Projects Around the House...

While we have been in Virginia Beach for the past 10 days, we have gotten involved with a few projects at Kelly and Jon's house.

The first one we got to do was a large shelf in the garage.  They wanted some fairly deep ones (like 12" deep) and wanted it to go from the floor to the ceiling.

First - a little planning and figuring out where it was going to go.  Took a few measurements.

Next - Off to Home Depot for materials.

 Then back to work and more measuring and ciphering...

And then, after leveling and securing the shelves to the wall and a few hours later - the finished product.

The next day we moved on to more shelving in the shed.

The house they moved into has a new shed that is great!  The shed is very well built, just no shelves.  So in the shed, we followed the same process:  planning, getting building materials, building and putting it together.

And we have more shelves to build.  We are just getting started. There will be more to follow on the shelving.

Next - we got to spend a few days in Washington DC.  We wanted to go see #1 son Adam on his birthday (Saturday).  While there, we stayed with some friends including Jeff and Tiffany.  We asked if we could do a project and she suggested a shelve where a medicine cabinet was located.

 We picked up some materials and had it done fairly quickly.

Except for the caulking and final painting.

Then, when we returned to Virginia Beach, we got back in time to help with the new brick walkway beside the shed.

The bricks were reused from lining around the flower beds.

We love projects and are about to head out to continue with shelving and painting.

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Hope you have a great week.

Until next time...

Roadrunner Reflections: It Became Real 4 Years Ago

I was talking with Pam yesterday and it was exactly four years ago that we put our 'bricks and sticks' house on the market.  After about three years of planning and dreaming and answering every "What if…" question we could think of -- we put the house on the market.

Now four years later, we are completely glad we did it.  We have no regrets, no misgivings, no 'we shoulda, coulda, woulda…" moments.  This lifestyle is for us.  It works for us.  And we are completely grateful.  We are thankful.  We love doing this.  We love this kind of life.  We look forward to what next week, next month, next year brings.

It seems like it has been longer since the ball got rolling but it has only been four years.  Hopefully there will be 14 more or 24 whatever.  For us, for right now --- this is what we are glad to be doing and we can't think of anything else that fits.

Four years ago, we had plans:  when we sell the house, then we can quit work, buy a motor home, become residents of South Dakota, etc etc.  To our surprise, our house sold in four days.  We got a contract on April 18 and finished negotiations the next day.

We thought, wow!  This is really going to happen!  Being project manager, I put those skills to work, as in  the 'Project Execution' Phase…

It seemed like a whirl wind.  We contacted the motor home seller, picked a date a week after the house closed in May and set up the purchase date.  We made reservations for Sioux Falls, SD and flew there.  We spent three days there, became residents, then went back to Fairfax VA to finish off our downsizing.

Meanwhile, I let folks know at work that I was going to 'retire' and go to 'Part Time On Call' status which is working for the company with an hourly wage but no benefits.  (Which has worked out great!)

Also, Adam was living downtown in Washington DC and Kelly was finishing up her Masters degree at VCU in Richmond the first part of May.  Then Kelly and Pam drove a U-Haul to Texas where Kelly was moving to live and work.

It was busy times and exciting times for us!

Looking back and remembering all the planning and scheduling and research and budgeting we did to move to Fulltimer status RVers ~ It was one of the most satisfying 'projects' I (we) have managed.  It was not without its share of surprises (what project doesn't have those) and challenges.  But the transition went pretty well.

So as I look back a few years ago, I am excited about where we have been and what the future holds.

Another 'Melancholy Moment' from the Roadrunner Chronicles.  Thanks for joining us and being a part of our journey with us...

Back in Virginia Beach

We spent two days driving from the Petersburg Army Corps of Engineer Park outside of Augusta to Virginia Beach.  We had an overnight stay at a good campground off I-95 RVacation RV Park in Selma, North Carolina.

The campground was a good place to stay with full hookups, drive through camp sites and easy access.

We don't always pay for a campsite for a one night stay.  Sometimes we opt for a no hook up spot at a Wal-Mart parking lot.  But since Kelly and Jon were with us, we decided we wanted to have full hook ups.  

It was fun to have them travel with us in the Roadrunner.  Kelly had done that a couple years ago with us on our maiden voyage from Virginia to California in 2009.  But this was Jonathan's first time, so it was fun to show him how we 'live the dream' day after day.

One travel guideline some people follow is - eating out on travel days.  No so with us.  Pam is a great cook and she usually fixes something.  Plus, with our residential refrigerator, we have more options.

After a couple of easy driving days, we parked at Little Creek Navy Campground in Norfolk, VA.

It is about four blocks from Kelly and Jon's home off of Independence Boulevard in Virginia Beach.  Very convenient.  Previous visits to the area we camped about 35 minutes away from where Kelly was - this is much better.

So we are in Virginia Beach for a few weeks.  Looking forward to some household projects and spending time with the kids and getting caught up with doctors appointments and such.

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

Once in Lifetime Trip to the Masters

The Masters

I don't know if going to the Masters has been a lifelong goal, but it is certainly something that I have always wanted to do.  I never really dwelled on it our made it a 'lifelong goal' or anything like that.  I also would love to play Pebble Beach or the Old Course at St. Andrews.  Those are things I'd like to do  but I never obsessed about it. 

On Monday, three days ago, we walked the grounds of Augusta National Golf Club!  Leslie, (son-in-law Jonathan's sister) lives in Augusta and got tickets for us.  On Monday, you get to take pictures.  No cell phone is allowed.  It worked out great.

In a word - it was FANTASTIC!  We arrived at about 7:20, got onto the grounds about 7:35 and they let us onto the fairways at 8:00.

It was hard to describe - just amazing.  They truly are the most well-run operation I have been to.  DisneyWorld and DisneyLand are exceptional --- this place is a cut above that.  I took loads of pictures and will be adding to this page over the next few months with some shots and thots about our time at the Masters.

Here's the group before we started onto the course.  L-R:  Jonathan, Kelly and Pam.  Jon's sister Leslie, son Austin and husband Robert.

Augusta National has been buying up property adjacent to the course for 'patron' parking.  We were about 400 yards from the gate where we entered the course.

Augusta National has its rules and we certainly wanted to abide by them…

We entered through Gate 9 which was one of two main spectator gates.  Immediately I was struck with the well maintained grounds and orderliness.  On the left was a gift shop.  Not your standard tent set up with cash registers on folding tables.  Then we proceeded to the turn styles and security checkpoint.  Smiling faces, sincere greetings (seemed like it anyway) and well trained staff.  

Folks were wishing ME (us) a good day and hoping I enjoyed the tournament.  Are you kidding me?  I was so excited to be on the grounds, I was thinking, 'How does it get any better than this?'  How could a golf fan have a hard time enjoying this??

Wow.  Wow.  Wow.  And I was not even on the course…  

It was a beautiful morning.  We had a few moments to use the Men's Room (no port a potties on this course!), grab some coffee and hang out in one of the Gift Shop areas before we got onto the course.

The information board showed Bubba Watson teeing off at 8:00.  We were going to miss that because Gate 9 is a long way from Tee #1.  We were closer to hole #5.

As I wind it up for today, here are some of my favorite early morning shots:

Last year's champion Bubba Watson

And playing partner Rickie Fowler

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Until next time...

Jekyll Island Club

The Jekyll Island Club was an island retreat built in the late 1880's for the wealthy who could afford the $600 / year membership and the means to get to the island resort.  With no roads or railroad to the reclusive island, the only way to get there was by boat.

The favorite past time of early members and their families was hunting.  A gamekeeper kept the island well stocked with pheasant, turkeys, wild boar and deer.

Among the members included William Rockefeller, Henry Hyde, Marshall Field, J.P. Morgan, Joseph Pulitzer and William Vanderbilt.  The accommodations began with the large hotel, then a 'condominium' was built, followed by some large homes on the property.

The hotel is still in use today and is quite magnificent.

The historical wharf has a little cafe and gift shop.

Tourists can view one of the homes on the property with a ticket on the tram tour, but we declined and just walked around the grounds.

Sans Souci ("Without Care") was built by J.P. Morgan and was large enough for six families.

William Rockefeller lived here for a time, then built his own "cottage" which he named 'Indian Mound'.

The grounds are well manicured and they have carriage rides which adds a nice touch.

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

Jekyll Island - Sea Turtle Center

Last week after we left Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, we went over to the Georgia Sea Turtle Museum.  We learned from our time in Key West that sea turtles used to be a big cash crop and the fishing industry almost wiped them out in the early 1900s.

The Georgia Sea Turtle Center was recently opened in 2007.  It is a facility dedicated to the preservation and education of turtles, the emergency care of sick sea turtles with activities in long term care and research.  It appears well funded, well organized and very much worth the time to visit.

The museum is geared to the younger folks which makes it more understandable and easy to follow for guys like me.  They have a self guided tour of six areas with interactive videos and displays.

It takes about two months for a sea turtle egg to hatch. After they hatch, they move toward the bright lights.  So coming upon hatchlings at night (if you are on a turtle walk or hunting turtles) with a flash light throws them off.

They migrate out to the Atlantic and take long trips but eventually return to the same areas if they survive.

Some of the kinds of turtles in the region are:

• Hawksbill Turtle
• Kemp's Ridley
• Loggerhead
• Leatherback
• Green Turtle
• Diamondback Turtle

From the displays, we went outside and over to the hospital tanks.

The center gets all kinds of turtles with injuries or sicknesses.  Often times the turtles are covered with barnacles which are detached after spending time in regular water.

I find turtles very interesting.  They are such strange lovable creatures.  For more information no them, you might want to visit the Georgia Sea Turtle Center web site.

Thanks again for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  We appreciate you stopping by.  Until next time...

Roadrunner Financials - March 2013

Roadrunner Recap
During March, stayed at campgrounds in:

• Lake Griffin State Park 
• Falling Waters State Park  
• Pensacola Naval Air Station 
• Hurlburt Field FL FamCamp (Fort Walton Beach)
• Destin FL Army Recreation Area Campground 
• Tyndall AFB FL FamCamp (Panama City)
• Tallahassee (Tallahassee RV Park)
• Kings Bay Submarine Base GA

We were able to see a lot of Florida and check out some great historical places.  It has been a fun month.  The bonus is that we were able to see friends in a number of places including DeBary, Pensacola, Destin and Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

Good News Areas We Are Under Budget
Nothing real big in this area as we ended up $262.62 under.  We did best in three areas:

• RV and Car Maintenance. I keep a placeholder here and used $342 to pay for a battery solenoid.
• Campgrounds. We were still under our budget though we didn't stay anywhere for very long.
• Groceries.  For just the two of us for the month, we were please with this number.
• Household Items.  We saw a good deal on a sturdy beach umbrella and bought a new coffee pot that was leaking.  

Biggest Expenses
Our biggest expenses continue to be eating out.  But we saw a lot of friends and decided it was worth it and were glad we did.

• Diesel.  We obviously moved around a lot during the month.  I didn't keep track of mileage but we hovered around 7 mpg.
• Eating Out.  Need to add this to the budget for year 5.
• Misc (Entertainment).  Biggest drivers here were 5 rounds of golf, a boat tour and we bought some hats and a new pair of shoes.
• 1 Time Costs - Got our income taxes done and owed a little.  That plus preparation fees accounted for that number.

Large One Time Cost Items
Income taxes and fees were the biggest item, followed by the solenoid.

Monthly Average
We are happy to be under budget this month.  That makes the tenth month in a row for Year 3 (two more months left) that we have been under budget.  Our cumulative monthly average shows us $840 under budget.

That is a recap of where our money went last month.  Thanks for taking a look at the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Until next time...

Jekyll Island - Driftwood Beach

We went to see Jekyll Island and took a drive around the perimeter before we stopped at Driftwood Beach for lunch.  What an interesting place.  Of all the beaches we have been to, we've never seen driftwood like this.

After a quiet picnic we walked over the foot bridge to the beach.

It wasn't a real big beach but it had lots of twisted, contorted trees and wood.

 It was a little coolish so we wore our coats.

 Fishing pier not far from the parking lot.

It is really worth the stop to see this.

After the Driftwood Beach, we drove through the Jekyll Island Campground.

 It has a canopy of trees through out the campground and is very convenient to everything on the island.

There is lots to see and do here.

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles.  Feel free to leave a comment - we always love those!  Until next time...