May 16 - 19

Thursday, May 16:  I needed to wash two more loads of clothes so after breakfast, a walk and showers we headed over to Mildred’s.  She wanted to take us to a new BBQ place on the south side of Blairsville so while the second load was drying we headed out for errands and lunch.  We had a tub of books Mildred wanted to donate to the library along with some VHS tapes.  The library took the books but didn’t want the tapes, big surprise there.  The tapes are going to the thrift store except for the ones about trains which I am taking back to give to Chuck Kalkbrenner who lives in the park in Tucson.  He is a train aficionado and will appreciate these tapes. 

Lunch was at Jim’s Smokin Que and it was delicious!  Mike and I both ordered a full rack of ribs but could only eat half.  That’s OK, leftover ribs for dinner one night will be just fine!   About a mile down the highway from the BBQ place is the Logan Turnpike Mill where Mildred has been buying grits and cornmeal for years.  We try to stock up each time we come through and this time was no exception.  We bought 10#’s of yellow cornmeal and 10#’s of yellow grits.  We gonna eat good for a long time!  Yes, Marie and Darrell, I’ll be sharing with you! 

Logan Turnpike Mill (not a real chicken!)

The rest of the afternoon we ran a few more errands including getting Mildred’s truck washed and then headed back to her house for coconut cake!  She had made the cake for dessert the night before but we were so stuffed after dinner we didn’t have any room for cake.  So we had it for dinner this evening.  Around 6 PM we said our goodbyes and headed back to the coach.  Tomorrow is a drive day to Alabama and I needed to get some rest.  It was a lovely evening for wine outside under the stars.  

Goodbye Mildred, we love you!

Friday, May 17:  The rain that was predicted hadn’t shown up by the time we were ready to leave this morning which was good.  We hate getting ready in the rain!  But, we still had aggravation from the coach in the form of annoying lights and buzzers.  I think there is something wrong with the hydraulic system because the “Jacks Down” light stays on until we are about 5 miles down the road and the “Check Engine” light comes on at the same time.  I’m hoping we can get by until we get back to Tucson to have the coach serviced.  Everyone, keep your fingers crossed! 

Mike had been talking on the phone with his sister Marsha and her husband Richard this week.  Mike’s sister went into the hospital on Thursday for pneumonia and possibly a heart attack.  When Mike spoke to her earlier in the week he had commented she sounded a little disoriented and now we know why.  It turned out to be blood clots forming in her feet and ankles that were moving into her lungs.  

We got to the RV Park in Tanner, AL outside of Decatur about 2:30 and got setup before the rain started.  It rained for four hours!  Mike had spoken to his brother-in-law Richard and it was decided we would go to the hospital for the 6 PM visitation.  By 4:30 I was exhausted and decided to stay at the coach while Mike went to see his sister.  The storm had not let up and Jenny was pacing and anxious.  It was better that one of us stayed with her to prevent her from destroying the coach.  It gave me chance to rest, also.  I still get very tired by late afternoon especially after driving the coach for several hours. 

Saturday, May 18:  We awoke to no rain!  It was still a gray day in north Alabama.  After Yoga, breakfast and showers we headed into Decatur to the hospital to see Marsha.  She is doing much better today.  The breathing treatments and the blood thinners seem to be helping a great deal.  We visited until her lunch arrived then we headed out to have lunch ourselves.  Back to the hospital after our lunch for more visiting time then we went to the coach to take Jenny for a walk and for a quick nap for us.  After our nap we went back to the hospital for one more visit with Marsha and her husband Richard.  We really enjoyed getting to know Richard better (he and Marsha are newlyweds) and visiting with Marsha and her daughter Deanna. 

     Marsha and her daughter Deanna                 Richard and Marsha                 Deanna, Marsha and Mike

Because we ate so much at lunch at Olive Garden we didn’t feel like eating anything for supper so we sat outside and had a glass (or two!) of wine.  Yesterday evening we noticed a yellow tom cat wandering around meowing endlessly.  I finally caved in and gave him some cat food.  Yep, he’s our new best friend now.  We think he belongs to the guy in the pop-up camper across from us since the cat seems to hang around over there a lot.  He is definitely someone’s pet because he is declawed and we think he’s neutered as well.  He’s friendly but cautious and not afraid of Jenny at all.  This evening he was back over for his meal and of course I obliged.  After we went in for the evening he hung around a bit then he left. 

He's made himself quite comfortable at our site!

 

Sunday, May 19:  We left Decatur this morning and headed south towards Hattiesburg, MS to our stop for the next two nights.  Mike has found us an RV Resort that has a pond and ducks and is a Passbook America park!  The drive into it is kind of interesting because it is mostly a one lane road!  I kept hoping I didn’t run into another RV coming out of the park.  After setting up we had a lovely evening sitting outside watching the ducks and the turtles in the pond.