May 8 - 12

Wednesday, May 8:  Time to leave Clearwater and head for the Orlando area with a stop in Plant City to spread some of Mom’s ashes.  Her father and two of her brothers are buried at the Turkey Creek Baptist Church Cemetery.  I’m hoping her Mom is buried in Ocala with other family members.  Mike set the GPS for the cemetery and off we went.  The drive through downtown Tampa was fairly easy since we didn’t leave Clearwater until after 9 to avoid rush hour.  The idea was to exit in Plant City and disconnect the car to drive to the cemetery but Mike looked at a satellite view (gotta love the iPhone!!) of the cemetery and saw that the church parking lot was huge.  I drove the motor home right to the church and parked in the parking lot. 

It was time to let Mom join her father and brothers.  This was the first we had really looked at the container holding Mom’s ashes.  It was totally sealed, like a coffee can.  How do I get Mom out?  With a can opener, that’s how! 

My Mother would have gotten a laugh out of this!

We took the bag containing Mom’s ashes and put it in a grocery bag and went to look for the graves of my grandfather and my uncles.  It took a while but we found them and I distributed some of Mom’s ashes around all three grave sites.  I didn’t realize how white the ashes would be so I had to be careful about where they were placed.  I didn’t want it to be too obvious in case there are laws or cemetery policies about spreading ashes. 

Jenny was supervising...

It was a beautiful day and the rest of the drive to Orlando to visit my brother Jim was nice and easy.  We got to Jim’s place mid afternoon and drove to where he lives with his girlfriend Betty.  Jim then rode with me over to the storage area, referred to as the compound, where we set up our coach.  Ah, the perfect spot was found so the dish could go up and not be blocked by trees!

I had not put the dish up yet.

Betty prepared a delicious dinner of homemade spaghetti sauce and French bread with chopped garlic and butter.  I can see why my brother has developed a little belly on him.  Way to go, Betty!  It was nice to get to know Betty and to visit with them both.  We don’t get to see enough of each other so when we do get together it’s “catch up” time.  Jim and Betty have recently purchased a 2000 40’ Allegro Bus to travel in.  I am jealous!  His coach even though it’s the same year as ours looks much more modern and is a whole lot nicer inside!  He also got a heck of a deal on it.  Now they have no excuse not to come visit us in Colorado!

Thursday, May 9:  We connected the car outside the compound and then Betty & Jim joined us to say good bye.  The visit was way too short but I know we’ll see them again soon. 

Jim & me & Betty, do we look like brothers?

One of the worse things in Florida is the lovebug.  It is a funny looking little black bug that actually is two bugs joined together at the butt, or what would be the butt if they had one.  They are really thick over highways and the front of your vehicle becomes plastered with them as you zoom along.  If you don’t wash them off quickly they can take the paint right off the vehicle!  By the time we got to Ocala the front of the coach was covered so the first thing Mike did was clean the bugs off. 

The RV Park in Ocala where we stayed is on the south side at the intersection of Hwy 484 and I-75.  The site we picked was in the middle of the park with no trees for hundreds of yards so the dish had no interference.  I didn’t get a picture but trust me, there was not a tree anywhere near us!  Then why didn’t our programs record that night?  We missed the season finale of Glee and Grey’s Anatomy! 

This evening for dinner we went out to a new restaurant in Ocala called the Ivy House.  Our friend Jim Poston suggested it and we said we would go by and pick up Chuck and Barry at their new house.  We all got caught up on each other’s lives over dinner and had a great visit! 

Chuck, Mike, me, Barry & Jim at the Ivy House Restaurant.

After dinner we drove around Ocala and looked at some of the historic homes downtown.  I had forgotten how beautiful downtown Ocala is.  Then we went over to Chuck & Barry’s and visited a little more with them before retiring to the coach. 

Friday, May 10:  I had called my childhood friend Carol yesterday and we had agreed to meet for lunch.  Ironically, she had suggested the Ivy house since it was a new place.  During dinner last night Jim has recommended another restaurant in Ocala, Tres Chic because it had great lunches and a “killer coconut cake.”  We met Carol at Tres Chic and had a great lunch but was too full to order dessert, maybe next time. 

Mike, Carol and me at Tres Chic restaurant

The last time I saw Carol she was driving a big old Oldsmobile 98, it was a huge car!  Carol is less than 5’ tall and is quite petite so to see her driving such a big car was kind of funny.  Now she is driving a new Dodge Charger and it fits her nicely. 

Carol and her snazzy car.

It just so happens that my cousin Diane was retiring from her job today and they were having a party for her at work.  She invited us to join them at 2 this afternoon.  It was a nice party and it worked out well for us because we got to see two of her three daughters and two of her grand kids as well as her husband.  The other daughter lives in Japan where her husband is stationed so she wasn't able to make it to the party. 

Diane’s party and family.

After the party and all that 'visiting' I was exhausted.  My stamina and energy is getting better but I still get tired by the end of the day especially if I've been active. We said our goodbyes and headed back to the coach.  Tomorrow we are driving to Georgia and it is going to be a long day.

Saturday, May 11:  When we stopped for fuel Mike had to “de-bug” the windshield again so I could see where we were going!  After the fuel stop we only had one or two lovebugs hit the windshield. 

We got to the RV Park in Jackson, Georgia about 4 in the afternoon.  My step-mother Mildred stays with her daughter Kathryn and her husband Tony in Williamson, Georgia during the winter.  We are going to pick my step-mom up and take her to her home in Blairsville, Georgia on this trip.  They prepared dinner for us this evening so we got to catch up and get our bellies full once again. 

My turn to have my picture taken by the RV!

Sunday, May 12:  Mother’s Day!  The five of us went out to eat at Ted’s Montana Grill in Peachtree City for lunch.  That is Ted Turner’s restaurant and it features bison meat.  Everyone had bison for lunch except me; I wanted a beef filet, medium rare since I haven’t been able to have one for quite a while.  The doctors didn’t want me eating rare meat or sushi while I was taking treatments.  The meal was excellent! 

We spent the rest of the afternoon at Kathryn & Tony’s visiting with her kids and grand kids.  It’s always fun to see them and listen to their stories of what the kids and grand kids are doing.  By late afternoon we were exhausted and headed back to the coach.