11/7 More Campfire Stories

First I have to say that we had a wonderful day with our granddaughter. Build-a-Bear is a fantastic place for kids to see their own stuffed animal become reality & have a hand in its creation. Needless to say the bear was stuffed, given a heart, bathed, clothed, & named. A birth certificate was created & voila a memory was created for us & our granddaughter.

Now for a story for the campfire. When something doesn't go exactly as planned & we survive I consider this fodder for the blog or stories around the campfire. Some call it "something to laugh about later". Well as I mentioned before we were helping our youngest son, Charlie, move back to Pinellas County. We borrowed a trailer from a friend & headed towards east FL to pick him up. Around Lakeland the trailer broke loose at about 60mph. After a panic filled move to the side of the road we got out to see the damage. The trailer did not break loose from the ball which is usually the weakest point in a tow vehicle/trailer hookup. No we have to be different. The trailer actually broke in half. The tongue separated from the rest of the trailer. That means that the only connection was the light wiring harness. Realizing that there was no reason for me to have been able to get to the side of the road gave me a "poop-in-my-pants" moment. Damn lucky is all I can say.

Is this the end of our story? Noooooo! While we were figuring out what to do next a mattress comes flying past us. The truck it flew out of turned in the median & came back for it. The poor guy couldn't get it because the idiots on the interstate wouldn't stop for the 20 seconds he needed. So Mary & I took it upon ourselves to stop traffic. One driver tried to drive around us which just ticked Mary off. She stepped in front of the driver & dared her to move. Literally seconds later traffic was moving.

My friend said he would come for his trailer & that we should go on. So on we went while Mary called for a U-Haul in Sanford. We picked up the rental, got Charlie & his stuff, & hit the road back. With all the excitement we still made the 250 mile round trip in only 6 hours!

Today we went to the state fair with friends. With "chamber of commerce weather" it was going to be a good day. As is custom at the fair we walked a lot, ate too much "not-good-for-you" food, & saw a couple of shows. We checked out the vendors & crafters but didn't find anything we couldn't live without. Almost 7 hours later we had had enough & headed home.

Today is only Tuesday & I don't know if we will survive the week since the rest of it is booked pretty full. Tonight will be an early night so this is good night from a very tired house in Largo FL because.....

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary

11/6 Busy Busy Busy

Once again I want to know where all my retirement "free time" went. The past 2 weeks we have volunteered at school, found time to get sick, get to the doctor, install new window shades, all in addition to cooking, cleaning, & laundry. Then just to make it interesting we volunteered for the elementary school Valentines Dance & the trailer park's variety show.

The school dance was fun. We picked up 40 or so pizzas, several trays of garlic knots, plus salad trays, dressing, & containers of dipping sauce. The truck still smells like an Italian wedding. We helped dish out food & then just enjoyed watching all the kids having fun. As usual Mary was the unofficial photographer with pics to be seen on Mary's FB page.

The variety show was another story. A bunch of seniors just out to have fun. There was singing, dancing, & comedy skits. We got roped into an old married couples version of the Newlywed game. There were embarrassing questions & even more embarrassing answers but at least we didn't have to sing or dance. Mary & I actually wound up winning the game with the tie-breaking question so I will say that it was fun. After the show there was refreshments & the opportunity to meet with our fans. They were quite surprised & amused at some of our answers. Again it was just about having some fun. More pics on FB.

This week the insanity continues. A granddaughter's birthday, helping our youngest move, the State Fair & who knows what else. I am going to need my rest so I will close for now from our busy, busy, home in Largo because......

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary

11/5 And Life Goes On...

First let me thank everyone for the kind thoughts on our loss. Foxy will be missed but we always have our memories. With that said life & blogging must go no. We are still volunteering at school & trying to get together with friends & family before our April 1st departure. Where is the time going? We have 2 months, 8 weeks, 58 days how ever we count it the time is coming & quickly.

The next weeks we will be heading up to Tarpon Springs, going to the State Fair, & the Strawberry Festival. That means Greek food, corn dogs, funnel cakes, & strawberry shortcake. Where ever we go we always seem to find good food. Not necessarily "good for you" food but good tasting food. The watch word will be moderation. We will also stay away from the scale for a while.

Well we are ready to hit the road with friends so I will be signing off now & locking up our home here in Largo because.....

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary

11/4 A Bummer Of A Bkog

This is the blog that I was dreading having to write. Today we had to put Foxy to sleep. Her health has been failing this past year & more so the past month. Yesterday she showed signs of an infection. The vet determined that it was an infection from an abscess tooth that would require sedation & an extraction. Because of her age (15 years old) & her diminished lung capacity she was not a good candidate for the procedure. It was time for the "decision" that is the hardest thing a pet owner has to do. We tell ourselves it is best for her, it is the right thing to do, it wouldn't be fair to keep her alive for us but it doesn't really make us feel any better. It will take time to get used to her not being around. No more walks in lousy weather, no more picking up poop, no more Foxy getting underfoot. Those are some of the things I will miss.



Well it has been a bummer of a day & I just don't feel like blogging anymore. So I will cut this off now & spend the time needed to console Mary & have her console me in our suddenly empty & saddened home in Largo because....



Home is where we park it,

Frank & Mary

11/3 HOW MANY WEEKS!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah it's been a week since the last blog & there doesn't seem to be that much to write about. Also time just feels like it is flying by. This past week we did go to the RV show. We didn't come home with a new RV & we just didn't see much at the vendors that we just couldn't live without. Now I'm not saying that we didn't buy anything, that just is not possible, but we spent a lot less than we have in past years. Maybe we finally have all that we need for full time RVing. HA HA! Every year someone comes out with the latest or greatest new gadget that will make the RV lifestyle so much better. This year was not that year. Oh well we saved some money for next time.

This week we are going to spend some time with the grand kids outside of school. We really haven't seen them much since Christmas except in school so this will be more fun & spoiling time. I love being a Granddad! We have to load up with hugs & kisses because we will be gone soon. Looking at the calendar I can't believe that we leave in just 10 weeks & I know that time will be here before we know it.

The next 10 weeks will be busy. Not only do we have plans made with friends & family we also have to see our regular doctors to make sure that we have whatever we need while we are on the road. Prescriptions need to be filled &/or refilled, records need to be updated, etc. The truck & trailer also need to be checked out before we hit the road. We also like to plan our trip before we leave so we know exactly where we will be stopping & for how long. Visiting family & friends on our way is always in the plans.

Well tomorrow is volunteer day at the school & we have decided to add library time before school so it will be an early night. So goodnight from our home (for the next 10 weeks) in Largo because....

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary

11/2 Routine, Routine, Routine

Well the holidays are over & the everyday hum drum routine is setting in. Volunteering, dentist appointments, cooking, cleaning, & vehicle/home maintenance. I have some projects on the never ending project list that I would like to get done & we have events to go to over the next couple of months. Additionally there are friends to get together with & more importantly grand children to spoil. A grand parents work is never done. All this & we have to be ready to leave April 1st. I can't believe the winter is flying by & we have less than 3 months before we go.

As I've said we have some events to go to. This week the RV Super Show is in Tampa. This is the one show that we never miss. It is supposed to be the biggest show in the US. We will go with our RV friends from IN one day & will meet up with some of our traveling RV friends another. It is always fun to look at the latest & greatest of the new RVs & the vendors always have "stuff " that Rvers just can't live without. We will try to limit our purchases to only the "stuff " that is absolutely necessary. As long as we don't come away with a new RV I think we will be OK.

In the coming weeks we also want to see some of the local attractions that for one reason or another we haven't made it to while we were working. We will also go back to others as "local tour guides" with our out-of-town friends who will see these for the first time. In other words we are going to be busy & we love it!

We are getting together with friends this afternoon so I will sign off now from our home (for a few more months) in Largo FL because....

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary

11/1 A New Year & Time To Start Over

This is my first blog of 2011 so I figured now was a good time to restart my numbering system. Not a big deal, but worth mentioning. I guess this would be considered earth shaking on Twitter. Well our New Years Eve celebration was as expected, reasonably quiet & spent with good friends. We couldn't ask for anything more. New Years Day was also spent with friends & included a delicious pot luck dinner with all sorts of food that is supposed to bring good luck in the new year. With good friends who needs good luck, but it couldn't hurt.

The past 2 weeks have been quiet with school out for the holidays but our volunteering resumes this week. We have also started participating a little more around the RV park. On any given night we can be found playing cribbage, dominoes, euchre, or bingo. During the day there are pancake breakfasts & spaghetti dinners. Add to that the general socializing that goes on among friends & fellow "snow birds". Our calendar is definitely full but it keeps us out of trouble most of the time.

Having friends isn't always happy times but being there in good times & bad is what friends are all about. Some of our friends have been having health issues so we send them positive thoughts. Some are just having difficulties with life so we offer them our support. And others are moving onward & upward & away so we help them with the moving & wish them the best even though they will be missed. At the same time more friends are coming back & we welcome them & look forward to spending time with them. Such is life, you deal with the good & the bad & hope to come out smiling at the end.

Well tonight should be an early night because we have school tomorrow, so this is good night from our busy home in Largo, FL because.....

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary