29 09 08
Day 5 Route 66
I woke up this morning humming "You and me and rain on the roof." Rainy days make it easy to stay in bed so it was 12:20 when we finally pulled out of camp.
Our route took us by The Tropics, again, from a different direction. I can't believe how hard we looked for it then only to have it keep showing up on its own now.
28 09 08
A Day Off
We're exhausted by all this activity. Today we took a day off to stay parked and catch up on computer stuff. I also managed to work in two naps. We'll be back at it tomorrow as we head towards Springfield, IL, where we'll turn east towards Decatur. There's a lot on the way, though, so it will probably be Tuesday evening before we reach my Dad's. Does that match your date in the pool? Stay tuned for further developments.TTYL,
Linda
28 09 08
Day 4 Route 66
We started day four's Route 66 events at their Hall of Fame and Museum in Pontiac, Illinois. Located in a former fire station, two engine bays are full of glass display cases that are, in turn, full of memorabilia. This is the kind of place you can spend hours looking at stuff. Or you can spend your time talking to the people there. I chose the latter and learned a lot about what has happened along the road and what to see along our way.For instance, the story of patrolling Route 66 that's supposed to be housed in the State Patrol's old District 6 Headquarters isn't there. There might be something in the new headquarters but security is tight there and they didn't answer their non-emergency phone number so we didn't go there.
And the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, while not related to Route 66, is not something a traveler should miss. So, I added it to our list of things to do in Springfield, Illinois. ... (more)
26 09 08
Day 3 Route 66
This morning Dave slept in but we did manage to get out of the campground before noon--nearly 20 minutes before.Our first stop was the Polk-a-Dot Drive In in Braidwood, Illinois. This place is truly a blast from the past. They had figures of Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, James Dean and Betty Boop you could take photos of but they were too shaded for my pictures to turn out well. The tables and counters inside had individual jukeboxes with all songs from my teenage years. And the place looked like something from a way back machine.
Next we drove by the Riviera Roadhouse ... (more)
26 09 08
Two Quart Showers
Our RV carries a total of 35 gallons of water including the 6 gallons in the hot water tank. That means all the water we need for cooking, cleaning, and flushing comes from that 35 gallons. We'd like to be able to camp without hookups for at least a week. Thus, ends the luxury of standing under flowing water while taking a shower.So, here's my new process. First, I only shower every other day. On the in between days I do what my high school gym teacher called a wash-up using a disposable, antibacterial cloth. On shower days, I put a 2-quart pitcher in the shower before I begin.
When I turn on the hot water it, of course, comes out cold. I put that water in the pitcher. As soon as it starts to warm up, I thoroughly wet my washcloth then turn off the water. I now have less than one quart of water in the pitcher.
Then I soap my washcloth and use it to wash me from the top of my head to the tip of my toes. No, you don't have to wet your body first. ... (more)
25 09 08
Day 2 Route 66
Since our first stop of the day doesn't open until 10 a.m., I slept in this morning. Which means we didn't get to the Joliet Historical Society until 11 a.m. Once again we found two parking meters right around the corner from our destination. The meters had a two hour limit which was just about right for our stay.When we entered the museum the woman at the ticket desk said the video was about to start in case we wanted to see it so we hurriedly paid and went upstairs. The video was good and it led us into well developed displays of the history of Joliet, Illinois. When we finished that exhibit we realized we had not seen the "Route 66 Experience" we had come for. Turns out it was on the main floor and free. So we spent some time watching Route 66 highlights on the "drive-in movie" screen. ... (more)
24 09 08
Day 1 Route 66
When we woke up this morning the light outside made me wonder if it was rainy or foggy. It turned out to be a sunny day; we were just parked in the shade. Huh!We spent most of the morning sorting and packing things to leave with our daughter in Chicago to make space and weight available for the solar system we hope to get installed some day. This is our last chance to leave things in the Midwest before heading out so I feel a need to take advantage of that. We still managed to get on the road before noon.
Then we went shopping for diesel and dropped off a large bag of cans at a recycling center. I was very glad to find the center since that bag was getting very full and I hate just putting them in the trash. The center had a row dumpsters marked for various categories of recycling. It made me wish I had a place to sort paper, too. This picture is for Donna. ... (more)
23 09 08
Driving Day
We got another late start this morning. OK it was afternoon by the time we left Celina. Mornings have become quite the challenge since we now sleep on different levels. We went to bed abut 10 last night so I got my nine hours of sleep and woke up about 7 this morning. But, Dave was still asleep. Since he's had several bad nights recently and he'd be doing several hours of driving today, I didn't want to wake him. So I rolled over and went back to sleep. Twice. Finally, about 9:30, Dave got up. During breakfast we talked about that and he said, in the future, I should go ahead and get up if I wake up early. He should do the same. That way we aren't both waiting for the other. Since we both tend to do computer stuff in the morning, with the sound turned off, we wouldn't likely disturb each others sleep if one of us really needs more.All afternoon we were in a mixed Linda mode and driving mode. We drove the two lane highways but didn't stop at any sites Lunch was the only stop we made. ... (more)
22 09 08
Leaving
We've been here in Celina, Ohio, at the Mercer County fairgrounds for nine nights. We think we are finally caught up with ourselves so are ready to move on. But, we have a few things to do in addition to our normal packing up.First, Dave called Winnebago to find out about getting reimbursed for the work Phil did. They said send them the converter and copies of the paperwork. So, we'll be looking for a packing and mailing place on our way out of town.
Then I called my Dad. We'll be in his neighborhood next week and wanted to check to see if he and Jean would be home. They will and we are welcome to come. Jean was surprised when she answered the phone and I was on the other end, though. Seems I called at the time my step-sister, Marcia, usually does. Marcia is currently in Buffalo, NY, seeing her daughter's newest daughter. So, there will be lots of family news to catch up on when we get to Dad's. ... (more)
22 09 08
Let there be light
Saturday evening we were sitting quietly doing computer stuff when the lights blinked. Then they blinked again. Then they dimmed. Then the new LED lights turned off altogether leaving us with one dim overhead light. OK, try not to panic.Number one response--get out our flashlights.
Number two response--call Phil Botnick, the guy who has been doing minor repair jobs on our RV here at the Gypsy Gathering. Yes, the Gathering is officially over but a bunch of us are still here recovering. Luckily for us, Phil is one who is still here.
He is not happy. I mean it's Saturday night; no one wants to work on Saturday night. But he comes anyway, puts a charger on our batteries which makes the lights come back on, and says he'll see us in the morning. We make him promise not to come too early.
So, Sunday morning Phil is here again. Now that he's awake enough to think, he thinks it might be a blown fuse. So he looks. ... (more)
18 09 08
Home Improvement
The Gypsy Gathering is a group of RVers getting together to learn how to make this great lifestyle even better. We attend seminars, visit with vendors of specialty products, visit with each other, and attend social events. We've spent two days attending seminars and two days visiting vendors and getting work done on our RV. We're still doing the second part.We've had the leak by our toilet fixed although the repairman said they used the wrong type of hose and connector for a system under pressure so he recommend we get that replaced some time when we can handle them pulling up the floor to fix it.
That same repairman figured out what we need to do to get our new blinds to work properly. He said our plan to replace the original double stick tape with other double stick tape probably wouldn't work because the heat on the windshield would cause it to let go as well. He was right; it did. ... (more)
15 09 08
Hunker Down
It's been raining for days. It's been windy for days. But nothing like it was here yesterday. We caught the remnants of Hurricane Ike. If that's what remnants are like, I never want to experience the full thing! There was minor damage to buildings and trees here at the Mercer County Fairgrounds but, as far as we've heard, no damage to people or RVs so we have much for which to be grateful.Including being confined to home for awhile. We got a bunch of computer software upgrades installed and I learned to back up my new-to-me Mac. Plus, Dave played his new piano for the first time. Life is good.
TTYL,
Linda
14 09 08
Driving through Indiana
We spent all day Saturday driving though Indiana. OK, half of Saturday since we didn't actually leave the Flying J until noon; they have a good breakfast buffet.It was still raining. It, obviously, had been raining here a lot lately. There were ducks on the ball diamonds. And when we tried to turn into Home Depot to buy tape to fix the window shade, the driveways were flooded so we, and some other people, decided not even to try it. The WalMart parking lot was OK, though, so we got groceries and tape there.
Well, we got most of the groceries. I am allergic to milk. I use non-dairy creamer on my cereal in the morning. I like two brands: Mocha Mix and Coffee Rich. Lately we haven't been able to buy either one. So, Dave went in and out of groceries stores all along our route trying to buy one or the other. We ended up with Lactaid milk which I don't like and which is still milk. ... (more)
14 09 08
City Side
Dave and I both grew up in a city. We've lived in cities all our lives except for the few years the Army sent us to small towns. So, I am amazed at how quickly, once we hit the road, we stopped being used to cities. Traffic and distances that once would not have fazed us at all are now very irritating. But, we will continue to return to cities because our friends and families are there.We spent Friday afternoon and much of the evening with our daughter, Alexa, in the Chicago area. We got to see the house she lives in, the college she attends, the prairie garden she defends from an invading vine, and the vegetable garden from which she helps feed her housemates.
She also helped us shop. We went to Borders Books where we bought guides to Route 66 for a trip we plan to take. We went to REI where we stocked up on freeze dried food and Larabars. And we went to Beltone where I pressured a guy into selling me a badly needed hearing aid part when he just wanted to go home. ... (more)
13 09 08
An Ordinary Day
In the early hours of Thursday morning one of our brand new window shades broke. The shade itself didn't break, the double sick tape holding it let go. After much discussion we decided we did not want to backtrack to Winnebago's service facility already. So, we'll keep our eyes open for a place to buy some heavy duty double stick tape and keep moving east.
Or south as the case may be, since our route took us down a stretch of the Great River Road. For those of you who think Iowa is flat, come drive it's borders sometime. We were going up and down many hills along the west bank of the Mississippi River. We were alternately getting huge views across the countryside and and glimpses of the river. ... (more)
10 09 08
Drive By Geocaching
Yesterday I talked to our daughter to check her schedule since we are headed her direction. She said she had some free time during the day on Friday so we want to be in the Chicago area then. Dave and I picked a route from Forest City, IA, to Chicago and I began researching sites and camping places along the way. I ended up with a list with 40 some entries knowing we wouldn't stop at anywhere near all of them since many are places to spend the night. Unknown to me, Dave was researching geocaches along that same route.This morning we slept late, did some computer stuff, and finally hit the road about 10:30 a.m. I asked Dave if we would have time to see many sights along the road but he indicated we needed to move at a fairly good pace if we are going to meet up with our daughter. So, I was surprised as we were approaching the very first small town on our route and he asked me to get out his GPS and see where the geocache there was. ... (more)
10 09 08
Home Again
Yesterday I slept late--until 8 a.m.! I even got up before Dave did! There is something seriously wrong with me. I hadn't bothered to get dressed yet, though, when the tech knocked at our door about 10:15 to say our parts had arrived if we wanted to come over and have them installed now. I said, "No. We plan to come over just before 11:30 to be first in line after lunch." He was surprised by that but said OK.So, we once again spent the afternoon in Winnebago's customer lounge. They close at 3:00. About 3:10 our tech came out to say the work was done except for the paperwork that was waiting for us at the front desk. So, we started packing up. Then a different guy came over to say it was closing time and our paperwork was waiting for us. So, I sent Dave to do the paperwork while I finished packing. Hey, when I spend day after day waiting I bring lots of stuff, OK? Finally, we headed out the door followed by one other couple. By the time we got in our RV, which was parked right out ... (more)
08 09 08
O Dark Hundred
O dark hundred is what time we say it is when we need to do things before daylight. We had the alarm set for 6 a.m. but Dave was up before then which woke me. It was so dark outside I couldn't see anything except occasional headlights going by. But, having been caught unprepared for the Winnebago service tech last Friday, we were determined to be ready by 7 a.m. today since that's when they said they'd be ready for us. ... (more)
07 09 08
Sleep tight
Dave has slept the last two nights in the bed over the cab. He says, like everything else, it has it's pluses and minuses.One big plus is the even surface. The dinette back cushions are thicker than the seat cushions. Since the back cushions go across the middle of the bed, they raise his hips when he lies on them. The memory foam pad helps cover that but having the memory foam pad on top of the one big cushion of the upper bed is better.
One minus is the lack of headroom in the upper bed. Dave even managed to hit his knees on the ceiling while turning over. That's a drawback to being tall. I figure he'll learn what moves he can and can't make up there just like he learned to not hit his head on cupboard doors in the Free Spirit.
Being tall in the upper bed is better than the dinette bed because, although the cushions are the same length, the dinette bed has head and foot boards which limit his movement while the upper bed has space at ... (more)
06 09 08
Up and at 'em
The alarm went off at 6:15 a.m. Dave got up and dressed and headed over to Winnebago's service department to tell them we are here. I went back to sleep. A few minutes later Dave returned to say they are going to take us in 15 minutes. I flew out of bed and into the bathroom. I had just finished brushing my teeth when someone knocked at the door. The tech was here to check out what we wanted done.Dave explained I needed time to get dressed, which I did amazingly fast, then we let the tech in while I put on my socks. Dave showed him the things that needed fixing and I asked where we should bring the RV. The tech then explained he would drive it from here. Man, we hadn't even had breakfast! So, I ran around grabbing the things I though we would need then the tech drove me over and dropped me off outside customer service.
Inside we found a huge lounge area with a couple of TVs, one at each end, and computer stations in the middle along with a table where ... (more)
05 09 08
Taking Care of Business, part 2
Our first stop yesterday was Alternative Resources where we picked up all sorts of goodies including an application for an absentee ballot. I couldn't remember whether or not we had filled out that form when we were there a few months ago. The employee on duty at the front desk said her rule is, "When in doubt, fill it out." So we did. This will be our first election since we sold our last house so everything about the process is new to us after all these years of voting. Since we work under the theory that, if you didn't vote you don't get to complain, we want to be sure to vote.Next stop was the DMV for our new license plates and my handicapped parking permits. Some of you may have heard that South Dakota implemented a new system for issuing license plate on July 1st this year. That went about as well as new computer systems usually do. But, most of the bugs appear to be out of the system now so it didn't take us nearly as long to get our new plates as we were afraid it might. ... (more)
04 09 08
Time Flies
Day before yesterday Dave hung my clock on the wall of the slide. This is a clock every retired person should have because, it not only tells you the time, it tells you the day and the date. What Dave did not know is that it also keeps track of the time zone you are in. So when I woke up yesterday and the clock said we might not have enough time to get ready to leave by check out time, I flew around here trying to get everything, including my first shower in the View, done in time. While I was doing that, Dave checked the time elsewhere and found out the clock was an hour off. We had lots of time since we aren't currently in the Eastern Time Zone.So, Dave took the time to call Winnebago. Yes, we can buy the cab window shades as after market items; yes, they can install them; no, they don't have any appointments open until October but they are doing a pretty good job of getting in drop ins right now so come on over whenever you are ready. ... (more)
02 09 08
Two Steps Forward...
This morning we tried out our regular routine in the new place. I'm pleased to report it went fine right through breakfast.Then we called the dealer in whose lot we were parked (It was raining, OK?) and asked them what time they wanted to fix our monitor. They did not know we were there, did not know we needed a monitor, and did not have time for us. After much discussion, both on the phone and in person, they offered us a service time next Tuesday at 10:30 a.m., saying that's the best they could do. They did, however, find the missing monitor and gave us a remote for the cab radio they failed to give us when we picked up the RV. So, after buying a 30 amp extension cord and an additional fresh water hose in their store we packed up to leave.
Of course, you know how efficient we've been at leaving. We went a mile or so up the road to RJ's American Grill where I had the same wonderful pasta I had there the day we picked up our View. Then we went next door to the gas ... (more)
01 09 08
Leaving town
As you've probably guessed by now, we didn't get all the way though yesterday's to do list before we went to visit our friends. So, I got up an hour and a half earlier than usual this morning and took a quick shower while Dave gathered the things we still had in the motel room. Then we stuffed everything in the RV without bothering to put things away and headed out--all the way across to the other side of the freeway for breakfast.When we got back to our hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota, nearly three weeks ago we made a list of the places we wanted to eat while here. The only one left on the list was the Original Pancake House so we headed there only to discover that on Labor Day morning the wait for a table was more than an hour. We couldn't do that so we went back to the RV and ate the last of our cereal. Then we stayed in that parking lot long enough to put away all the things we had stuffed in a short while before and headed out again--all the way across the street to a Marathon gas ... (more)
