Briefly…….I attempted to get on here tonight…..and nothing on the right hand side shows up…..for ALL of my previous posts!!! GONE are the links, my picture(gravatar), archives, etc., etc……and, I cannot get to anything unless I constantly sign in.
Stay with me….I have sent a request to the support forum for ideas…..I may just have to start over and add all of these things back on…..DAMN!!!!! But….what happened???? I don’t want it to happen again……….
More later………
Whew…..not a relaxing weekend, but…….that is to be expected….eh???
After getting up…….I put on the in-room coffee maker….and out came some very, very weak “coffee”. UGH!!!!! Went to the “coffee shop”, purchased a cup and then a chocolate croissant…..and both were terrible. UGH!!! And….there is not another place to purchase what they call coffee here. A few things might help if they changed a few of them…….
Went on down to the marina and sat around talking with Darrel and watching Max do some fishing. Two weeks ago when they were here, he outfished the entire family……like 18 little perch he caught!!
After a morning where Dr Jeni and kids, the 1st Lady and Rachel spent in the pools, we all loaded into the boat and went up close to the toll bridge across the lake, went into a more open cove and had our lunch there…….bobbing around waaaayyyyy tooo much as the huge boats were really creating the wakes/waves which in this very open cove, just came rolling into it. As soon as we finished lunch……we left there and returned to the Marina.
Dropping me off, they went back to the same cove we were at yesterday…..and did some swimming there. Me???? I jumped into the car and went to the Starbucks a few miles from here, got my free cup of coffee by returning the Starbucks bag which their beans are sold in…….bring the bag back and you get a free cup of coffee!!!
From there…..I made a quick stop at the brand new Menards Store…….as Darrel says…it is Lowe’s on steriods!! An absolutely incredible and huge store with wonderfully low prices and soooooooooo much more than what Lowe’s or Home Depot stocks. Just an incredible store!!!!!!!!!!!
The family returned and picked up Darrel’s parents and his sister and her family for a little ride on the Lake. Later they called and told me to meet them at the pool area……and we ordered some items for dinner to eat by the pool. My order was not that good, but the Margaritas that I purchased from the outside bar down by the pool were quite good!!!
I turned down the offer to get back on the boat and go on the Lake to watch the Memorial fireworks show provided by the Lodge of Four Seasons…..opting to watching from our room patio, which turned out to be an excellent viewing location!!!
Basically, in an nutshell, that is the day we had……busy, but a beautiful day weather-wise. I am putting on many pictures today to give you a little visual “taste” of the day………better to see than to read…..right???
Max…..loves to fish!!! And, he does a great job of catching them!!
Rachel…..ready to ride out of the Marina on the front of the cruiser.
And….as always…..
LIFE IS JUST INCREDIBLY GREAT!!!!!!!…..And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!
We were up and on the way out of the sticknbrick by 7:50 this morning…..and, exactly four hours later, we were pulling into the parking area for the Lodge of Four Season Marina, here at Lake Ozark!!! Traffic was very heavy the entire trip, slowing our normal driving time by almost 30 minutes…….just lots and lots of travelers on the highways!
Darrel, Dr. Jeni, Meghan, Ava, and Max…….all were excited that we were here…..and lots of laughs and giggles and squeals as we hung out on the boat for a couple of hours. About 2pm, I went up to the Lodge lobby and checked in to get our room. Oddly enough, we are in the room exactly next to the room we had last year, overlooking a lovely swimming pool and a view of the lake.
A check of the wifi here……disappointing….VERY disappointing for a 1st Class resort hotel!!!! More on that later…….not necessary to get negative this evening! Darrel had decided to change the slip and the Marina dock number, so before we headed out onto the Lake, we had to move over to the other slip…..it is brand new dock and without nearly as many people. Interestingly……..those who moor their yachts and cruisers here year round use them as their “hotel rooms”……as they are all large enough with bedrooms and baths to not need a hotel room. Soooo, their lawn chairs, patio carpets, etc., etc. begin to spread out over the walkways of each dock…..and, with moving to the new facility, there are very few large yachts moored there…..yet. Soooo, it is very quiet where they moved to!
We headed out onto the lake, lots and lots of cruisers/yachts and those “cigar boats” that plow back and forth up the channel, making it a bit rough for anything except the large boats. We had no trouble…..as they have two bedrooms, bath/shower, and complete galley along with flatscreen tv’s etc., etc.
“Grammy” and Rachel enjoying some great conversation as they roar across the Lake of the Ozarks.
We anchored in the small cove which they normally use……totally undeveloped and was also very calm waters…..just great for swimming. And…..that was the main activity for the rest of the afternoon/early evening! The four kids had great fun, as well as Grammy and Dr Jeni/Darrel playing in the cool waters of the Lake of the Ozarks!!!
1…2…THREE….and jump!!!!
Max…..enjoying a moment after jumping into the Lake from the side of the cruiser.
On the return to the Marina……sitting on the top of the cruiser!
A great afternoon……and as we approach the Marina….the sun begins to fall behind the trees and hills.
Around 7pm, we decided it was time to return to the Marina and after tying up the cruiser…..we all went up the road, out of the Lodge facilities, and down the road to Lil Rizzo’s……a super Italian restaurant where the 1st Lady and I had lunch last month with my sister/husband and our friends from England who were here visiting us. AND…..this evening was no exception……just fantastic food…..incredible pizzas, not mention the baskets of garlic rolls…and, the wonderful server who spent lots of time with us to see to our every need!!!!! Again…..I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this restaurant!!!!!!!!! It has won the Best Italian Restaurant at the Lake of the Ozarks area for 2010, 2011, and 2012!!!!!!! You won’t be disappointed!!!!!!!!!
Back to the Lodge facilities…….we left them at their cruiser for the night and Rachel came with us, and as well, Meghan…..and we went up to our hotel room. The night is quite warm and VERY humid…….and, it is quite nice to get into our room with the cool a/c. Their cruiser has a/c down below in the rooms, but who the hell wants to stay below deck when out on the Lake in the summer weather?????????!!!!!!
Sooooo, a great day……..the four grandchildren were great……..and, not only are we all here for this extended weekend, but we all be together at Myrtle Beach by next Thursday evening for the following 8 days!!!!!! Water rats we are!!!!!!!! ( and, I don’t swim….drowned in a previous Life!!!).
Life IS JUST REALLY, REALLY WONDERFUL!!!!!!!!……And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!!!
WHEW!!!! This will be short…..my body is screaming out soooo loudly that everyone can hear it…without a doubt. The past two days have been non-stop…….preparations for the upcoming weekend (beginning tomorrow) and which we will return from late Monday night. Then bright and early Tuesday morning……we hook up the 5er and off we go for the next three weeks!!!
It has not been easy to get things ready for the long trip and at the same time prepare for this weekend……and in some categories they overlap!!! Big difference??? We will be staying at the Lodge of the Four Seasons for the weekend which is a REALLY nice place to spend a weekend. As Darrel and Dr. Jeni have their 43′plus cruiser moored their year round, they can get us a discount on rooms at the Lodge……which is great!
http://www.4seasonsresort.com/
It is only about 200 miles over there to the Lake in central Missouri, so we will arrive there about noon tomorrow……and return here to the sticknbrick Monday night. This Lake of the Ozarks is my home area…….born and raised only 10 miles from the Lake, so it was a good place of employment for myself and many other young people during the late 50′s/early 60′s. A HUGE lake, held back by Bagnell Dam…….it is 170 miles long, give or take a few miles….and has 1300 miles of shoreline as there are tons of coves. A wee statement about my connection to this place…..my grandfather operated the ferry which ran across the Osage River, prior to the building of the damn…..the only way to get across the river.
Rachel is with us tonight and will be with us at the Lake. We went to Cape G this morning…..picked up Becky and Rachel and visited Mike. Returning to Cape, we did a bit of quick shopping at Sam’s….and then hurried on back late afternoon. I had not finished everything for the RV yesterday….some last minute tasks this evening…..and a few more last minute things to load on Monday evening. Then, with any luck, we will be on our way east Tuesday morning, with only a brief stop to let Rachel out in Cape. She and her mom, Becky, will drive to Myrtle Beach mid-week….arriving on Friday. They have a condo there and will not be RVing with us….and, with Darrel and Dr. Jeni in their motorhome. Darrel and Meghan are leaving west STL on Tuesday and will drive down in two days. Dr. Jeni, along with Ava and Max, will fly down on Thursday……easier to fly down with the two little ones.
Soooo, there you have the plans for the next few days. Hopefully, I can post some pics from the weekend!!!!! Never know about these hotels and wifi………unreal how far behind sooooo much of our country is with wifi in comparison with other nations around the world!!!!
Soooo, as always…….
LIFE IS JUST REALLY, REALLY GREAT!!!!!!…..And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!
Always…..ALWAYS…the last few days before we leave for a journey in the RV are just as I said in the above title……..HELLISHLY HECTIC. There as been so much to finish up, and I am taking this break at 3pm to write this…..because, I may be unable to get it done this evening.
Monday….I worked around the RV, inside and out…..managing to wax the front end of the RV without falling off of the ladder as it was delicately balanced on the very edge/lip of the driveway. And……I had to get up one step from the very top to reach the top of this front end…and that was even after I lowered the front end of the RV all the way to it’s lowest point……just a wee bit nerve wracking as my body was leaning on the RV as I reached upwards to get to the top, without LOOKING up. Had I done that, I definitely would have had a tumble. BUT….never fear, I had no problems at all.
I did discover some propane fumes located around where the propane tanks are stored, so…..Monday evening I used some liquid soap to make some bubbles and to put them onto the connections and short hoses…..and…..YEP, there was one area where the bubbles got bigger and bigger as the propane leaked out. Sooooo…..
Yesterday, off I went to Griffon’s Trailer Town north of here about 25 miles. This is the place that has such marvelous service and that I have recommended to all of you to stop there, or go there, if you need some work completed. They did have a gas assembly hose attachment, just like what I needed. Got it home….and, OMG….I could NOT get the old one off!!!!! I put liquid wrench onto the connections, etc., etc……and, finally had to go out and purchase vise grip and after much struggling(age brings on weaker strength/muscles), I FINALLY got it loose and it then came right off…..and, the new one went on in about 45 seconds!!!
Did I mention that I mowed half of the yard on Monday afternoon, prior to waxing the front end???? Soooo, by the evening, I was exhausted!!! However……after getting the gas hose assembly, I finished mowing the rest of the lawn yesterday. Not to mention getting all 68 of my graying hairs cut……..WAAAAYYYYY tooo short. My normal/usual hair cutter has been transferred from the Farmington Great Clips up the road about 50 miles. Sooooo, damn it….I had to take whomever the young lady was that was anxiously awaiting a customer. And………cut away she did!!!!!!! I now look as if I am ready to raise my hand for the oath to join the US Military!!!!!! Not to my liking, however……I really do believe that it will grow out…..unless she exposed those delicate 68 hair roots to such intense sunlight, of which they are not used to having happen to them, all snuggled down within my fine wisps of hair!
I began late yesterday afternoon to get things put back into the storage basement of the RV…..and, today I finished the tasks. Those damn beach chairs do not want to spoon and nestle like my other chairs do…..and so, they take up tooooo much space…..DAMN!!! However, I believe that everything that is needed to be stored below is almost completed and in place there.
Today….???? It is all still very much a work in progress!!!! When at Griffon’s yesterday I also needed to purchase a vent cover for the vent which comes out on the roof…and the cover was dead dry from the sun…….gray, not white…..and brittle so that the least touch and it would chip off. OK…bought a new one and installed it today…..and now have to get a bit of caulking around the screws that used…….but the sun is way too intense to work on that white(??) roof.
Had a neighbor/friend over this morning for coffee….Keven Jenkins of F’town…..and try as we could, we found it impossible to solve the problems of our world….however, he loved the coffee I make and we drank the entire 12 cup pot while he was here (Starbucks Fr. Roast)…and the beans I had ground this morning.
Then as I was working around the RV, I was startled by a male voice….and there stood a former trombone player of mine, who does live here in town, but our “paths never cross”. Sooo, we had just a super time catching up!!!! Jeremy Mooney, it was great to see and visit with you!!!
The 1st Lady has stopped in the west part of STL, Chesterfield Valley Shopping Mall….and is purchasing a thing or two for the baby shower of Jay and Anne-maries…….to be held in Washington, DC….while we are in town. Her brother and family live in D.C…..and are hosting the shower. And…..after just talking with her, I told her to get on down here as we are invited out to the Hanner House for fish sandwiches and to watch the finale of the “American Idol”. Never stops……go…go…go…go…go…go……always!!!!!!
OH…..I forgot to mention….the 1st Lady had ordered a 21′ x 8′ outdoor patio carpet a week or so ago…..and yesterday it arrived. Still trying to adjust to it…..and, so are the birds which I have been feeding at the edge of the patio. Well…..I took the feeder down as I want to be CERTAIN that she likes it and doesn’t want to return it……and so, I didn’t want the bird shit to fly all over everywhere as it normally does when they are dining sooooo wonderfully at my feeder. Well, the damn birds when they came to for dinner, they were sooooo confused and upset that they couldn’t find the feeder with their dinner inside!!!! I had “hidden” it over where I keep some brooms, etc ….out of sight, out of mind.
This morning…….hmmmm…..they FOUND the damn thing and there were shells of the sunflower seeds and shit…..quite a messy combination all over our chairs and the new carpet!!!! PISSED, I was….and still am!!! I did get it cleaned up, but……not sure where I will put the feeders now.
I took a few pics on Monday…….someone wanted to see the Mountain Laurel Andromeda shrubs which I purchased, so below are a couple of pics, as well as the lovely and sooooo graceful Maidenhair Fountain Grass……of which we have several around the yard. I could watch these grasses blowing in the winds and breezes forEVER!!!!! They are just gorgeous in the early evening setting sun, with the dark shadows and the not so intense sunlight on the lawn. Just REALLY, REALLY love them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mountain Laurel Andromeda….a lovely bush with lots of variegated colors.
Three of these bushes along the north side of the house….will get to be 4-6′ tall and about 4-5′ wide
Such lovely movement…..
The largest one in the yard…..(not our trees)
And, albeit they are a bit blurry, as they are quite a long distance photo of a few of the yellow finches that came for dinner, which wasn’t there!!!!! Sooooo…..it isn’t your eyes going bad….they are just a wee bit out of focus as I didn’t have my tripod to steady the camera for those long shots.
And so……this has been a myriad of topics and subjects from these “hellishly hectic” days I have had!! I hope you read all of this carefully……as I may have a pop quiz on the next writing and give you a test of your memories….to see how well you understand the subject matter of today’s post! And….as always…..
LIFE IS JUST REALLY INCREDIBLY GREAT!!!!!!!…….And, I really hope it is for YOU, also!!!! (5 more days until we head east!!)
I really needed a filter, but with the camera which I have……it doesn’t have a place to screw on a filter. Yep…..as good as this camera is for me with some incredible pictures, there are some very basic items not available for this one. But…..without seeing the eclipse……I feel certain that I am not alone! Did any readers get the opportunity to view it???
This has been a rather long day……after a great night’s sleep!!! I simply puttered around doing some various things that needed to be completed…..such as trimming down…..lowering the top….of a corner bush that is a FAST grower. And it had reached the gutter on the roof….so, it was past time to bring it back under MY control.
I did a bit of cleaning………prepared the trash for the pick-up tomorrow, including a bag of recycling items. The place really doesn’t get all that messed up with only the sagging hulk of Me living here for these few days alone.
Watched a bit of tv…….did some reading….took a small nap…..nibbled a bit more than I should have, but just seemed to be in the mood for nothing special, but lots of non-special things that were in the fridge. Weight gain??? I hope not!
It began to cloud up later this afternoon……and…….wonders will never cease!!!! We had a bit of rain….not much, probably not even a quarter of an inch…..but it did seem to freshen up things just a tiny tad! I talked with the 1st Lady a few times today….and it was cloudy almost all day up there.
Late this afternoon Kyle and Audra Bastie came over to take a tour of our RV. They are contemplating purchasing one for their family……and, so they wanted to view the interior of mine. We discussed several different aspects of rving….and what is needed for one is different for each family. However, the over-riding factor is to be certain to get one that is large enough for the family you have…….or, you will soon be wanting to return to your sticknbrick due to lack of space and a wee bit of privacy from time to time. But…..sometimes anyone who has never spent more than a weekend in a trailer……they cannot get the entire picture for being in a travel trailer….not a 5th wheel…..for any length of time and how the walls begin to move in and squeeze everyone.
We have been using some type of rv since the spring of 1972……yep, FORTY YEARS!!!! Didn’t think about it that way until just this afternoon……..guess we do have just a wee bit of experience(s) in using them! Lots to think about, lots to try to understand and know about……before you actually sign on the dotted line. The more a newbie can talk about rving to someone who has done a bit of it, the BETTER the newbie will become in attempting to make the correct decision as to the size and type of rv to purchase!!!!
I had an interesting email in the past 24 hours from friends out west. They had been glad that I put the link on this blog yesterday….the link to the rv resort in Myrtle Beach where we will be by the end of next week. And…..I am going to put one on here this evening as the rv resort where we will be just north of Washington DC. But, I digress……….the main thought I had was that the 1st Lady and I have traveled soooooo much over this country and Canada……the better part of North America(including our 8 weeks up to Alaska many years ago)……we have seen soooo many places, visited soooo many wonderful and exciting and energetic cities, but also many quaint little places also. It rather shocks me to realize that this is not the “norm” for many people…….we are just so used to traveling around the country and, the world.
Our great and fun friends have not been to the Carolinas……which makes me wonder if they have not been to D.C.??? THAT is such a fabulous and wonderful city…….one of the very best cities in our country………each time I am there and as we get ready to depart DC, I get a bit depressed because I realize how MUCH we didn’t get to see while there. Yep….been there at least 10 times….and perhaps more than that……and I just feel cheated when it is time to leave!!!!! I am soooo excited about being there again….for almost a week this time…..but, I know that I will feel the same way as always…….like there just was not enough time to do everything I wanted to do, including showing Rachel and Ava the wonders of this great city!!!! DAMN!!!!!! (And….I am getting old(er) and each time could be the last for me)
I think….I meditate….I “ponder”…..I wonder just how long time will give me to finish up my Life????!! Do I really want to know???? Of course not! My only hope is that when my time is “up”…….that I get out of here quickly!!!!!!!!!!! But…..don’t we all feel that way???? I ran into someone this week that I had not seen in quite a long time….and I was asked as usual….”John….how the hell are you?” And……as always, I replied, “As far as I know I am just great, but I have not the foggiest about what is going on inside this shell of mine…..don’t know what is happening to my body inside!” And…..most of us don’t, do we??
I am going to have to begin to make some notes…..each day, as I oftentimes find myself saying mentally that I really do need to “write about this idea/thought”….and, OMG….I forget about it a bit later and cannot recall what I wanted to discuss on here. Usually it occurs when I am sitting on the patio and having my coffee……looking at the birds going wild over the seeds in the feeder…..and just thinking……thinking…..thinking…..
Much is just about……Life. I was brought around to this thought again this morning after last night when I watched a DVR’d episode of “GLEE”…..the one that was shown this past week. In watching the choir director discussing/talking about his students and what he wanted them to know…..not just music/dance…..but about Life and what it takes to actually live Life!!! And…….that was my prime objective with each passing year of teaching…..and by the last 10 years or more…….that was an even more intense goal of mine. I only hope that I was able to do that for them…..and, I think I was.
LIFE IS JUST REALLY, REALLY INCREDIBLE!!!!!!!!…….And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!! (And, I hope you think it is “INCREDIBLE!!!!!”, also)
Been stationary waaaaayyyyy tooooo long, so the countdown has begun for our East Coast departure!!!! Many things left to do, to assign to others, or….to just not get completed. We’ll see…………….
The above website is where we will be staying at Myrtle Beach……been there many, many times over the years. However…it has been quite a few years since we were last there so we are anxious to see the improvements that have been made. Check it out, if you have not been there!!!!!!!
LIFE IS REALLY, REALLY GREAT!!!!!!……And, I hope it is of all of you, also!!!!!!
LIFE IS TOOOOO SHORT TO STAY IN ONE PLACE!!
