Spending time in Bushnell

Saturday 16 January     We all(4of us) headed out to do a little antiquing and a trip to the Villages.  Ended up we didn't get out of the first antique store until 1pm the place was just huge. I think we spent over 2 hours in the place.  Diane didn't buy anything but Teresa had a bag full of stuff.  By now we were starved and headed to O'Shucks for lunch.  The food was great we had wings, fried oysters, grilled shrimp and broiled fish sandwich.  Next was over to the local RV dealer to walk off lunch and check out their inventory.  It was a beautiful day with temps near 72 and lots of sunshine.  Buy now it was almost 4pm so we just headed back home had fresh strawberries, cheese and crackers for diner.  We wanted to take advantage of the weather so we just sat outside to eat and socialize.   

Sunday  17 January    We woke up early to very strong wind and heavy rain,  turns out we had a tornado warning around 2 am the this was the tail end of it passing through.  The sky cleared quickly and we went up to say goodbye to Buddy and Teresa around 9.  We did some much need running around stopping at the bank, hardware store, drug store and grocery store. Diane worked on getting the new TV up and running and I cleaned up outside and put things from the car back in the truck.  By now the clouds rolled back in and the temperature started to drop as the wind picked up.

Monday 18 January    We made some phone calls and tried to get organized then headed to Leesburg to Tractor Supply and of course lunch.  We found 'Ramshackled' a neat old restaurant right on the main street Diane had a 'Cancun chicken wrap' and I had a grilled chicken sandwich hers was better than mine.  After a few side trips to the lumber store and RV parts counter we were back home around 5.  Nacho's for diner and off to bed.

I asked Brad for a picture of
our camp site....I think he had
the truck on his mind!!

Tuesday 19 January.    Cold this morning temperature was down to 39 as I headed out to walk Rudy.  Another day of catching up on chores.  This afternoon we went to Ocala to get a new bug deflector on the truck since the one on it is cracked.  As we were driving up we decided to get a black one instead of red and after driving 40 mile to get there they didn't have a black one.  So  I guess we will be going back up again.  We made the best of it anyway stopping at Sonny's BBQ for lunch and a few other stores while we were in Ocala.

Brad, Diane and Rudy

Tampa RV show

Monday 11 January   We traveled from Mayport to Bushnell today.  Our normal travel day we left around 10:30 the weather was great.  Clear blue sky and full sun shine(almost 70) the nicest day yet and we are leaving.  The ride across Florida nice and uneventful except near Bushnell 21 miles of I 75 are under construction.  But we still arrived at 3:30 arranged the camp site and had burgers on the grill.  We walked around talked to a few of our friend from last year and off to bed. 

Tuesday 12 January   Woke up.  Rudy had to go out so with no coffee and when I opened the door and stepped outside, whoa I was froze.  The temperature was down to 35 with a light breeze.  Back inside in a hurry put on more clothes and then walked Rudy.  The coffee finally finished cooking and the temperature rose quickly into the 50's.  The first order of business was getting propane and hooking up the portable tank.  That done we had breakfast made a few lists of thing we wanted do.  And just like always we headed out at 11:30 drove 20 miles and stopped for lunch.  Today was a little bar called O'Shuck's and believe it or not it is a oyster and seafood place. I had grilled shrimp which were very good and Diane had wings with a dry rub(medium hot) and they were good also.  Now I normally don't care for dry rub wings but these were really good.  Then off to a Ford dealer where after 4 plus hours we left buying a new truck that we didn't even get to see.  It was in the paint shop getting fixed after some vandalizing.  It is a 2015 F150 truck with the small 6 cylinder.  We should pick it up the end of this week.  We didn't get home until 6:30 Rudy happy to see us and just left overs and wine for diner.

Wednesday 13 January.  This morning was much nicer with temps around 45 or so.  We worked on calling people insurance company, someone to install tow stuff on the truck and where to get the old one removed.  I removed the breaking system and when I was done the drivers seat fell backward.  So I guess I'll be going to the hardware store for some bolts tomorrow.  Around 2pm our friends Buddy and Teresa arrived we talked for awhile over a glass of wine then headed to Coyote Rojo for dinner.

Thursday 14 January   Another nice morning around 45 and the temperature is to hit almost 70

RV Show Entertainment

today.  All four of us headed off to the Tampa RV show.   I guess it was the nice weather but the place was just packed. We had some lunch there at the show the normal show food sausages with onion and peppers and fries not bad.   We walked into one of the vendor building and there were so many people you just couldn't get to see anything.    So we were forced to walk around outside looking at new motorhomes and after hours of going in and out of motorhomes we decided to head home,   then we found it.  Just exactly what we were looking for,  new, shinny, not terribly expensive, and the just right color.  We called the sale lady over worked out a good deal and walked away with a brand new..... set of fry pans. , had you with that one, Eh   By the time we got home it was 6pm and time to walk Rudy and make some phone calls.  The truck should be ready tomorrow.  Again we had left overs for diner


Yes he managed
to startle some people

and off to bed.

Friday 15 January    Woke up to rain and wind about 5:00, Brad put the chairs away and then up with the awning....needless to say, I went back to bed.  I was up by 7:30, but with the weather, we weren't moving very fast.  Just yogurt and oatmeal for breakfast, a couple of showers and we're ready to leave, and then the phone rings....it's Shari.  Brad and her talked for about 45 min. so we aren't going to make our 1:00 appointment to pick up the new vehicle.  We called David to let him know we wouldn't be there until about 2:00, stopped for lunch then off to the dealer.  We spent about an hour there, going over all the gadgets on the truck then headed off to buy a new TV.....oh yea, that died this morning.  It had stopped working once about a week ago, but a turn off and back on, it started to work, so we forgot about it.....but no luck this morning.  It ended up being about 5:30 until we got home, rescued Rudy and strolled down to say 'Hi' to Buddy and Teresa.  They had been out to the wineries today, so they weren't up to going out to dinner, so we just had sausages on the grill and called it a night.  Not what I would call a stressful day, but exciting with mixed emotions about everything. 


Brad, Diane and Rudy

Brad and his new Ride!!

 

On to Bushnell

8 January    Our first day here was quite foggy with occasional drizzle.  We headed into town and of course it was lunch time when we arrived and the order of business was lunch.  Diane picked the Seafood Diner and it was great she had shrimp and crab chowder and I had fresh fish of day(Cobia) which was very good.  Both came with hush puppies.  Then we did a little shopping and drove all the way through town(Atlantic Beach) looking for Staples where we paid ten dollars for a monthly planer.  Later we stopped at a drug store where they had them for 2 bucks.  We were supposed to have chicken on the grill but it was to windy so Diane had to cook inside.

 

Heading out to

sea for some 'FUN'

9 January     The weather got even worse today with higher wind thick clouds and fog all day long....but it was 60 degrees.  The campground had a pancake breakfast we went to, nothing special but for 3 bucks you can't pass it up.  We finally headed out just to get out of the camper.  A trip to camping world and we found a couple items we just had to have.   It gave us a little exercise and got us out of the house.  By time we returned around 3 the fog was just terrible.  We were planning to go to our favorite restaurant on the water but it was just to ugly.  So beans and hotdogs for dinner.

The best part of this place
is watching what comes
in and out of the River

10 January   Our last day here started out much nicer it is still cloudy but at least it is clear.  So we will be able to pack up and get ready to leave in nice weather.  We made our last run into town and did not eat lunch in town(believe it or not).  We walked around the shops just for exercise, hit the wine store, post office, and grocery store on the way home.  The sun came out a few times(temp hit 65) and that was nice.  We did up all the laundry including bed sheets and Rudy's towel since the laundry is free here.   Tomorrow we will be heading to Bushnell for a month or so.

 

Brad did forget to mention, that everyday we have been here, the dolphins have been in front of the CG, dancing and jumping out of the water, for all the campers entertainment....What fun to Watch.

 

Brad, Diane and Rudy

Made it to Florida

Thursday 7 January    We made to Florida today around 1pm and arrived at Mayport Naval Station at 3pm.  It is cool and very windy but we won't complain since the low temperature tonight it 55 degrees.

 

     Now for the trip down.  We left Dillsburg Monday at 10am it was 20 degrees and we were planning to head south on 15 across 30 to I81 and down to Staunton Va. for the first night.   But as our luck goes as we approached Gettysburg  Diane noticed a road sign flashing that route 30 was closed  so we headed on down 15 planning to cut across I70 to I81 but that also was backed up.  After a quick stop to study the map we headed down through the dreaded DC route planning to stop at Ashland VA.  Well it was our best trip ever with no problems at all.  We made such good time we drove right on down to Carolina Cross Roads just inside North Carolina and were all set up by 4pm.  Total miles traveled almost 300.  We were both exhausted and after dirty rice for dinner we headed to bed rather early, me at 8 and Diane at 9pm.

   

   Tuesday 5 January we woke up very early and decided to head south(temp 22)  and by 9am we were on the road heading to South of the Border but once again we made good time and decided to

100 foot Pull Throughs...WOW



keep on moving and ended up at New Green Acres campground in Walterboro, SC traveling 310 miles and set up ready for dinner by 4pm.  We had burgers on the grill, it was a little cool to cook outside but we were anxious to grill.  We packed everything up for another travel day and headed off to bed.

 

     Wednesday 6 January I was having coffee checking the weather and noticed a high wind warning in Mayport with a special notice for high profile vehicles.  Sooooo, we decided to stay another day in downtown Walterboro.  We made the best of it going to a little café for lunch,  a stroll through old town which was mostly antique stores (10 or 12 at least), and just a drive around town.  Back to the camper, left overs for dinner and off to bed.

 

      Thursday 7 January I woke up it was 43 degrees,(yeah) finally above freezing.  We were moving at our regular pace today and didn't get on the road until 10am but that was ok we only had 200 mile to drive.  It was sunny and nice with temp around 50 as we headed south.  We stopped at most of the rest areas and for fuel and still made it to Mayport at 3:30.  It is still a little windy here with a salt mist coming in from the ocean.  But again it is a 60 degree mist so we won't complain.  We will be here until Monday and then heading down to Bushnell.

 

One coming in for the night and a Cruise Ship heading out!!

 

 

Brad, Diane and Rudy

Ready to hit the road

Happy New Year to everyone.   We are rapping up the Holiday's with pork and sauerkraut at Chris's today and a McCurdy family get together on Sunday.  We are hopping to get together with Shari and family sometime tomorrow as they are in for a visit.    We had a wonderful Christmas, enjoyed visiting with friends and relatives, just can't believe how fast the time went. When we first got here we didn't know what we would do with all the time we had and now time is up and we didn't get half the stuff done we wanted to.  We did made a overnight run to farm on Monday drained  the water lines and shut the place up for the winter.  It was kind of sad but we are ready to get on the road.  If we are lucky and all goes according to plan we will hit the road Monday heading to Walnut Hills KOA in Staunton Va.  and then to Carolina Crossroad in NC on Tuesday.  The weather has been quite mild so far but today's drop below freezing reminded us of why we go south.

   Angeli Crew Pictures:    New Year Day at Chris and Thoms'



  January 3, get together:      McCurdy Crew Pictures:   
                                                              (I did tell Brad not to accuse my family of being loud!!!)

A Month on the farm

Thursday 19 Nov.     We have been here now for just over a month and hope to be heading south in another month.  The weeks seem to go buy so fast especially with it getting dark at 5pm. Now we are trying to keep in mind we must keep the motor home in shape for travel. As Diane walked out of house she noticed some hanging from the Moho.  It was a muffler clamp, a big muffler clamp, a $176.00 muffler clamp which is now on order.

Coyote on the hill top!!

 

Things are moving along at about half the pace we thought they would.   We finally found some one to mow the hay fields after visiting the Farm Service Agency in Wellsboro on Oct 28, writing  them a letter for permission, they responded, three attempts to contact our neighbor to rent their tractor(no luck), half a dozen other contacts and phone calls and then waiting for three days of dry weather.  And yesterday the fields were mowed three and half weeks after we started.  Other things have been smoother Sunday we drove to Mechanicsburg rented a U-Haul truck, cleaned out our storage unit and drove back Sunday night.  Phew, that was a long day we returned around 8pm parked the truck ate a snack and went to bed.  Unloaded the stuff on Monday and it  was a little like Christmas finding all kinds of things we forgot about.  We returned the truck on Tuesday after stopping for breakfast at the newly opened restaurant in Little Marsh(yes that it correct, a

Truck is unloaded!!

restaurant in Little Marsh) and food was good.   We are sorting and putting things away as we clean cupboards.  The garage is still a mess with boxes just sitting around every where.

 

Diane has the range cleaned, the refrigerator is almost done it would have been done except we found some mold up in the ice and water dispenser so we watched a couple of videos on you tube and then tore it completely apart.  If all goes well and we remember how to put it all back together we will be done with that tomorrow.  Other things are going well we stopped a antique/junk store and ended buying a set of dishes identical to the ones we sold.  And just last night Diane had the high bid on a set of flatware from an online auction.  We picked up some additional coffee cups at the thrift store only to find a set of eight in the first box we unpacked.

 

Refrigerator parts,
scrubbed and ready to go.....
Just need to finish the part
where it connects to the
refrigerator.




On the fun side of things I hunted the last week of archery season but didn't see a deer.  We have been moving are trail cameras around but aren't having much luck.  We saw the bear of course and this week captured a picture of a coyote.  Gray(the trapper)  trapped a huge male coyote last Thursday, he guesses it will be close to fifty pounds.  We have been riding around the farm trying to decide where to hunt for bear and deer but haven't yet found the perfect spots.  Did you notice riding around the farm,  Diane insisted we couldn't "work " on the farm without means to traverse the hills so she bought a 4-wheeler.  I use from time to time to haul firewood and other work related jobs.   (I think it was Brad who insisted 'you can't have 150 acres without a 4-wheeler to get around')!!

Brad, Diane and Rudy

The new toy,
Rudy thinks he wants a ride!!

 



A Week at the Farm

Friday October 6     

What a beautiful  week of weather.  We have made a lot of progress getting the farm back in order.  We had the chimney cleaned on Friday (30 Oct.) the only morning we had rain.  Fortunately the rain stopped just as he arrived. The chimney sweep was a professional, a skinny old guy must have been 70, he walked with a bad limp like he has fallen from several chimneys and yes he had the tall black top hat.  As he climbed the latter with his brushes and top hat he looked like Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins.  While he cleaned the chimney Diane was down getting the car inspected as the inspection ran out on the 31st.



Taking the portable
tree stand to the woods!!

     Back to making progress we have had the septic pumped, electric changed over, ironed out a deal for propane(bought the tank),  picked up two cord of fire wood, ordered parts and fixed the UV lite, ordered more parts and fixed the washer, ordered air filters for the furnace and water filters. 

     We have been busy outside as well. Diane thinned out most of the flower beds and severally thinned the out of control lilac trees.  We cut down two diseased  white pines and pulled out several dead small blue spruce along he driveway.  But as we worked around the house we must carry all the debris by hand to a burn pile or in buckets to the bottom of the hill. We now have little piles of stuff all around the yard.  We will have to figure something out. And my personal favorite job, we mowed  the entire yard with a 22 inch push mower.

    As I mentioned the weather has been great, afternoon temps in the 70's and low's in 40's.  We've been walking around the farm and hung two cameras out to find out what for wild life is running around.  At first we checked the cameras every other day, then every third and now every once in a while.  Had a picture of a bear's butt and a blurry one of a nice buck.  Some of the walks are getting to be a chore walking the food scrapes up the hill, walking to get the mail and walking buckets of ash

The Yard is looking good!!

down the hill. 

      It is still a very emotional time as we sort through our feelings about the farm.  Some things we just love and other you just hate and mostly you're just not sure about. There is no doubt this is a beautiful place the three red maples in the yard have turn this week and were just lovely.

       However, we have had breakfast and dinner on the grill for the past three or four days and enjoying the sunsets which have been just beautiful.  Just a little story about grilling this week. Each morning when I walked Rudy I noticed the grease pan under the grill had been cleaned out and small paw prints on our chair and

Not the best picture, but they
are here!!

chair backs.  We are thinking  squirrel, coon or maybe a skunk.  Soooo last night(dark 7pm) as we were enjoying our second glass of wine, grilling a ham steak in the dark, and with Rudy by our side out from under camper and right over to the grill comes a big black.......cat.  Well let me tell you that you never seen an old fart jump so high or run that fast and our "guard" dog never even saw the kitty until after it ran off.   More wine for one and all.  I almost forgot, we did see 3 bear about 10:00 Thursday morning.  They were just walking the hill side, picking and eating....not to excited about anything.


Brad, Diane and Rudy