Pool Table Update

 Yesterday Butch and I went to Rockwell City to my sister Myrla's house to get the pool table situation assessed and as luck and a bit of preparation would happen we were able to bring it home in pieces. With a lot of hard work from Butch, Craig and Tara Cunningham, and Zach Hiller it was loaded with the biggest pieces onto Zach's pickup and the rest of the bits and pieces in our car and now rests in the pool hall ready to be reassembled. 

There are three pieces of slate and that made the heaviest part easier to deal with. I was pleased and amazed at how smoothly it went after the gazillion or so staples were removed to reveal the slate. And here are pictures from the day:

Craig and Butch...

Let the fun begin...

So much Info

 There is so much info packed into this issue of www.rvtravel.com that I decided to post the entire newsletter instead of cherry-picking my faves.

https://www.rvtravel.com/997-04-42/?popupally_stop=subscriber&vgo_ee=r3oV9Pck4yT31DYg%2B3%2B1tDpxdzkQNl9LgdxZ9pnzLRY%3D

Today is the day

 Today we are going to my sister Myrla's home to disassemble her pool table and bring it back to Jefferson. We have lots of good help lined up and are including a lifetime membership to the pool hall for their effort. Unfortunately, it will be our lifetime, not theirs!😊

So the big day has arrived and I plan to take photos of the proceedings. So keep tuned...

Catch up surprises

 As most other online computer junkies know if you have been off the computer for, let us say one week, you are faced with choices; you can wade through the mountain of entries one at a time or you can wipe out the whole business and start over. I use a third option which is sort and delete. Whatever method used eats up time. The good news is that it is too doggone cold to do anything else?

We did get the fridge emptied yesterday, transferring everything to the house fridge. So meal prep can carry on in the warmth of our cozy little tiny house. We do have to keep the furnace running in the MOHO or winterize it. No to winterizing in late April! It is currently 36 degrees outside and expected to dip to 26 tonight. We get a reprieve after that...if we can trust it. The temps here are currently what they were when we loaded up last October. Hardly seems fair!

Another surprise, which falls into the minor irritation category is that we have lost our Jigzone competition that Butch and I have done for many years. www.jigzone.com used to be a website whereby you could subscribe for free, ask people to compete with you, and get the invitation in email each day. Butch and I would compete with each other every day, sometimes he would win, and sometimes I would. It was a ritual we both enjoyed. I know we were doing this before we retired in 2003 so I would say a strong 20 years of puzzles! So I tried everything I could think of to get it back including going to an old email that had a member link on it. The message I landed on said GONE in big, bold letters so I must assume they are no longer letting us subscribe. We can still go to the website, change the cut to 48 classic pieces, and put the pieces where they belong but it is not the same. 

Stops on the way home

 In Arkansas:

Bill and Butch play cribbage

Supper with Bill and Jo at Macks Steakhouse- The best hushpuppies I have ever tasted!

 Bill told us that they are located on Indian land. He picks up arrowheads all the time and has ever since he first landed there. This one looks like part of a mortar and pestle.

Bill and I share an obsession with interesting rocks. He has quite a collection.

 

The squirrels chew on these metal pipes. This is one end...

and here is the other end. These started out as complete pipes.

Blue Jay and Cardinal share food.

Different Blue Jay 

A tiny little hummer

Butch and Bill looking at the river

Do you see the squirrel?

Blue Jay 

Cardinal

The Little Red River

Bill and Jo's view of the river 

Herron 

The carport

The riverside of Bill and Jo's house

Path to the dock

Bills dock looking at the dock across the river

Bill's dock

The Guys outside at the neighbors

Butch and Bill walking

Street side of Bill and Jo's home

Wisteria

And we got into the picture!

Jenny in her favorite spot.

Squirrel sitting on a decoy

Woodpecker 

Butch coming up from the dock

In Missouri:

Miss Elise gives us a fashion show

Waiting to be seated at Denny's

Pokemon instruction from Leo.

Brad showing Butch his tractor

The Missouri kids backyard

Trip Log 2021

My Internet was quite sketchy throughout the trip from Sunrise RV Park in Arkansas to Jefferson, our hometown so I just threw up my hands and said to heck with it. I did have this entry all done and hit publish, something wonky happened and it was all gone. GRRRR...

We had a wonderful visit with Bill, Jo, and Jenny (dog) in Heber Springs AR. I took lots of pictures there and when I get my high-speed internet and am off my phone hotspot I will get them loaded and sent to this blog. That should happen this afternoon. I am currently waiting for the water guys to reinstall our meter.

We awoke to snow this morning. It seems to happen every year whereby we have at least one snow when we return. Last year we didn't come home till mid-May and it still happened! I would be afraid to wait till June! The forecast is for below freezing temps until Thursday so we are not in a hurry to get our belongings moved from one spot to the other.

So back to the trip log- We left Bill and Jo's early, like a little after 7:00AM. We knew it was a long trip of nearly 400 miles. We took the long way because of the famous twisty-turning-up and down route on highway 65. The 65 route is considerably shorter mile-wise but much more unpleasant on the nerves. So from Heber Springs, we went west on 25, then south on 65 to Conway then I-40 west to I-49 north that takes us all the way to Peculiar MO.

While at Gary and Susan's we had a great visit with them and the Teeter family on Saturday. One of the highlights was a Pokemon lesson given by Leo. Trust me, I know a whole boatload more about Pokemon than I did before and I could tell you the fundamentals because Leo is an excellent teacher. I think he must come by it honestly. Elise gave us a fashion show. That girl is working on her next play that will be performed in late May. She too is such a joy to visit with and has a vivid imagination while being totally practical. That sounds like an oxymoron but she pulls it off.

So it feels good to be back in our hometown of Jefferson. Now if the weather would moderate it would be perfect! The water guys were here and now the Internet guys this afternoon and we will be back on track.

Stay tuned for the pictures!

Rainstorms

 We are experiencing rainstorms mixed in with some lightning and thunder. It will pass as I can see on radar. In years past Butch would head out regardless. I am trying to hold him back without success it seems. So grin and bear it.

Inconsequential

 Before we left I scoped out the routes for each day's travel on Google maps just as I have always done in the past and then I have them sent to my phone and By Golly, it has always worked. I also double-check everything on the Internet to make sure it is all kosher every day. I know, Trophy Gardens Keny Patrick would call me an overachiever. But then Keny calls everybody an overachiever!

Day one worked as usual. It was a route we had not taken for several years and we were not remembering things as smoothly as we would have preferred but it was okay. A good day without incident.

Day two, Sonny's RV Park at Lexington TX to Sunrise RV Park Texarkana, AR. We started out okay but then Miss Google tried to change our route and she was persistent so we went with it and no, it was not the route we would have chosen but it worked. But you know how discombobulated you can feel when the unexpected happens? Well, that is how we felt most of the day. Or at least that is how I was feeling. Butch seemed to be okay with it.

We have been up and down the 281 route twice a year for so many years that we know it pretty well, making it a relaxing trip. And now we are in an age where change is not all that welcome even though it might be good for us. So the most unknown and not remembered road is behind us. Still some ahead but not as much. From our current location, it is 205 miles to Bill and Jo's so it is a short day with family at the end. All is good! 

(For those of you wanting details- Our original plan included north on 77, to 79 north to 59 north then I 30 to our current place in the Sunrise RV Park. Miss Google had us turn onto 155 at Palestine, then 49 to I 20 picking up 155 again to 59 then I 30 to Sunrise RV Park. It wasn't bad but lots of turns. Traffic was fairly light. And roads were in fairly good shape.  In my mind the jury is still out. I am sure a second trip would seem easier. Things are always easier the second time you do them,)

Travel Plans

 For those of you who keep up with us either for fun or flubs or both here is the outline for the next week. I may be a bit more detailed than necessary but as most of you know this is a journal as much as a news feature and I often check back on years past. Mostly when it comes to a disagreement 😇 between us but sometimes for the details, we like to know parks, mileage, etc. As well as what route we took in what year...you get my point.

Departure from Trophy 4/12/21

Arrival at Sonny's RV Park- 345 miles

overnight on 4/23/21- Sunrise RV Park-316 Miles

Arrival at Bill and Jo's midday on 4/14/21 206 Miles

? Departure 4 /16/21

Missouri kids- Arrival may be late in the day because the mileage is right near 400 miles

? Departure 4/18/21 to Jefferson- It should be a reasonable day with the mileage at 275

We have most things done with just a few final details like disconnecting the Internet, securing things to their travel home on the internal items. The outside items are mostly done except for a few of the last minutes like electrical cords, sewer and water connections, TV antenna. We will hook up the car in the morning. Butch mentioned that where we are located we could hook up the car early but after thinking about it and being reminded that the park prohibits motor vehicles of any kind on the grass because it can easily break a water pipe, morning is best

We are well versed in the things it takes to be ready to roll but time and age can dull it to disaster if care is not taken and lists made.

We hope to see a bunch of familiar faces in the next week or so and we are very much enthused by it all.

Till next I write...