Even Long Time Full-Timers Forget and IN To KY

Berea, KY.

63 deg. clear, no wind.

Forecast = Numerous showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 70s. West winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation 60 percent.


That big eraser that Jim has was put to use again Tuesday morning. The plan was to leave Indy and head for KY, but the weather was not looking good at all so Jim and Linda decided to stay another day.

So,  ,  ,  , yesterday morning we left the Lake Haven Retreat CG about 9:30 and headed back up to I-465. Heading East on 465 took us to I-74 which took us over to Cincinnati where we took I-275 around to the South of the city and picked up I-75 heading South. We then followed 75 all the way down here to Berea, KY and to the Walnut Meadows RV Park.

Now, it was just as we were turning South onto I-75 on the South side of Cincinnati that there was a big "crash" sound from somewhere inside of me!! By the sound of the noise, I just knew it couldn't be good!!!! It sounded like some cabinet or drawer had come open and all contents had come out and crashed to the floor!!!!  : O

There was no place to pull off of the road right there, so Linda got up and went back to see what had happened, while Jim drove very carefully so as not to make any sudden changes in speed or direction while she was looking.

Once Linda got up and walked back into my kitchen, it was very apparent what had happened. You see, I have a pantry that has 6 drawers that are completely full of canned goods. Most of it in cans, but some in jars. Well, it seems that neither Jim or Linda remembered to latch the drawers closed before closing the door to the pantry. As we were going around the corner to merge onto I-75, the drawers pushed against the door and forced the door open, letting all six drawers come crashing out as far as possible on their slides.

Well, needless to say, there were canned goods scattered all over the floor and some of it had fallen as much as 6 feet!!!!  : O

Luckily, there was a rest area a few miles down the road, so Jim pulled in and went back to help Linda. Luckily, none of the cans or jars had broken, but there were cans everywhere!!! One of the drawers wouldn't slide back in, but during further inspection, it was discovered that there was a can wedged behind it, and once removed, the drawer closed.

Most of the cans were placed back in the drawers and the drawers were latched shut, but things had gotten so mixed up that Jim finally put some of the cans in the sink rather than trying to fit every one of them back in place.

I don't know just how long we were at the rest area, but I think it was about 15 or 20 minutes. It doesn't appear that anything was damaged, (except a few bent and dented cans), and all the drawers seem to work properly, so everything turned out OK. : )

Whew!!!!

It was 1:30 when we pulled up to the office so it took us almost exactly 4 hours to travel the 223 miles down here and stop at the rest area.

Walunt Meadows is OK. Nothing special, but it is near to where Linda's cousin, Rick and his wife Doris live and Jim and Linda have stayed here quite a few times in the past.

After getting settled in and getting the rest of the cans put away, : )  Linda called Rick to let him know that we were here. Then about 5:50 Rick and Doris came over, took a quick tour of me, and then they all  headed over to the Cracker Barrell to meet Rick and Doris' son, Cory, and his family for dinner.

After eating and visiting for quite awhile, Rick and Doris brought Jim and Linda back here. Then, it was h and h (hugs and handshakes) before Rick and Doris headed home.

It was a short visit, but a very good one. Jim and Linda always look forward to seeing Rick and his family, and I'm sure the next time we're passing through this area, we'll stop again.

Hopefully for a longer visit next time. : )

A Point to Ponder : Experience is a wonderful thing. It enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again.

Nice Weather, Latest Plans and CG Entertainment

Rantoul, IL.

55 deg. overcast, NW wind @ 9 mph.

Forecast = Partly cloudy. High of 72F. Winds from the WNW at 10 to 15 mph.


The weather was really nice here in Rantoul yesterday. Lots of sunshine and temperatures in the low 70's. It was a little breezy though, but not enough to bother most folks. The CG is just about full and if there would me more kids running around and playing, you'd think that this weekend was the Holiday weekend. 

After everyone leaves today, it should get really quiet here at the Prairie Pines CG. Louise doesn't have any more clubs or organizations booked for the rest of the year, and probably the only campers that will stop by will be folks traveling on I-57 or I-74.

We'll be here for a couple more weeks yet. As it looks right now, we'll be leaving here on the 24th of September to start heading East towards North Carolina and Virginia to see Jim and Linda's kids and grand-kids.

If everything go according to plan, we'll be making stops to see people in Indiana, Kentucky and North Carolina before getting to Mike and Gina's in Apex, NC and to Joe and Nancy's in Virginia Beach, VA.

Of course, most of you regular readers know that all of Jim's plans are written in pencil and he has that big eraser!! ; )

So, I guess that's it for today. It'll be fun watching all the folks pack up to leave the CG. Some are quite experienced RVers and others are not, so the way they go about packing up and moving out of their sites can be quite entertaining. : )

Did you know that today is "National Grandparent's Day"?

Lincoln City to Garibaldi and The Eraser Again

Garibaldi, OR.

39 deg. clear, NE wind @ 5 mph.

Forecast = Mostly cloudy in the morning, then partly cloudy. High of 55F. Winds from the WNW at 5 to 15 mph.


It was raining off and on yesterday morning, so Jim did the outside things, to get ready to travel, in between showers. We probably would have left a little earlier than we did, but some of the showers lasted for awhile. The way it was, we did manage to pull out of the park in Lincoln City at 10:05.

Then it was Northbound on US 101 again, through a couple of twisty-turny hilly sections, and to the Barview Jetty County Campground near Garibaldi. It rained off and on the whole distance, (52 miles), and it was right at 11:25 when we pulled up to the Registration Booth.

In fact it was raining as Jim registered me and continued for about another 1/2 hour after we arrived.

The first site that they assigned me had only 30 amps, so Jim took CLT up to the booth and asked them if we could have a different site. They gave me a site right across the street that has 50 amps at no additional charge.  : )

By the time I was backed into the new site, (#61), the rain had stopped and Jim was able to get me hooked up to the full hook-up utilities without even getting damp. ; )

Guess what? Jim has been using that big eraser of his again and changing plans. As you already know, our original plan was to go from here up to the Astoria area and stay at the Fort Stevens State Park this Monday and then head into Portland on Tuesday. Well after checking distances and CG rates, he and Linda have now decided to stay here until Tuesday and then go a little ways North on US 101, then catch US 26 and take that directly into Portland.

The rates are as low here as they would be at Ft. Stevens, and we will save about 55 or 60 miles. Plus, we'll only have one day traveling instead of two.

Hmmmm!!! Sounds like it may be a good change of plans. : )

I like this park. I have full hook-ups, I am in a nice long, level, back-in site, there are a few trees for shade, and so far, there haven't been a whole lot of RVs coming in for the weekend. 

Because of rain yesterday, Jim didn't take any photos, but I would imagine that he'll be out and about today snapping away with his PHD camera. If he takes some, I'll be sure to post them here in the next day or so.

A Point to Ponder : Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour?