Cheyenne Frontier Days - Pancake Breakfast

A couple of days ago we got up early and went to the Pancake Breakfast that is held during the Cheyenne Frontier Days (CFD).  We had heard from a number of people that it were going to be a lot of people, that it was interesting, that the food was good and that it was definitely worth attending.

It was a nice day and we were there a little after 7:00 AM on a Monday morning.

The line was so long we had to catch it going the wrong way.  It doubled back around and ended up in front of the Train Depot.

Along the way - we met some interesting characters

And in about 10 minutes we were up near the front where they were making pancakes.

It was quite a sight- I did a retake and these pancake flippers were tossing them to the catchers who were caring them over to the serving area.

Can you see a couple of them flying through the air?

And then we saw the stacks of pancakes.

Hot, steaming pancakes!

And ham!

They gave everyone two slices of ham.  And these were not skimpy, thin pieces - they were good sized!

We found a place to sit and ate away

After we were finished, we looked around and saw some interesting folks

Like some Rodeo Queens

I wanted to go back over to the 'chuck wagon to see if I could get a better action shot of those flying pancakes

And a few minutes later a guy next to me said, "I want to introduce you to the governor of Wyoming".
Before I knew it he said, "This is governor Matt Meade".  We had a good long chat and then asked for a picture.

Not surprisingly, he was happy to oblige.

The next time someone mentions "Pancake Breakfast" - I will probably think of this one.  It was certainly one to remember…

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Jon and Kelly's Wedding

Kelly Warner became Kelly Goldman on Sunday, August 12 at the Hermitage Museum and Gardens in Norfolk, VA.  It was a fantastic venue, a beautiful afternoon and evening and a momentous occasion!  We don't have all the photos yet… as the Father of the Bride, I had some other duties during the ceremony and didn't get some ones I wanted but here are a few:

The area where the wedding party gathered before the ceremony

On our way down the aisle.

Wes did a great job in the ceremony! I love weddings because they remind me how it was and can be and I try to take note of things I can do better in our marriage.

After they said their vows and Wes talked, Brannon came to sing 

While the wedding party gathered to pray for Kelly and Jon.  (I have to say, contrary to my natural tendencies, I held it together throughout the ceremony.  Here I did get a little choked up.)

And a little flair…everyone in the wedding party paused to don their shades and:

Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Goldman

And the wedding party got into and busted out in some fun too!

During the ceremony Wes used one-word descriptors of Kelly and the same for Jon.  For Kelly he said, "Decorative".  For Jon he said, "Driven".  I'd say for them:  "Fun"!  Among other things they share the same sense of enjoyment, having a great time and doing it with each other.  So in the midst of one of the most deeply moving, spiritual, emotional, important and profound days of their lives -- they interjected a degree of 'fun' for themselves and every one there.  

More pictures later on the rest of the evening.  But for now,

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Until next time...

Sunset at Key West

Each evening in Key West, there is a phenomenon known as the 'Sunset Celebration'.  Hundreds of folks gather each evening at Mallory Square to watch the sun go down.  It is quite an event!

Last week we went down for the sunset with Marge and George, new friends from the Sigsbee RV Campground where we are staying.

They have been to Key West a number of times and offered to go with us.  We found that Mallory Square was blocked off because they were filming an ESPN boxing match.

The Westin Hotel is right on the water about 100 yards from Mallory Square, so we got a table and had a beer and watched it all from there.

There were a lot of dinner cruise boats, charter boats returning after a day fishing and a few others.

A few days later, we returned to Mallory Square and all the 'regulars' were there.  It was a pretty interesting place.  We watched a few of the displays and vendors.

At times it was a little crowded but not too bad.  And one of the big cruise ships, 'Carnival Magic', was docked.

And the sunset was something to celebrate…

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Until next time...

Our Flag and Thank You Veteran's!

I know it isn't officially flag day, but every day is flag day for me... And Veterans Day seems like a good day for a post about the flag we fly outside our RV.  

I have always been an enthusiastic supporter of showing our flag.  I don't know why that is ~ maybe because my dad would put the flag out on special occasions when I was growing up.  I have been 'patriotic' ever since I can remember.  My dad spent a career in the Army Air Corps/US Air Force so I was always around flags and ceremony and have great respect and love for our Country.

My brother Marty was in the Navy during the Viet Nam war off the gulf of Tonkin.  Also, my brother Brad served in the Air Force and flew KC-135 tankers.  My brother-in-law Mike served in the Army in Viet Nam bull dozing air strips.  And I met Pam in the Air Force.  She worked on ECCM gear on AC-130/Spectre Gunships, MC-130/Combat Talon, and F-4/Phantom aircraft.  And I served 20 years, retiring from the Air Force in 1995.

And I know many of you have served or are serving.  I think it is a wonderful thing to support our military.  And I think it is due in a large part to George H.W. Bush.  He made it a priority to have parades and publicly thank our returning military members returning from Gulf War I.  Before that happened, I don't remember it being 'in fashion' to thank the military.  Now everybody does it.

I have always loved our flag.  I remember getting choked up at baseball games at college and high school baseball games in the 1970's. When we would rise to hear our national anthem being played to start things off, I remember saying to myself, "This is the best part of being here ~ being able to hear the national anthem being played".  Other than that ...I can't explain it.

Pam remembers getting the flag duty in grade school the day President Kennedy died.  She and some friends then had to go back out in the middle of the day and lower it to half staff.

When we moved to Virginia and bought our house in 1995, I bought a flag and decided to hang it out every day.  We had the All-American dream:  2.0 kids, a house with a two car garage, white picket fence, dog --- and a flag flying every day.

When we started full-timing in May 2009, we saw people who had flags flying outside their RVs.  Our favorite was Frank's.  We talked and he gave us some instructions and a build list to make our own.  Thank you Frank Cason.  He gave us some great plans which we modified a bit.

We had the plans for a few months before Pam finally took them and built our flag pole that we use almost daily.  And Kelly made the plans and diagrams that hopefully you will find helpful if you want to make one like this.

So here are the plans Kelly created from our notes/modifications and Frank's original drawings:  

The pole(s) come apart for easy storage.  And there are a few other things.

I picked up a 2' piece of rebar (from Lowe's) that I pound into the ground.  Then I put two 1" washers over the top of the rebar that slides down to the ground.  This helps the PVC pole swivel. 

Then I slide the assembled pole over the rebar.  As you can see here, I have an extra 3' of 1/2 " PVC leaning against the rebar.  That goes over the rebar (for a little strength) and inside the 1" pole.  

Note: The build list does not include the 1/2" pipe 3' long, 3' of rebar, washers, and eye screws.  You will also need a very small carbiner hook to fasten the flag to the eyelet screw.

The whole thing assembled looks like this:

Then the flags - the large US flag and smaller state flags and Canada flags:

The small flags needed a 'sleeve' that Pam sewed along the edge so that we can hang it sideways.  We pull out the bottom bar, slide it through the sleeve of the flag, and replace it into the T-joint.

If you can not enlarge the picture above or would like me to send you the .pdf file, let me know:

rwarner22@gmail.com

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chrnoicles!  And thank you veterans!

Hiking and Christmas in July

A highlight from yesterday was meeting Canadiens Rick and Marie

They have been here about a week and are from the Sudbury area which is a little north of here.  They have been RVing for years.  They took a 3 month trip last year west to Vancouver and then east from Washington over to North Dakota and back home.  They will be going to Fort Meyers, Florida this winter for 5 months and are seriously considering full-timing.

We talked for a while and they had a few questions.  When people talk about full-timing, I always refer them to RV-Dreams.com and have them read about Howard and Linda's story.  Howard has done a fabulous job with lots of information for those that are considering full-timing.  We found (and continue to find) it to be a wealth of useful information.

Earlier, Pam, Kelly and I spent some time on the Fitness Trail that winds through Parry Sound.  It was overcast but a very pleasant afternoon for a hike.  We started out not far from the marina.

Not sure what kind of berries these were but they are very common here.

This bridge was built in 1915 and is way up there.  We took the foot bridge not far from it.

Down near the marina and harbor there were some more flowers and markers along the way.

The trail went along the bay and near the Stockey Centre and the Bobby Orr Museum.

It was a nice hike and we may continue the trail at the point we turned around on another day.

Back at the campground we got ready for the big 'Christmas in July' happenings.  I pulled out the lights from our storage in the basement.  With Kelly's help those got hung.

She added the stringers and bows to the front.

Then we waited for Santa.  About 7:30 PM he came out of the woods shouting 'Ho Ho Ho' and led the dog parade through the campground.  It was a great turnout!

A little later, I spotted him on the wagon with a lot of folks who joined him for a ride around the campground.

There were more campers who joined in the fun and also put out decorations.

As I was walking around taking pictures, I stopped and took one of Dean and Donna's campsite.  They decorated their rig and ATV which added to the atmosphere.  

It was a fun day ~ thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Hope you are having a great weekend.