Short Stop and Off We Go

Our time in Tennessee is always too short.  While there we were able to see family and neighbors and friends.  And we completed a project with Roadrunner Builders.  Mike had been saving the back porch so we could work on it.  He wanted some insulation in the walls and ceiling and a couple of windows trimmed out.

He had the insulation done and we got to do some of the rest.  He insisted on leaving the painting for him and since we ran out of time, that was OK with us.

We worked in the middle of 'errands' we had to do at Wiegel's and Hammer's in  Halls.  We also drove over to Powell's and picked up some things at Lowe's.  Our basic workday M-W was about 9:00 ish to 4:00 or 5:00 in the evening.

The insulation is all in place along the wall and also up top in the ceiling.  Our job was to cover up the walls, finish work on the ceiling and hide the seams.

 The first order was to cut and precisely size the sheet rock for a good fit.

 Next, Pam mudded over the sheet rock screws and taped the seams.

 We added 3" PVC trim under the ceiling where the wall joined.

While that was being done, I added 2 1/2" strips over the seams on the ceiling to cover them and the screws.  Mike's brad nailer came in handy for that.

We also took our time trimming out the windows and adding window sills.  All in all, we had a lot of fun humming along working on the back room.

The next day we headed out of town and found a gem of a overnight stop in Buena Vista, VA.  We're on our way to the Fairfax area to see out son and wife.  We hate paying $40 plus for an overnight stop. And there were quite a few of those within 30 miles of where we wanted to stop for the night.

Even among those expensive places, there is no guarantee that we would get open access for our DirecTV.  That would be frustrating.  But we found a place in Buena Vista, VA.  We checked out reviews for the Glen Maury City Park campground and they were pretty good.  Nothing great.  But we were looking for one night.

I called and asked and was assured we would be able to get an open site with satellite access.  Sure enough, we arrived, paid our $19.48 (with Passport America) and parked in the open field.  We had 30 amp service (which was fine since we did not used the A/C) and water.  Perfect.

It was a tad cloudy for a while but it was a terrific evening.  We had windows and the front door open and enjoyed the fall-like day.  We slept with the windows open and thoroughly love this place.  The cell phone service was great and we had no issues at all with our DirecTV access.  And best on all the  free wifi was excellent!  What?  I can't remember when that was the case apart from the Navy bases where we've stayed.

We will definitely keep this campground on our favorites list for next time.

It was a great time seeing Mike and Joan and all in Tennessee and getting to work on their place.  Always too short, but fun to get some work done with the Roadrunner Builders.  And we look forward to a few days seeing Adam and Melissa.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Roadrunner Wrapup - Maynardville Nov 2015

We left the Roadrunner RV Resort and Campground about 7:30 yesterday morning after a 10 day stay.  It's always great to hang out with Joan and Mike and to see everybody.

The two things that really standout in my mind on this visit are Joan's health and a near miss with the tree we chopped down.  I already mentioned the tree in my last post.

Joan's health though I don't think I have mentioned very much.  She hasn't felt this good or gotten around this good in years!  It was really quite startling to see her get around fine and more like her 'old self'.

I think it was about five years ago she had back surgery to relieve chronic sciatic nerve pain.  It worked for a while but a second surgery was needed six months later.  That did not work and she suffered through years of extreme pain and questionable medication.  Then in August she got up from the sofa was dizzy and fell, breaking her wrist.

After surgery and staying at the hospital overnight, her nurses found out her pain medicine and blood pressure medicine were at odds and should not be taken together.  They got rid of her heavy hitting pain meds and replaced it with Motrin.  Her life changed in an unbelievable way! She is a completely different person.  After a few weeks of the new regimen she is in better health than she has been in the last 10 years!

That is the biggest memory I will carry is how she looks and feels and her quality of life has returned. This is big!

Other memories we tucked away while there were visiting with long time neighbor Helen (and granddaughter Emma.) And grand niece Kayla returned from her studies at Middle Tennessee for Thanksgiving.

I also got to spend time with nephew Joey while playing some golf with him and some of his friends.

We were able to go out to Joan and Pam's dad's place and spend some time with him.

While we were out we made the usual runs to Walmart, Hammer's, Lowes, Dollar Tree etc.  Not to early to get some stocking stuffers.

Before we even got to Joan and Mikes, Pam made it her mission to cook and leave some food behind.  With Joan's broken hand, she has not done much cooking.  And Joan and Mike love Pam's cooking (who doesn't?) and she gladly cooked.  She not only made most of the meals each evening but made extra let at least six casseroles in the freezer for Joan and Mike.

One afternoon I painted the front bathroom.

We found a way to schedule in a couple of games of Monopoly with nephew-in-law Jeremy and his son Noah who played with us.

Over the years we've had some memorable and fun times around the Monopoly board and the evening we played was long overdue.

Mike and I took a drive up to the Kentucky border to see how far along the new bridge near Tazewell.  I always look forward to our back road trips through neighboring counties.  It has been quite interesting to drive around through the hollers and hills.

Pam and I also spent a lot of time on Brooks' stocking.  Kelly gave Pam a stocking sew kit that is one of the most intricate I've seen.  It has taken hours and hours and is almost done.

Pam does all the heavy lifting on that one and I get to thread the needles.  Hopefully it will be a labor of love from his grandmother that he enjoys over the years.

Of course there was the Thanksgiving Day meal at Mike and Joan's.

Pam and Joan and Michelle did all the cooking and we had a feast.  It was good to see Joey and girlfriend Angela, neighbor Willow and Michelle, Jeremy, Kayla, Noah.  It was a great group and we enjoyed hanging out a little bit.

And another afternoon Pam and I drove over to a new Vineyard at Willow Springs which is a couple of miles away.

Over the last 15 years we have watched this property and the surrounding acres get cleared and crops planted.  The owner has cows and a huge garden and a couple of years ago planted a small vineyard.  Then this building went up that serves as a store and office and wine processing plant.  Very interesting and quaint place.

It was another great stay at Joan and Mikes and great to spend Thanksgiving with them.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles.

Spending Time with Kayla in Murfreesboro

We made it a point to go to Murfreesboro since our niece's daughter is a majorette with the Middle Tennessee State University band.

We wanted to time it so we could be there for a football game.  It worked out great!

Pam and I arrived in the area early in the week and camped at the Cedars of Lebanon State Park

It was our first cold weather experience of the season.  Though it was 14 degrees one night, we took precautions, had our heaters going and it turned out fine.

We worked out things according to Kayla's school, work and practice schedule and the first thing we did was meet her for breakfast at Cracker Barrel.

Then she took us on a windshield tour of the Middle Tennessee State University campus.  I love the layout and the grounds and the whole campus.  It gives the feeling of a very uncluttered place with a pleasant atmosphere.  (No pictures since I was in the back seat and no good vantage points.)

Later we went to downtown Murfreesboro and again, were very impressed.  Such a nice town with a courthouse on the main square and

lots of active shops and a vibrant downtown section that gives you the feel of the way life was decades ago.

We returned the next day to have dinner in downtown Murfreesboro at Marina's Italian Restaurant down on the square.

Another great meal at a great restaurant with Kayla and we saw her roommate Ansley who works there.

The next day, her parents and brother came over from Maynardville and we all went to the MTSU football game.  First we did a little tailgating with the band

As it approached game time, the girls did some warming up down

And we found some seats in the stadium.  It was military appreciation night and a couple of soldiers from Fort Campbell Kentucky parachuted in.

Kayla and the band and her majorette buddies were in the stands nearby

Then before we knew it, half time was approaching and the band and the majorettes made there way to their positions and then onto the field.

And then the main event (at least from our perspective), Kayla's and the majorettes' routine

Then halftime was coming to a close and it was over all too quickly

We stayed a little longer after the half

Then we left and went back to our campground.  MTSU pulled it out in the last minute to win 35-34 over Florida Atlantic and became Bowl-Eligible so we may see them on TV in a few weeks.

It was great to see Kayla and her family and see her doing so well at MTSU in Murfreesboro.  She is working hard and getting good grades and I admire her for making the team and spending all those hours at practice to toss that baton!  And she works on campus in her spare time, so she is a busy young lady.  We're very proud of her and glad we got to see a snapshot of her and her college life.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We are spending time with Pam's sister and brother-in-law in Maynardville, TN.  Though we miss our kids we are very glad to be with family and relatives at this time.  And looking forward to seeing our kids in a few weeks.

We'll have some time around the table and just hang out and watch football and maybe get in a game or two of Monopoly today.

And get going on the turkey for some good eating in the mid afternoon!

We are very grateful for this past year and to be able to be full-timing.  We can't think of anything we'd rather be doing at this time or our lives.  ...And we're thankful for all we have and have to share.  Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope your holiday is a great one.

Hitting the Trails Brimstone Recreation Area

If you love to 4-wheel and have never been to Huntsville, TN to check out the Brimstone track - you need to!  It is one fun place to spend the day!  Niece Michelle and husband Jeremy have all the gear and season passes to Brimstone Recreation.  They took their son and and his buddy and me for an outing that was a one great day!

Jeremy got the 4-wheelers and dirt bikes all ready and packed up.  We left a little after 8 and headed to Huntsville.

Of course, along the way, we had to stop for breakfast at Cracker Barrel in Lake City.  Then on to our destination.  We checked in to Brimstone and paid for a day's worth of trail riding for me.  Everyone else had season passes/wrist bands.

I was so impressed with the office/check in station.  These folks are high tech and first class.  They turned a gas station into their office and it was very well organized.  Very classy first impression!

We were greeted by Donika - the senior office manager who runs the place.  She was very helpful and we were all set to go in no time.

I liked the way the place looked and thought they were pretty high tech for an outdoor recreation business.  We checked in on a workstation at the counter.  Donika indicated the iPads should be in soon for that purpose.  If you go to their website:  brimstonerecreation.com you more impressive stuff.  Like the interactive trail map:

And you can find them on FaceBook.https://www.facebook.com/BrimstoneRecreation
They host a yearly bash/concert/competition called 'White Knuckle' that looks interesting.  And if you are looking for a vacation place to spend a few days running the trails and jumps of a great facility in Tennessee - add this to your list...

So if you are looking for another outdoor adventure on your 4 wheeler/ATV/off-road vehicle, you might want to check this out.

After checkin- we headed to our parking area near Trail 3.

Jeremy unloaded and we got our helmets on before Michelle checked out our waterproof map of the trails.  

Then we were off!

We road the easy trails and I had an easy 4 wheeler.  Mine had no clutch to worry about - all I needed to do was steer, watch my speed and figure out which gear to put it in.

Figuring this out was not too tough -- it was all about switching gears and speed.  I was pretty comfortable after about 20 minutes.

We stopped at the motor cross track up on top of the mountain near the power lines and spend time there going around the 'track'.

Then we hit the trail again and went back over to the parking lot to grab some lunch.  But first we had some negotiating to do…

After lunch our chief mechanic topped off the tanks and checked things out for our afternoon ride.

I like the way Jeremy plans things out and carries a first aid kit and set of tools for some contingencies in case some thing comes up.

Then we hit the trail for the afternoon session

We saw some beautiful country and made some wonderful memories.

Can't wait until our next outing...

That's all for now on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Thanks for joining us!