ALMOST OVER

We are located just above Jacksonville, Florida.

ALMOST OVER
(Don't forget to click on the pictures to get a better view.)

Our time in the Golden Isles of Georgia is almost finished for this year.
On this trip we have restricted our driving. The most done in one day was sixty miles.
There is so much nearby that one does not have to drive far to see the extraordinary or to meet wonderful people.

We stopped in at the antique store in Woodbine. It has a lot of fire service memorabilia. It is the sign out front that catches everyone's attention.

The Fire Helmet is English up to about 1932. The wearer is considerably younger.

At least once a week we walk along the ocean beach on Jekyll Island. Jekyll is only twenty minutes from our island. When the tide is in, it is a challenge to get around these weathered art forms. Jekyll will be our home for March of 2009.

On a trip to Cumberland Island we walked the magnificent ruins of Dungeness. If the ruins are magnificent just imagine what it was originally like.

And we have to finish with another shot of the Brown Pelicans. To the left you will spot a Laughing Gull. They utter a laugh as they pluck fish from the beak of the the much larger pelican.

Pelicans at low tide on the Blythe Island boat launch

Lingering

Our Passage to Cumberland Island National Park

The Wild Horses of Cumberland Island

Lingering on a Park Bench

What is "lingering"? I have decided it is when you take those moments to sit and share experiences, ideas, and concerns. These are moments when you could have just as easily rushed away and done something else.

The Gallery on Newcastle
( www.thegalleryonnewcastle.com )
This is art store of Janet Powers. The high walls are hung with her paintings of the marshes. Down here the word "marsh" is not synonymous with "swamp". The Marshes of Glynn are varying shades of brown, gold and green. At times the marsh reminds me of a wheat field. They are well worth the visit.
We had visited the gallery a year ago; we dropped in again to this wonderfully restored building - Brunswick has a lot of these buildings. Cathy and Janet immediately started talking about the local concerns while I looked at the art; then we switched places.
All over the city are signs exhorting the powers that be to "MOVE THE JAIL". It seems that the mis-guided council wants to build the jail right downtown on the waterfront. You have to understand that downtown Brunswick is beautiful. It is right on the Brunswick River.
I guess idiocy is a common characteristic of most town councils everywhere. Give little people some power and all of a sudden they imagine themselves as heirs of Alexander the Great. Unfortunately, they aren't any wiser than they were before they took office.
We wish the opponents all the best. If common sense doesn't prevail then all who are reading this should visit Brunswick now before the bulldozers move in.

The Market on Newcastle (Sorry, no website)
This store has some cute curiosities - I guess faux antique would be a good description. It is a fun place to look around.
Now the sales lady looks at us and we look at her. We sat beside her at lunch the day before at Skipper's Fish Camp in Darien ( www.skippersfishcamp.com ). Cathy had gator tails and I had the potato stuffed with shrimp. We both had the superb chowder. So the lingering began.
Part of the conversation had to do with our mutual sadness and disappointment of two store closures up in Darien.

Christie's Restaurant on Newcastle
( christiesrestaurant.net )
Soup choices: red bean and duck, tomato cream with basil and fontino?
I could not resist. I took the duck along with my shrimp salad sandwich and curly fries. Cathy had the smoked salmon, bacon and tomato sandwich. No complaints. We lingered over the food!

Shall We Sing for Our Supper?

Look Into My Eyes!

May You All Be Blessed

SPRING 2008

RIVER BOTTOM FARM, Swansea, South Carolina
We left in late February and took a leisurely four days to get to our stored trailer in Swansea. We spent a week there settling into our trailer. We had purchased it in the fall and stored it without turning it into 'our place'. Here we are on our favorite spot, number 14.

Cathy rests on the fence, daring you to cross over on to 'our property'.

Greg gets a moment to plunk on the autoharp. Jeff Dantzler, the Harp Doctor, in Harleyville, SC, had just finished 'electrifying' it. Now it is an autoharp with an attitude!

BLYTHE ISLAND COUNTY/REGIONAL PARK
It was a nice drive down to Brunswick, Georgia for our month of relaxation on Blythe Island.
From our site we view the lake. A four minute walk in the other direction is the Brunswick River.

The sites are marvelously spacious! There isn't a better place to relax.

That is our trailer in the center of the picture under the Spanish moss.

A COLD, SNOWY WINTER

JANUARY 2008 – WINTER

In December we were covered with a layer of snow that broke a 68-year-old record. In one day we achieved a record fall that started me thinking about traveling. Only about 50 days before we hit the trail again.

In the meantime, we continue to work, keep up medical appointments and visit with the grandchildren.

For New Year's Eve four of them roasted wieners out in the backyard. It was a cold evening but the fire made it seem cozy. It will take weeks to get the smoke smell out of the clothes!

Enjoy these winter pictures.

Snow and Sunset

Four of the Six

Grandchildren Make Their Own Supper

Angels Watching Over Me

SOUTH CAROLINA - October 2007

ON THE ROAD AGAIN – AGAIN

Settled for lunch in Rocky Gap, Virginia

On October 11 we headed south – again. For the first time, I back up the new trailer. I started early to avoid the high school traffic. It was a successful attempt.

We took our time. This was a new type of trailer and the memories of September 12 were still fresh on our minds. We stopped first at Camping World in Hamburg, N.Y. It was time to start replacing all those items we had lost in the accident. After lunch at Rose's Diner we continued to the Erie, P.A. KOA.

Once the trailer was parked, it was off to Borders, Wal-Mart, and Smokey Bones. Every place we visited was enriched by our wallet.

The insurance company has been encouraging us to replace things. When all the insurance business is finished I will give a full report. Just a hint: all those of you with policies through Johnson's Insurance (Richmond Hill, ON) be wary. Service started out being terrific but over a short period of time degenerated into almost non-existence.

We decided to spread our trip over four days rather than two. I preferred to stay at or under the speed limit. This was like learning to drive again.

At Grove City, P.A. We became side-tracked looking for an accessible gas station. It was a blessing. We found a local farmer selling apples. Crunchy and tart Empires!

Our other stops were Flatwoods, WV and Charlotte, NC. Between Flatwoods and Charlotte we had to drive that infamous piece of pavement in Wytheville. Past the site of our rollover. Cathy was pretty unsettled about it.

I love Rocky Gap, a hidden valley on the northern border of Virginia.

On the fourth day we entered SC. The median was pure gold. The planting of black-eyed susans was a solid path for at least three quarters of a mile. Shortly after lunch we were at Riverbottom Farms in Swansea. We visited with Susan and Dana then set up.
Backing into our site. Backing up the fifth wheel is not quite the same as backing up a travel trailer but we'll get the hang of it.

Since arriving we have shopped and shopped; visited the state fair and shopped some more. We have gradually fixed and added things to the trailer.

A beauty at the South Carolina State Fair.

Another State Fair beauty

(For the men out there: the HD Digital receiver I bought does work on the trailer's antenna.)
On Wednesday we drove down to Harleyville. It was time to pick up some autoharp fixins from Jeff Dantzler. We had a great visit; sitting and chatting; sharing stories. He sent us off to Carter's garage where the local women cook up some nice Southern Fried chicken.

Jeff Dantzler (Harp Doctor) and Greg share stories
(Greg is the cute one!)

There will be a visit to Aiken but most of the remaining time will spent relaxing. And, yes, I will remember to fill those orders for Maurice's BBQ Sauce! (THEY HAVE BEEN FILLED!) October 17, 2007

AND, NOW, YOU WILL NEVER GUESS WHO SHOULD SHOW UP AT THE STATE FAIR!

The one and only TREEJUS!

The Accident

Please remember: when you view these pictures, that WE WERE NOT HURT. Cathy received a small scrape on her arm. As for Greg, he had a few stiff muscles. The ER staff at the Wythe County Community Hospital were fantastic, good-humored and caring!

You might wonder how they inspect trucks and trailers in the South. It is slightly complicated but they get a great view.

In the wrecker's yard we collected anything that we wanted. It was amazing how things scattered hither and yon in the trailer. However, the stuff in the fridge didn't move!

As we lay upended on I-81 a local insurance company phoned to say that our windshield would be repaired. (Earlier in the morning a lawnmower in Hillsdale had rocketed a stone into my windshield.)
I eventually phoned them back to say that was not really necessary any more!

Grandma Cathy is fitted with new kind of space helmet! She was fine. Just to be safe they wrapped this around her neck and strapped her to a board to take her to the hospital. We all sat on the guard rail and talked for a long while. We had to wait for a tow truck to pull the brand new ambulance out of the ditch where they were stuck.
I wanted to know if I could take her home still strapped to the board!

Seriously, this event could have ended quite differently, but , it didn't. Seatbelts played a big part in this story having a happy ending.

Trip Interrupted - Cancelled

The bad news is that, on Sept. 12, in Wytheville, Virginia, we totaled our travel trailer and truck. This event also tied up the traffic on I-81 for 90 minutes. They were backed up for ten miles.

The good news is that we both walked out of the back window of the truck unharmed. Cathy has a bandage over a scratch and I have a lot of stiff muscles.

We have lots of wonderful stories of the people here and , for our readers who are members of the Retired Teachers of Ontario, we will report on our experiences with them. We'll let you know the strength and weaknesses of their travel insurance.

In a few days we'll post some pictures of the accident.