Making Friends

Living on the road fulltime does make it harder to acquire and keep friends.  Folks we meet at campgrounds are in general friendly. However, when you're only pulling in for an overnight stay, there isn't a sense of urgency in getting to know your neighbor.

In the summer of 2011, we met a couple who were staying at the same campground in Maine as us. We stopeed to speak with them as we noticed their license plates indicated they were from South Dakota also.  Michael and Glenda are fulltimers and use a differnt mail service in the state.  Their routes are in the South; family in AL, LA & TX.

Because we were the locals, we were able to share information about Maine with them.  They were very easy going folks and we frequently found ourselves visiting at their campsite as did other folks from around the campground.  Michael enjoys cooking others and we were introduced to Cajun flavors.

To our luck, Michael and Glenda stayed for several months and a friendship was formed.  We share a few other commonalities besides residency including kayaking and motorcycling. After our stays in Maine ended, we stayed in touch and tracked each others travels via social media.

In summer 2012, while Chuck & I were doing the Habitat build in eastern South Dakota, we read on FB that Michael and Glenda were leaving Wyoming and heading towards western South Dakota.  We made plans to join up with them in Sturgis (after motorcycle week) and spent time reconnecting.  Winter plans were discussed and they mentioned there was the possiblity of them coming to Florida this year.

By mid-November we knew Michael and Glenda were in the neighborhood, staying at a campground 60 miles from the one we were at.  Although it put us further away from people we knew in the region, we ended up relocating from our campground over to the one they were at.  

One of my favorite things we've been doing is going on motorcycles rides.  Generally Michael selects the destination for the ride, then shows me a simple map of the proposed route and I end up leading our band.  We participated in a charity ride with them one day, and have done several scenic rides. On one outing another couple from the campground join us on our journey to Cedar Keys FL.

Wanderlust set in quicker for Michael & Glenda and they have moved on to other campgrounds.  Chuck and I feel the need to get moving calling and are considering options on where to go and when.  But we know that someone down the road, we'll meet up with Michael & Glenda and have more fun.

Chili Bowl: Camp Run-A-Muk

Earlier this year I learned the campground we were staying at would be having a Chili Bowl contest and I decided I wanted to see how mine stacked up to others.  Two weeks ago, the sign-up sheet was put out and besides listing your name, you had to give your chili a title.  Others who were signing up mentioned that last year's winning chili was called "Take Two Tums".  Great, I thought, now I need a catchy name as well as a good recipe.

Because I put so many things into my chili, I thought of calling it "Everything But The Kitchen Sink".  I settled on the name "Camp Run-A-Muk".  That name came from a decorative sign I bought Chuck many years ago - among the activities at Camp Run-A-Muk were Snipe Hunting and Bear Wrestling, which considering Chuck's marine engineer nickname of Snipe and my working as L.L. Bear deemed the sign very appropriate for us.

Knowing how much Chuck and I personally like the chili even more than the next day, I started my recipe on Saturday. Into my 3 qt crockpot I put one can each Dark Kidney, Light Kidney and Northern Beans (drained).  I also added one can of Diced Tomato w/Garlic and a bottle of Chili Sauce.  They simmered on low for 10-12 hours before I put the pot in the fridge for the night.  Sunday morning I added sauteed onion and mushrooms to the bean mixture. Finally I browned and seasoned my hamburg (1 lb).  For seasoning the meat I used chili powder, cumin, paprika and black pepper.  That was then added to the bean pot and finally a small can of corn went in.  I allowed all these to simmer on high for about an hour, then dropped the crock pot setting to low for another, alternating temps back and forth all day.

It was also during this change in temperature that I'd taste and add more seasoning (chili powder, cumin, paprika, worcestershire sauce and of course tabasco sauce).  With 4 hours before tasting I finally let Chuck have a taste and he said it needed more heat, so more tabasco and chili powder went in.  Another hour of simmering and we decided it still needed just a hint more heat, again tabasco to the rescue. With two hours remaining before the chili contest, Chuck deemed my mixture perfect.  Just a slight hint of heat but not overbearing.

Nine other folks had signed up for the contest, but a few did not show.  Anyone in attendance could be a judge. When I saw the number of returning seasonal campers in attendance vs those of us in for a few days or a few months, realized my chili might be good but the vote might be based on popularity of the maker, not the dish.

My chili was first in the line-up and I saw that as either a good sign or bad: good that the palate would be clean and the taste would be pure, bad because they'd forget what mine tasted like as they went down the line.

No two chilies were exactly alike; "Mom's" was very soupey and just kidney bean, "Wally's Wonder" caused many to search out tissues as it was too hot and spicey.  To my taste buds, there was one other chili I liked almost as well as mine: "Buckeye Hottie".  The name insinuated heat, but I didn't find much.  "Buckeye Hottie" was the last on the table.

Not much fanfare was put in to announcing the winner. The campground's Activity Director quickly counted the votes and said "Camp Run-A-Muk" and "Buckeye Hottie" were the top two vote getters and the difference was just one vote, 10 to 9.  Buckeye was the winner.

As my circle of fans reminded me, losing by 1 vote was affirmation that mine was good. And because my chili was the first tasted and winning one the last meant mine stood out in the judges minds well enough.

I'm happy with the results and have decided to make another batch for the next potluck dinner we go to at this campground.

A Bit Crafty

In Nov 2011 my mom asked me to knit a prayer shawl/wrap for Dad, longer and wider than most of his others.  She wanted something that would cover his upper body while he sat in his wheelchair. I hadn’t done any knitting since I broke my wrist in  2010.  I wasn’t sure how it would go as this was the 2nd time I had broken the same wrist and anticipated lots of problems from movement and soreness.   

I was able to finish the knitting in a few weeks time and Dad enjoyed his knit wrap for several months before he died.  Mom gave me the wrap after Dad died and we use it on a chair in the RV.  My concerns for wrist problems were not as I had anticipated.

After I finished Dad's wrap, I was pondering other projects and found out the campground we stayed at collected hand made blankets, giving them to a local camp for special needs children.  The campground had a bucket of yarn and I decided to crochet a granny square blanket for the camp.

Every time I wanted to learn a new stich, I'd go on the Internet and YouTube to see how it was done. Then I'd work at it, many times pulling out stiches to fix mistakes.  When we moved from the house into the RV, I chose to keep my knitting supplies hoping that I'd find a desire to make things again.  I had lots of yarn in my own collection and made myself a large granny square blanket.  When we learned Chuck's daughter Melissa was expecting, I crafted 2 blankets for her baby, 1 knit and 1 crochet.

There are several balls of yarn and different needles in various locations around the RV with projects in various states.  I’m enjoying making all types of project, although sometimes Chuck says my favorite part of a project is when I “frog” or “ribbet” and start all over.   When I first started knitting (about 10 years ago) my specialty was winter scarfs, graduating to hats.  This past year has mostly been blankets and crochet vs knit.  

On our trip North last Spring, I retrieved my sewing machine from storage and have managed to find room to use it from time to time.  Sewing projects are easiest when we're at a campground for a long period of time; I need to move several things around to get to the machine out of it's storage spot. Knit and crochet are easily transported from camper to car when we're moving about (unless it's my turn to drive).

Granny square afghan

Crochet blanket for Paysen

Knit blanket for Paysen

Collection of afghans, gift bags, wash cloths, placemats,
and puppy beds

Going to the Birds

Bald Eagle, Bras D'Or Lake, Cape Breton Island, NS

Bald Eagle 

Osprey, Crystal River, Florida 

Osprey

Red-Tailed Hawk, Crystal River, Florida

Prairie Chicken, Gary Owen, Montana 

Sandhill Crane, Yellowstone, Wyoming  

Yellow-Crowned Night Heron, Crystal River, Florida

Pelicans & Cormorant, Crystal River, Florida 

Sandpiper, Crystal River, Florida 

Common Moorhen, Leesburg, Florida 

Limpkin, Leesburg, Florida

Ibis (immature), Crystal River, Florida

Ibis, Crystal River, Florida

Snowey Egret & Ibis, Crystal River, Florida

Snowey Egret & Great Egret, Crystal River, Florida 

Great Egret, Helena Run, Leesburg, FL

Great Egret, Crystal River, FL

Snowy Egret (breeding plumage) Crystal River, FL

Little Blue Heron, Leesburg, FL

Great Blue Heron, Leesburg, FL

Great Blue Heron

Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker, Hawkshaw, NB

Pileated Woodpecker, Crystal River, FL

Red-Bellied Woodpecker, Crystal River, FL

Potluck 011013

Tonight’s campground potluck dinner brought over 50 of us together around the tables. 

One of the reasons I like to attend potluck dinners is it gives me the opportunity to try a new recipe.  Several years ago I pulled a recipe from a magazine for Beef Taco Skillet and stuck it in my cookbook.  Every now and then I see the recipe, but never made it. It was about time I tried the dish and bought the ingredients I didn’t already have.  It was very easy to make.

Beef Taco Skillet

1 lb ground beef  

1/2 cup water

1 can (10.75 oz) tomato soup     

6 flour tortilla (6”) cut into 1” pieces

1/2 cup salsa     

1/2 cup shredded cheese

a) cook ground beef in 10” skillet until well browned, stirring to break up meat. Pour off fat.

b)Stir in soup, salsa, water and tortillas. Heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Top with cheese.  Makes 4 servings

Chuck and I both enjoyed the dish and I’ll be adding it to my repertoire, although instead of the soft tortilla pieces, we think we'll try nacho chips. It seems others at the dinner enjoyed it also; I didn't have much for leftovers to bring home.

Charity Ride

We did our first (and only?) charity motorcycle ride  In early December, our RV friends, Michael & Glenda, invited Chuck and me to join them on a Toy Run.  Since the motorcycle ride was only 15 miles in distance, we decided we would do it.  It was to be the first time that Chuck and I participated in a charity ride and we found out the first time for our friends also.

The day of the Toy Run arrived, and was a bright, sunny day - any weather based excuse to not ride was out the window.  The 4 of us started off to the meeting point, leaving our RV park an hour before the ride was to start.  Not 5 miles in to our 20 mile trip to the starting point and we had to go back - the brake lights on Glenda’s motorcycle were not working properly and as we’d be riding in a large group, didn’t want to cause an accident because the biker behind her couldn’t tell if she was stopping or slowing.

By the time we got going again, with Glenda riding shotgun on Michael’s bike, we had 20 minutes to make the 20 miles.  Somehow or other, I was the leader of our little pack and did my darnedest to push myself to get us there - fortunately a good portion of the road we were taking was posted as 60 mph, so I didn’t have to speed to make up time.  (Ok, the real reason I was leader was I knew where the starting point was - the particular parking lot was for a chain store I like to shop at, although I hadn’t been to that particular location.) During our trip to the Toy Run’s starting location I kept hoping they were getting a late start, or that we’d see them coming and find a convenient place to do a U-turn and join the back of the pack.

With one traffic light left between us and the start, I saw the police and fire escort of the Toy Ride heading our way. Rats, I thought, we’ve missed it.  Traffic in our current direction was being blocked from crossing to the other side. I quickly decided to continue just past the turn we wanted and come in to the parking lot from a different direction.  Chuck and Michael with Glenda on his bike had no choice but to follow me.

As we maneuvered our motorcycles around cars in the lot, we saw there were still a good number of motorcyclist waiting to start the ride and we were able to join right in and participate.   Chuck rode right next to me on my left, but I couldn’t see our friends. In front of us was a line of motorcyclist stretching over a mile and I had no idea how far behind us the parade went, all I knew was we were somewhere near the back, but not the tail end.

The ride was one of the most nerve wracking experiences I can recall, our double line of bikes were in the left lane, while vehicles passed us in the right hand lane, every now and then trying to cross into our lane to make a left hand turn, thereby causing a bottleneck and the need for us to drop our speed of 50 down to 20 or even 10.  Because spacing between riders was close I used the brake lights of a motorcycle 4 positions ahead of me to prepare to stop or slow.  At one time the biker who was directly behind me pulled up on my right side as he hadn’t planned on slowing as suddenly as we did.

When we finally got to the end of the ride, I discovered our friends were only 3 positions behind.  We parked our bikes among the hundreds of other bikers and joined the festivities of music, food and a visit from Santa who distributed the toys to the kids.  It took awhile for my nerves to loosen. I told the others in our little group that although that type of ride hadn’t been on my bucket list, I was glad to be able to check it off.

While the experience of helping others felt good, the stress of the ride getting to the Toy Run with no time to spare (not even a chance to get off the bike for 5 seconds before we got rolling) to the number of bikers are not one I think I’ll want to repeat.  I enjoy riding my motorcycle, but prefer to do it with just 1 to 3 other bikes on the ride.

These images are of the ride - the first one shows the lead  bikes on the ride, the 2nd shot is from our friends' point of view - I'm the biker in the right lane with the white jacket and white helmet. Chuck's to my left, silver helmet and green shoulders on his jacket.

2012 Recap

2012 is past and many memories were made. Some are happy memories, some sad, some silly, and some bad. 

One of the most influential memories I will have from 2012 is the passing of my father in February. There were many times throughout the rest of the year when I’d say to myself “Dad would have loved to see this” or “This reminds me so much of Dad”.  I know his presence will always be with me and I’ll hold him dear to my heart.

My second special memory of 2012 is Paysen Marie Ramsey.  Chuck’s older daughter, Melissa, delivered our first grandchild on May 1.  I didn’t feel like a “Grammy” or “Nana” and we came up with the idea of my being “JoJo”. Chuck wanted to be “GrandDad” but because he had on a baseball cap with the name of a coffee shop in Bar Harbor emblazoned on it, everyone started calling him that name instead; “Grumpy”.  Only time will tell if Paysen likes our nicknames or not.

2012 was a year of travel for sure as Chuck and I continued our full-timing.  We left Florida in early March to return to Massachusetts for Dad’s funeral. We hung around New England for about a month and I did some more family genealogy research before working our way to NY and Pennsylvania, getting to Maryland just in time for the birth of Paysen. In mid-May we started our real travels and headed back to New England, spending a few days in the Portland ME area reconnecting with friends and professional services before pushing on.

By June we had crossed in to the Canadian Maritimes and reconnected with several campgrounds we had visited in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, as well as finding new locations to visit in Nova Scotia.  I think our favorite location during that part of the travels was staying at a campground outside Baddeck, on Cape Breton Island.

July brought us back to the United States and New England, first a brief stop in Maine and then a week stay in New Hampshire.  We had abandon our plans to travel westerly across Canada and decided to see the U.S. instead.  One of the places on our 2012 bucket list was to visit an RV manufacturing plant.  While in Elkhart IN we took advantage of touring at a Heartland facility. Very educational for us.

During this time, while checking an email, I discovered that there was a need for Care-A-Vanners at a Habitat for Humanity build in Brookings, SD.  We decided to sign up, and with a few weeks before the build date made a few more stops on our way west.  It was during this time that we discovered Pipestone, Minnesota and the Pipestone National Monument.  There is a lot of Native American history in this region.  I found this area very special for me spiritually and hope to get back again.

After our two week stint with Habitat was up, and because RV friends we knew from Maine 2011 were in Montana, Chuck, the pups and I headed west across South Dakota to meet up with our friends in Sturgis, SD.  (Bike Week had ended and the RV park had an outstanding deal which we couldn’t resist.)  We stopped in Mitchell SD, home of the Corn Palace and also at Wall Drug as we headed west of I-90.  

Upon crossing the Missouri River in SD, a whole different world opened before us. The landscape of our country was so different and beautiful.  We stopped for a few days in the Badlands National Park before joining Michael & Glenda in Sturgis for a week.  It was fantastic to reconnect with them in person and the week flew by.  While staying in Sturgis, Chuck and I drove to Mount Rushmore one day and Devils Tower another.  

Getting back on the road, we chose the Little Bighorn Battlefield for our next destination.   From there we headed to Yellowstone National Park, spending a few days on the east side of the park in Wapiti, WY, then to the west of the park in Island Park, ID.

By this point I was starting to feel overly visually stimulated and instead of trying to get to many more of the national parks, chose a few key locations we wanted to see during the year before finding a place to set up camp for the winter.  We headed to Las Vegas where I reconnected with a friend who I first knew when we both lived in Charlestown MA.  Kathryn and I hadn’t seen each other in 10 years and had a fun reunion.  And Chuck finally got to say he had been to Vegas.  I was able to share the Red Rock Canyon area with him which had always been the highlight of my trips to Vegas.

From Vegas we headed to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.  Words and photos do not give this beautiful area full justice - to me it is something you have to experience.  While in Arizona, we decided it was time to head back to Florida and chose 2 more most stop locations before getting back to the campground we stayed at the previous winter.

Our penultimate must see destination was Roswell NM, and as far as we recall, neither of us were abducted during that night.  Our final must see for the year was a visit to the Alamo in San Antonio TX.  Other than those places, the campgrounds we stopped at were strictly for resting and pushing on.

We arrived back in Leesburg, FL for October 1 and settled in to a routine at the resort.   Because we bought a new truck at the end of February, we knew exactly how many miles we had gone in the year, just under 20,000, sleeping in 25 states and 3 provinces.

At the end of Nov. our friends, Michael & Glenda coincidentally were in the same region as us and invited us to visit them at the campground they were at in Crystal River. The Crystal River campground was 1/4 the size of the Leesburg park, and had a more decidedly camping atmosphere vs  the mobile home park, and we decided to relocate to Crystal River for the winter.

Since arriving at this campground we’ve been kayaking with manatees and rode our motorcycles in a toy ride of over 300 bikers.  Mostly though, we’ve been relaxing and enjoying the company of friends and the outdoors.

When asked by people what we hope to do in 2013, we explain that our plans are written in ice cubes, ever changing with our whims.