Stormy times in Florida

Tuesday 22 March    A couple of nice days ahead so I started washing and waxing the Moho, Diane did several loads of laundry, cleaned the Moho and a trip for groceries. I must be getting older because I only had one half of the Moho waxed by the time happy hour started.  We had to cut happy hour short to have a quick dinner so the ladies could all head up for bingo and Diane won again but only 25 bucks this time.



Just a friendly warning!!

Wednesday 23 March      Almost a repeat of yesterday I finished washing and waxing the drivers side of the Moho while Diane did more laundry took the truck to the car wash and picked up chicken for dinner.  Once again we had to cut happy hour short so I had enough time to grill the chicken.

 

Thursday 24 March     A little change today.  We headed up to Ocala today to do some shopping.  We started with lunch at Zaxby's  which was ok, but we don't need to go back.  We hit JC Penny's for some towel and wash cloth sets then to Belk's to pick out  Hawaiian shirts for the campground luau this Saturday.  We made it back just as some strong storms moved into the area.  Happy hour was cancelled due to the storm.  We ate inside, did a little planning for our trip home and headed off to bed early.

Friday 25 March   Storms rolling in and out all morning.  There was a lot of wind and storms last night blowing our rug and yard stuff all over.  We did a little more planning and some cleaning then headed into town for lunch.  People talking at the restaurant about losing power for up 5 hours last night so I guess we were lucky.  Still stormy at happy hour time so we all headed to Jim and Annette's fifth wheel for cards.  We played "99" and it was a hoot.  Back to our camper grilled cheese for dinner and hopefully the storms will not keep us up tonight.

Saturday 36 March   A little nicer today but hot and 100 percent humidity.  Breakfast on the grill

cleaned up and off to the good-bye Luau at the rec building.  It was nice almost everyone had Hawaiian shirts or outfits on, there was a DJ not the best for sure but OK,  hot dog, burgers and the usual fixin's all for free.  A 'thank you' from the owners.  It was nice but again very warm.  We headed back about 1:30, sat inside for a few hours enjoying the air conditioning.  As happy hour approached we all gathered outside but were chased in again by storms.  This time we all ran to our campers and called it a night.  The rain let up enough for us to grill some sausages for dinner.


Brad, Diane and Rudy

 

Perry Rally 2016

Tuesday 3-15 we were moving a little slower than planned and didn't get on the road until about

Nice KOA site

10:30.  It was a hot day, but very enjoyable ride.  Marlene had given us a book about traveling Route 75, so reading all the attraction and history information made the trip go by pretty quick.  We made it to Tifton, GA about 3:30, got hooked up and took Rudy for a nice long walk.  We were at a KOA, not a bad place and being less that a mile off I 75, there was no road noise.  We had dinner and I did our final load of laundry for a week, while Brad started filling the water tank.  We are going to the FMCA Rally in Perry Ga where it will be 6 days of dry camping and a new experience for us (both dry camping and the Rally). 

Wednesday 3-16 was the last of long showers for a couple of days, cleaned up, packed up, filled the water tank until it came out the over flow pipe and on the road for the last 80 miles to the rally.  We 

What are we getting
ourselves into????

pull in about 11:30, along with a couple hundred other rigs (2,600 total at the rally), take our place in the holding area and wait our turn to be parked.  It seemed like forever, but we were parked by 12:30 and now it's just walking the dog and waiting for the electric to be hooked up, it's hot and the generator smoked when we turned it on, so back off with that, all the windows opened and hope the breeze doesn't let up.  We get electric, just before the 1st time attendees seminar was to start, but no AC yet, let the batteries charge, we put Rudy in his kennel and off we went to find the information area and where the seminars were.  We go to the seminar at 3:00, and the speaker was actually enjoyable, but we both thought they could have been a little better at explaining to us where everything was located....but by Sunday we had it figured out. Back home to save Rudy, AC on and burgers on the grill for dinner  Oh I almost forgot as we were getting parked there was a noise that sounded like an explosion, people were coming out of their rigs checking to see of a Moho or something blew up....but nothing, we'll have to wait and see.

Beautiful Fair Grounds !

Thursday 3-17 we studied the list of seminars and looked in the book to see which ones we might want to attend and of course I missed the first one I was interested in, but we ended up going to a few later in the day.  About 10:00 Brad was out walking Rudy when there was another big explosion, this one much louder than the day before, but as it ends up, the is an AFB not that far away and they were sonic booms from the jets, nice to know.  The displays don't open until Friday and the new Moho didn't open until 1:00 today, so off to my first seminar to make a bracelet, not much to do with RV'ing but a fun  way to meet people.  Brad headed off to one on upgrading your entertainment center, which ended up being a sales pitch for a vendor, so he left that, we met up, headed over to schedule the generator for maintenance, then headed out through the new Moho's.  Of course there was nothing that made us say, 'we need/want this one', so back to the Moho to rescue Rudy.  We were sitting outside talking when Brad ran into a RV Awning repair guy and asked him to stop over when he had a minute.  Our big awning was rolling in crooked, so the guy hopped on a ladder and showed Brad how to pull it back in position, hopefully not falling off the ladder while you do it. Then we showed him the window awning and he gave us the piece to fix that.....can't complain, nice to get some of these little things fixed.    Left overs for dinner, a glass or two for wine, then off to bed.

Comedian Show.

Friday 3-18 I was up and out of the Moho by 7:30(with a lot of help from Brad) heading down to sign up for a seminar to make a pair of earrings and off to an 8:00 AM seminar on using Google maps for trip planning.  I got done with that then headed back to get Brad so we could walk around the exhibitor displays.  It was packed so we headed out to the Moho display, still not impressed with anything.  We had lunch at the little restaurant on the grounds, then a few more seminars and headed home to get Rudy.  I had dinner in the Crock Pot, so a quick dinner and clean up, back in the kennel for Rudy and we are off to the evening show.  They had a little bit of a ceremony with all the introductions of the FMCA officers and then  comedian, Lee Marvin Adam performed for about 45 min.  It was all clean comedy and very enjoyable.  A nice stroll back home, a walk for Rudy and off to bed, since we were both exhausted from all the walking and activities.

Saturday 3-19, we were a little smarter today and our first seminar wasn't until 9:45.  After that we went through the exhibitors again, to the restaurant for lunch, then I headed off to make my earrings

Historic Society and
their Fashion.

and then to the ladies tea.  The Ladies Tea was nice, they had the Historic Society of Perry come in and they did a Time Period Fashion Show 1800-1940 and told the history of who it belonged to, giving some of the history of the time and their sorted pasts, very humorous. Brad had headed back to the Moho and when the Tea was over, him and Rudy were waiting out side for me.  What a surprise, Rudy did very well with the crowds, so we walked him out through the new Moho's and I think Rudy found some he liked, but he couldn't convince Brad and I, so nothing new there.  Back home, left overs for dinner then off to the show, Country Unplugged with Mark Chesnutt, Lorrie Morgan and Joe Diffie.  They played for about an hour, then off to home, a walk for Rudy and off to bed. 

Country Unplugged.

 

Sunday 3-20, this is really the last day, so off to my last Seminar 'OK honey, tell me where to go', I think I picked this one because I liked the name of it.  I did learn a few things about all the different Apps and programs that are out there, so it was worth the trip.  After that we did our final walk through of the exhibits and the Moho....although this time we found one we liked, the Winnebago Journey 40R...where had it been hiding all this time.  After that we headed back to the Moho and decided we were done.  No more seminars to go to and we decided to skip the entertainment, kind of like a Jam sessions.  The Onan service tech showed up about 2:30 to service the generator, we were beginning to think it wouldn't get done.  We walked up to the onan tent to  pay the bill and as Brad was talking to one of the technicians finding out where we pay,  my phone rang, it was another tech calling to see if we could come pay our bill, and I could actually hear her talking in their trailer.  Turns out Brad was standing right beside her.   We had dinner in the crock pot, so we got Rudy and headed out through the grounds to check out all the areas we hadn't been to yet.  It was interesting checking out the various rigs, TT, 5th wheel's, small and huge Moho.  Some brand new and some really old, but most people were nice and we had an enjoyable time.  Now all we have to do is be lazy, it's already 5:30, and wait until tomorrow morning to head home. 


Old turned New.
1974 Winnebago with makeover.

Monday we got up and started moving.  Not too many pulled out ahead of us and we didn't get on the road until almost 9:00. It was pretty breezy so Brad had to drive the whole way, but we had plenty of stops, first one being about an hour down the road at 'Carroll's Sausage' store/restaurant.  We got sausage sandwiches for a late breakfast and spent about $30.00 on meats.....not too bad.  After that a stop at the Welcome center in FL, then off to the next rest area where we ate lunch.  Next stop, Sumterville, filled up with fuel, then the long 3 mile trip to the CG.  We were parked by 3:00, all in all, not a bad day.  We got there, set up and about an hour later we were saying good-bye to our neighbor 'TJ'.  He headed up to the pull-through sites so he could be hooked up and ready to pull out whenever he gets up on Tuesday, between 3:00 and 4:00 AM. After that happy hour with the neighbors, apple sausage on the grill and off to bed.....what a long day.

Brad, Diane and Rudy

Getting ready for Perry, GA.

Gotta love this,
Winn-Dixie + Frontera wine=cheap gas

Tue. 8 March   The nice weather continues this week.  I made breakfast on the grill and then headed into town for motorhome supplies.  Finally finished up all the painting and seal on the storage bin.  It is now done.  Since I forgot half the stuff I was supposed to get Diane had to make another trip to town.   All went well and we are now stocked up on supplies.  A short happy hour and quick dinner as Diane was off to evening Bingo.

 

 

 

Wed 9 March.   Big day,  We were up early(7:30) had breakfast and were out the door by 10:30.  We were off the Clermont for a monster truck ride through a citrus grove/cattle ranch.  The place was over 2000 acres and was a nice experience. We got the tickets half price on living social but spent all we saved plus a little on tourist stuff.  Anyway it was a great day, stopped for pizza on the way back and made it just in time for happy hour.  Pork chops were cooking in the crock pot to round out a great day.

Zebras and Water Buffalo

Snuck up and got me!!

Can you say BIG Truck

Thursday, Friday and Saturday were mostly just plain old days in Florida.  We  did a little touring around locally, Diane played Bingo and Pokeno and of course happy hour each evening.The weather is actually getting a little to warm.  We had to turn the AC on a few times as the temp's hit the mid 80's.  The campground had a yard and craft sale on Saturday we spent a couple hours checking that out. The campground is expanding and changing more to the "resort" type versus a campground and rumors were just a flying as we walked up and down each road. 

Sunday and Monday we spent getting ready for our trip to Perry, Ga, meal planning, shopping, cleaning and packing .  This will be a new experience for us. There should be over 2000 rigs there, we are trying it without the truck and the only service is 30amp electric.  We will let you know how we made out.  If we don't have it with us we will live without it.  The weather is down right hot now, we are running the AC 24 hrs a day.  Diane still played Bingo Sunday afternoon and we attended happy hour Monday night.

Brad, Diane and Rudy

A busy week in Florida



The new CG owners
Greg and Yvonne

Thursday 3 March    Another nice day which I took advantage of installing the new storage bin.  It took tools from Jim across the street and some help from T.J. our neighbor but we got it in.  I've been fighting a cold/sore throat but wanted to get it installed.  Wally and Cathy are leaving tomorrow so the happy hour group went out for dinner to Coyote Rojo and fun was had by one and all.  It will be sad to see them leave but it was interesting is that they are from the Williamsport area and their kids live in Wellsboro, what are the chances?

Friday 4 March.   Today is the ground breaking ceremony for the camp ground expansion.  Games, band, food, speeches, and several nice door prizes.  The weather was great and Diane was excited(well kind of) to go. However I learned working when your are half sick is not a good idea.  Cause today I am sick and stayed in the camper most of the day.  I did manage to go up to the celebration for lunch but that was about it.  I didn't even go to happy hour.  We had grilled cheese and soup for dinner and

The official Ground-Breaking
Poise!! 

called a day.  Brad did forget to mention, that the SuperX rocket finally launched today and the campground was out with cheers for support.
 

 

Saturday 5 March      Today was another really nice day, sunny highs in the mid 80's.  And we had another day of games, food, golf cart parade, and prizes this time to support the wounded warrior project.  And of course I was still under the weather.   Diane is taking great care of me and is so grateful I'm not one of those needy, whiny, pathetic when sick husbands(ha ha).  We did manage breakfast on the grill and dinner with the Lucero's at Bonefish Grill in the Villages.

Sunday 6 March    Just another day.  Breakfast on the grill,  the normal chores laundry, shopping etc.   I did manage to finish the bin hooked up the lights, door locks, and caulked the inside joints.  Just some touch up painting and it will be done.  Diane went to play bingo with Annette and Marlene but no luck this time.  Happy hour was back to almost normal attendance.  We had a nice steak dinner on the grill and called it a night.

Monday 7 March    What a busy day.  We left early(for us) and headed in the Webster flea market for a few hours.  The place is just so big we go to a different section each time.  Of course we always start with a breakfast sandwich and then off to shop.  We found a few things we couldn't live with out and returned home about 1:30 after stopping for lunch.  A little rest and then we had to go pick up Morgan and take her back to college after spring break.  As we are leaving we notice Roger and Donna were hastily packing up their things, turns out they had a family emergency and need to return to Maine ASAP.  We said our good bye and then headed to the Villages to get Morgan.  We arrived at just the right time but couldn't find the shuttle station so we texted Morgan, she answered,.....at the bus station... so we had to ask someone and found her in just a few minutes.  We stopped for dinner at Cracker Barrel (I had really good corn beef and cabbage)  and had her back to the dorm by 8:15pm.  Now the 1.5 hour ride back home.  That's right we didn't get home until 10:00, after dark and way after our curfew.

The crew waiting for
the launch!!

And there she goes!!

Brad, Diane and Rudy

Another busy week in Florida

24 Feb   We survived the tornadoes they hit up in the panhandle and again below Tampa in the Clearwater area.  We had several warnings posted for Bushnell but nothing happened.  It looked like Lancaster had more severe storms than we did.

Rudy curled up in
his new blanket!!
Lovin' it!!

25 Feb  We went to The Florida Grande Motor Coach Resort to check it out for work camping next year.  After a quick tour we decided that is was probably not the place for us.  A little to uppity for us,  you had to have a class A motorhome less than 10 years old.  On the day we were there, Prevost brought two coaches in for showing, one for 1 million and one for 1.3 million, not really within our price range.  We stopped for lunch at a the Webster fair grounds restaurant.  We never even knew the place was there and the food was great. 

Fri. Feb 26   We were up early to pick up Morgan at 8:30 and take her to the airport for spring break.  On the way back we were traveling along on the turnpike when the GPS said to exit,  Now we both knew we didn't want to exit but since the GPS told us to..... we exited.  Wrong.  But we made the best of it stopped for breakfast then followed route 50 across stopping at a few attractions along the way.  We were back about 2pm and had to rescue Rudy before he peed his pants.  Dinner in and off to bed a little early!!

Enjoyable performers!!

Sat. Feb 27 We headed into town for breakfast made a few stops for supplies and back to the camper. We had an early dinner and headed up to the social hall to listen to the 'Sweethearts of Branson'.  There were just two singers but were very good.  They perform in Branson, MO. in the summer and tour the south in the winter.  I think everyone really enjoyed the show and didn't notice we were out late(after 9:30) until we got home.

Sun Feb 28  We had breakfast on the grill, then about 2:00 Diane headed up to play Bingo.....no win again.  Back home, a little happy hour visit, then time to prepare Meatloaf for dinner.  Diane was in and out to visit when she could and about 6:30 dinner was ready.  Just as we were sitting down to eat, Jim came over to remind us that the Space X launch was soon to take off, sorry hurry up inhale dinner and we head outside for the count down.....aborted.  Oh well, it was more of a social gathering for all the Campers. 

Mon Feb 29.  We were up early and headed off to the Webster Flea Market.  We ended up buying a few things, that got pretty heavy, fast so the next thing we know is we ae buying a cart to carry put them in.  At least it made it easier to get around.  We go back home about 1:00, hoping the RV bin would be here, but no luck.  Finally about 3:30 Diane called to see where the bin was, still in Ocala, where it has been since Friday and the actually scheduled delivery has been revised to Wednesday.  There was no discount to pick it up, so we'll just wait for it. 

Tues Mar 1  We had a quick breakfast, then Brad was off a running, new jeans out to be shortened, propane tank filled and money from the CU.  Back home a few things done around here then we left about noon to pick up the jeans.....she was quick, stop of Howies for lunch, then back home as Brad isn't feeling well.  There seems to be a bug running around the CG and he must have caught it, sort throat, a little achy and absolutely no energy.  I went to the store, so him some frozen yogurt (makes his throat feel better, haha), some soup and a pizza for me.  I headed out about 6:20 to go play bingo.  Well it was my lucky night, I got to yell bingo for one of the specials and won $250.00.....I don't think that covered my expenses for the year, but it was fun anyway!!!

Wed Mar 2.  Brad is feeling much better, so breakfast on the grill and then busy work.  Brad washed the truck while I scrubbed the bathroom.  Not much fun, but things that needed done.  About noon, here comes a freight truck through the CG, you could hear him long before you could see him.  The bin has arrived and all the neighbors came out to see what was going on...it really was quite funny.  After that out to lunch, a quick drive through the one mobile home park, a stop at Winn Dixie then back home.  We talked for a while, then Brad headed out to get what he needed (he hopes) to install the bin.  A visit for happy hour, then home to make chicken on the grill and asparagus for dinner. 

Brad, Diane and Rudy