay in one place for a month or so then you know where you are for a while. Just think about it… You wake up in the same bedroom…but it has moved to a different state or town and you have to stop and think each morning what your location is. I have gone down made coffee…poured me a cup…open the front door to go out on the patio and was surprised at the scene in front of me. I had forgot that I had moved.

I know where I am now and the coffee is made. I sat out on the porch and posted my entry for the day…in the dark…with a good Air Card Signal! Life is good. Soon Sherri popped out the door and we talked about getting the washer and dryer today and how she would watch our house  guest while I got all the hook ups done. We had a plan now all we had to do was get ready to go over to the lot and get to work. I would start with the electrical hook up in the box and then run the wire to the front of the barn where the washer and dryer would be located. I had purchased all the necessary supplies the week before.

We headed on over as soon as Kris woke up and I got started with my part. Sherri sat with my buddy…who really wanted to help me…but decided to play instead. I got the breakers wired in and the lines run to the plugs about the time that Lowe’s showed up. They got everything put in the barn and we were happy campers now. Sherri would soon be able to wash clothes at our home port and not have to worry about finding a laundry mat.

First the breakers had to be wired. I will have to come back and put the wire in conduit when I have more time.

Pulled the wires down the shop wall and ….

…into Sherri’s room. Now all I have to do is run the water and the drain.

About 1:00 it got too hot for me to work inside so Sherri suggested that we quit for the day and go home and eat. It did not take long for me to agree and we did just that. When we got home Sherri fixed some salad with chicken in it and I sat down and ate. Kris as usual was not hungry and wanted to go out and play in the pool…Me being the tuff grandparent that I am…went outside and aired up his pool so he could swim. I wanted to get in the pool with him but it was too small so I just sat on the porch and turned the fan on me and watched him have fun.

 Kris got to cool off in his pool

Well I guess underwear is OK for a swim.

No nap today…so when it cooled off enough to get back to work we headed back over to the barn to finish up the task at hand. While working my daughter the constable dropped by to say hello. I did not have pictures of her since she was put on patrol…so she let me take one for the post here.

The Constable showed up to arrest us…

Jennifer came by to see her Mom and Dad. She was just getting off duty…well like she said she is never off duty.

Well it got too dark to work and I still had a couple of things to finish up so I guess it will have to wait until the morning. Sherri will have to do her wash in the morning when I finish. We went back to the park and settled in for the night. We all got our showers and it was not too long and my little buddy was asleep in Maw Maws arms. I put him to bed and then made me a peanut butter sandwich…did the dishes…woke Sherri up and we both went to bed.

That was it for this day….

Somewhere in Time

Thursday on the Road.

We made it to Tawakoni State Park and found a great site. We have full hook-ups here.

OH NO my eyes came open and I know that it must be time to get up and get ready to leave again. It is Thursday morning and we are going to Wills Point… the money refueling stop in our life on the road. Coffee has to be  made this morning and it has to be consumed by us so we can remember how to get there. If it were not for coffee and road maps Sherri and I would be two lost balls in the tall weeds.

I cannot remember who made it up and down to the kitchen to make the coffee but my money would be on Sherri. I am not as fast out of the sack as she is. I did get a cup and drank it down while posting my journal on line. We had a fairly good Internet connection at Tall Pines and I could get on early and post before our house guest got up and started demanding all my time.

I must say this…I love keeping my little buddy. He is the only child that has ever really loved me with all his heart. Non of my kids ever loved on me as much as he does. They all tolerated me to some extent and that was about it. My little buddy on the other hand loves me unconditionally. We are pals till the end. So if you ask yourself….Why does this man take on this responsibility…you will know.

OK moving right along…We have to pull out this morning and head West. Sherri mentioned that we would need to do some washing before we left so she got two loads together and Kris and I went to the laundry mat to do them. He and I had the oh so familiar talk about him being good and not running wild. You know that really does some good for about the first five minutes you are there and then the gloves come off…his gloves. Mine…well they stay on cause he is so cute. We had a fairly calm time at the laundry and we did get the clothes washed and dried.

During this whole process I went and picked up some burgers for us all to eat. Sherri took over the clothes and Kris and I went to get diesel for $2.59 and burgers for the same price each. When we returned we ate our lunch and I hooked up the house dumped the tanks and pulled out.

We only had to make one Pee stop on the way. Most all those are emergencies with a 3 year old. They don’t feel like they have to Pee until they HAVE to Pee! I pulled off at the next exit,,,you know you do not have time to research a good place to pull off…you just take the next exit and pray that there is someplace to inch off the road. Of course the first place we stopped was not a good one so I scouted out another and it was good so the pit stop was successful.

The rest of the trip was uneventful…other than the Cars Movie not coming on when it was suppose to. And then I forgot to put the truck back into Tow-Haul and it started down shifting…but that was all corrected.

Plenty of room for my little buddy to ride around on the 3 wheeler.

This is our view from the patio

The weather said that it might rain this weekend so Sherri and I decided to stay at the State Park down the street from our lot. We don’t have the driveway in yet so we thought it would be better not to get stuck out on the yard. We have to pull out for Lake Lewisville Sunday morning and did not want to have to call Good Sam to pull us out.  Tawakoni State Park has full hook ups here…yes sewer! We really like it here and don’t have to worry about dumping. We are in Site 69 with an extra wide drive so the little guy can ride his 3 wheeler all over.

Well here I am once more at the end of my post. I will get on chat tonight and see what all my Dreamer friends are up to. I will post some pictures of our site and then I will get ready for this…another day….

Somewhere in Time

Funeral in Shreveport

Tuesday morning Sherri and I woke up to the sound of rain on the roof. Yes it was raining…not hard…but a steady patter of rain that was telling me to stay in bed and close my eyes…it was trying to lull me back to dream land.

We had to get ready to go on a unpleasant journey…one that Sherri and I have had to face so much in our life here lately. We had to go to a funeral here in Shreveport. One of Sherri’s cousins died last weekend and her funeral was today. Seems like the older you get the more funerals you have to attend of family and friends.

This is why Sherri had to buy our little house guest a new set of clothes for today. He did not have dress up clothes with him so we had to outfit him in some new duds. Actually for that matter I did not have too many dress clothes. We always said that we needed to keep some nice dress up clothes in the RV for those occasions that you would have to dress up. Luckily I had enough good things to wear without having to go shopping myself.

The funeral was at 11:30 and we would be driving over there with Sherri’s brother Danny. He came by and took me and Kris out to eat breakfast while Sherri was getting ready to go. We ate at Cracker Barrel and enjoyed a good breakfast. Kris conducted himself in a good grown up manner and I was real proud of him.

We arrived at the funeral…and as all funerals go it was sad and somber. Well for the grown ups…Kris on the other hand found the kneeling bench behind the pews and began to lift it up and down at an alarming rate. I tried to prop my foot up against it to keep him from doing that but to no avail. Then at one point when I turned around to say HI to a couple of friends setting behind us Kris took off. Yes up the aisle to the back of the chapel. I bolted for the aisle and tried to  grab him once and fell forward nearly falling to the floor. The folks on the far side of the building could not see Kris ahead of me running… all they could see was a fat old man stumbling down the aisle grabbing at something. The OOOs went out and I had to run faster. I caught him right before he headed out the door.

OK that was the end of the service for me. Sorry Joy I love you and will miss you but I had to restrain my grandson before he reeked havoc at your funeral. He and I circled the building outside until I started getting light headed from the heat. I talked him into going inside for a while…big mistake…and we went to the family room and sat down.

My eyes soon cleared and I notice Kris had disappeared! My gosh where on earth could he have gone. I left the room and looked up and down the hallway…no Kris…I did notice a door that was open near the end of the hallway. That was the door to a viewing room! OH MY GOD! Yes the worst fear I could dream up was now a reality. Kris was in another viewing room with a poor soul we did not know. I quickly went and grabbed him and we said our good-byes to whoever. Who is that Poppa? Why is him laying in that box? OK that is a question that I will have to answer at a later date.

Still have not figured out why the boy and I went to the funeral…being that we either one attended the service. I think it made his Maw Maw happy and that is what counts.

The graveside was not much better. It was a rainy day and then the sun broke out and the humidity went through the roof. We had brought some umbrellas incase it started raining. Kris had to hold one and soon he was running through the crowds…umbrella hitting folks about knee level. People jumped around trying to miss the little guy. This was a very unique service…one like no other I had attended in some time.

We did make it back to the RV later that afternoon. It was good to be home and have Kris where he could do no harm to the living or the dead. God I love that little guy but he is no fun at funerals!

The rest of the evening was spent on the computer visiting on chat and reading journals. Sherri Bejeweled and Kris played on the floor with his trucks. Tomorrow we head out of here to our lake lot and no Internet. I hope I will be able to communicate with you…

Somewhere in Time.    

Tall Pines RV Park Louisiana

I have been so far behind on reading Journals and posting on my own that I feel lost. It is Tuesday and we are settled in here at Tall Pines.We had an uneventful trip here that took us about 2 hours to complete. My little short guy helped me set up the outside stuff and then went in to help his Maw Maw put the slides out. He is such a good helper and we enjoy having him.

After we got everything set up it was about 5:30 and we were all hungry. Sherri suggested that we go down the road to Jan’s Catfish Restaurant. We love their catfish and hush puppies. They have the best coleslaw and beans too. We ate like a bunch of field hands and then headed for…Where Else…Wally World…Sherri wanted to get Kris and pair of pants and a new shirt.

There is not much more to report for this day. Travel days are boring…unless you stop and site see and we did not this trip. We took Kris walking…he likes to ride his three wheeler while we follow behind. I know that I must have walked a couple of miles a day with him. It is good for me and I don’t mind…just really tired.

OK maybe I will have more excitement in my post next time. Sorry I have been so slow in posting but Internet is not always what you want it to be…

Somewhere in Time