GETTING MYSELF INTO THE TRAVEL GROOVE

Kelly & I spent a sizeable chunk of our morning in Goderich & Clinton checking out used furniture places in search of a small approximately 2'x2' by 30” high preferably wood sit down table.  Came across a couple the right size but they had pedestal stands & that is too wobbly for a moving Motorhome.  Have to have solid legs on all 4 corners.  Our search continues. 

A reader in our Shout Box wondered about anchoring the furniture to the floor for travel.  In our Damon Challenger we had 2 Ikea Poang chairs, a single bed/chair, & a fold up table none of which were fastened to the floor & we never had a problem with that.  Nothing ever moved.  Yes I know anything moveable should be secured to the floor in case of an accident.

Pheebs & I took a walk along the Pine trail this afternoon & despite it being quite warm with some humidity there were no airborne mosquitos or biting Deer flies.  Very surprised by that & maybe our way cooler nights are now beginning to take a toll on those miserable flying things.  Come on Autumn, we're a patiently waitin fer ya:))

Dabbled around in my Atlas a bit tonight as well as my Mountain Directory West book & think I have found a way through the Rockies without all the steep grades & flagged mountain hazards.  Well I didn’t actually find it (but I did remember it) because it’s a route Mike McFall told me about a year ago & it’s actually the same route we took when we left Custer South Dakota early last October.  Now that is of course if we decide to run up to South Dakota.  After our trip home this Spring through those long grades west of Denver Colorado & the problems we were having with our rig at the time I’m sure not to anxious to go that way ever again & get into all that nonsense again.

Also been checking daytime highs & lows for late October/early November in & around Rapid City South Dakota.  Looks like mid 50’s by day & down around the freezing mark by night.  That’s doable as long as that area isn’t prone to snow storms that time of year.  Am guessing we would be away & heading south from that region by the end of the first week in November.  Can you tell I’m getting myself into the travel groove……………:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((  Early in the Civil War, when the Union armies were suffering repeated defeats, Abraham Lincoln was discussing the war situation with his cabinet.  "How many men do you estimate are in the Confederate army?" a cabinet member asked.  "About a million and a half," said Lincoln.  "That many?" said another member. "I thought the number was considerably less."  "So did I," said Lincoln, "but every time one of our generals loses a battle, he insists that he was outnumbered three to one - and we have about 500,000 men."

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A very large old building was being torn down in Chicago to make room for a new skyscraper. Due to its proximity to other buildings, it could not be imploded and had to be dismantled floor by floor.  While working on the 49th floor, two construction workers found a skeleton in a small closet behind the elevator shaft. They called the police.
When the police arrived, they directed them to the closet and showed them the skeleton, fully clothed and standing upright. They said, "This could be Jimmy Hoffa or somebody really important."  Two days went by and the construction workers couldn't stand it any more; they had to know who they found. They called the police and said, "We are the two guys who found the skeleton in the closet and we want to know if it was Jimmy Hoffa or somebody important."  The police said it's not Jimmy Hoffa, but it was somebody kind of important."  "Well, who was it?"
"The 1956 National Hide-and-Seek Champion."

TODAY WE TACKLED SOME INTERIOR RENOVATIONS IN THE MOTORHOME:))

AND SO OUR RIG’S LITTLE MINI RENOVATION BEGINS & THE FIRST THING TO BE REMOVED IS OUR DINING TABLE

With trusty hammer in hand plus a few screwdrivers we hit the decks a running this morning & tackled the job of making a few renovations to our Motorhome’s interior.  Been talking about it for awhile so with pleasantly cooler & refreshing workable temperatures upon us we decided to go ahead with what we have been talking about for awhile now.

COULDN’T BELIEVE HOW HEAVY THIS CORIAN TABLE TOP WAS

OF COURSE I CAN’T BELIEVE HOW HEAVY I AM EITHER

First item for removal was our 'too large' dining room table.  Yes it's nice to have a table to eat at but overall comfort is priority for us & the only way we were going to be able to use recliners was to remove the table.  Eight wood screws secured it to the floor & luckily I was able to remove all eight.  Four screws held the top on & I had to remove the top to get the table assembly out the door.  I could not believe how heavy that Corian top was.  I'm guessing 50 pounds.

OK SO NOW TO GET THIS FIRST BIG RECLINER THROUGH THAT NARROW DOOR

SO HERE’S OUR FIRST OPTION…..DOABLE BUT A BIT CROWDED

THESE CHAIRS ARE LIGHT & WITH THAT BIG ROUND BASE ARE VERY EASY TO MOVE AROUND…..LIKE FOR WATCHING TV UP CLOSE

Next to come out was a small tub chair sitting just inside our side door.  I'm sure most RV'ers know how totally uncomfortable those small tub chairs are.  Four bolts anchored it to the floor but I was able to get the nuts off from a basement bin bellow.  However I did have to turn the air about 7 shades of blue to get at those nuts with an adjustable wrench.  Nine wrenches in my new tool kit & not one of them would fit!!

TUB CHAIRS AS A RULE ARE SOOOOOO UNCOMFORTABLE

WITH THE TUB CHAIR GONE WE THOUGHT OF REMOVING THIS CABINET/TABLE BUT IT WOULD HAVE MEANT DISMANTLING IT PIECE BY PIECE & WE DIDN’T WANT TO DO THAT

 

MOVED THE 2ND RECLINER INTO THAT SPOT & WERE SURPRISED IT FIT AS WELL AS IT DID

THIS WILL BE KELLY’S CHAIR & THAT TABLE PULLS OUT & CAN BE USED TO EAT ON AS WELL AS SET HER LAPTOP ON…..(SHE’S WORKING ON A LIGHT SWITCH PROBLEM IN THE STAIRWELL)

THIS WILL BE MY CORNER & ABOUT WHERE PHEEBS IS LYING WE PLAN TO PUT IN OUR SMALL 2X2 ALL PURPOSE TABLE

MY VIEW OF KELLY’S SPOT

Several years ago we bought a couple nice recliners from our good neighbors Catherine & the late Gerald Horton.  They were RV people as well & had taken these 2 recliners out of one of their rigs.  We have had them in our sunroom ever since.  After removing the Big EEE's table & tub chair we carried our 2 Horton recliners out to the rig, wiggled them through the narrow door & set them in place inside.  We instantly began to love our rig all over again.  What a difference those two small changes made this morning & at last after all these years we finally have a couple comfortable recliners to sit in.  We will now look for a small 2'x2' sit down table to go at the end of the couch.  One of our dining room chairs will fit under this table which can be used to eat at, set a computer on, or sit down to work at anything.  Our couch/fold out bed will stay.

 

Our dining room table & tub chair will go into storage & can easily be re-installed if we should someday decide to sell the rig.  This minor renovation would be no 'biggie' for most people but for me & my impatience with these kinds of things it sure was a nice feeling to step back & see what we had accomplished this morning.  And heavy emphasis on 'WE' because without Kelly's patience & determination this job just simply would not have got done.

 

TABLE WILL GO WHERE THAT CHAIR IS & CHAIR WILL SLIDE UNDER IT

It was a bit of a short struggle this afternoon but we finally compromised & agreed on a South-west departure date of October 24th.   That's pretty much in line with our usual departure time with last year being the exception when we left earlier & went up over Lake Superior & out onto the prairies before heading south down through the States.  Last year we were hoping to catch some nice Fall weather with an abundance of colorful Autumn foliage in the North but were plagued with bad weather in the form of high winds & rain for much of the way.  A stop at TRIPLE E RV in Winkler Manitoba to visit the factory where our rig was made & a final stop in Rouleau Saskatchewan to visit the 'Dog River' site where my favorite TV sit-com of all time was taped for it’s TV series…….CORNER GAS.  Not our best trip last year but it's all part of the adventurous life of a travelling Snow Bird couple & their super wonder dog Pheebe……..Da Pheebs:))

I CAN MOVE THESE 2 SMALL TABLE WHEREVER I WANT THEM TO SET CAMERAS ON ETC. (BOTH TABLES ARE THE SAME COLOR BUT ONE’S IN SHADE & ONE’S IN SUN

Even with today’s lying down, bending & crawling around in upside down difficult positions I did not have any dizzy spells.  All parts seem to be back together & working well again:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Traveling through New England, a motorist stopped for gas in a tiny village. "What's this place called?" he asked the station attendant.  "All depends," the native drawled. "Do you mean by them that has to live in this dad-blamed, moth-eaten, dust-covered dump, or by them that's merely enjoying its quaint and picturesque rustic charms for a short spell."

BOY OH BOY DID OUR DRIVEWAY EVER SMELL GOOD THIS MORNING

JUST A RANDOM SAMPLE OF PHOTOS TAKEN OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS

Washing the Jeep in our driveway this morning I became aware of the nicest of smells.  Seemed to me someone somewhere baking something very scrumptious nearby.  Dare I head into the house in anticipation those fresh baking smells might be wafting out of Kelly’s oven.  Well in I went & sure enough there on the counter sat a baking tin with a dozen freshly baked bran muffins right out of our very own oven itself.  Can't remember ever eating more than one muffin at a time but I wasn't long in wolfing down two of the 'best ever' bran muffins I've ever tasted.  And bran isn't even my most favortist.

AN OLDER COUPLE ENJOY SOME QUIET MID MORNING TIME AT GODERICH’S COVE BEACH

It was the noisy clatter of heavy rain on our metal roof that roused me out of a deep sleep around 5 a.m.  A much anticipated cold front had finally arrived blowing out our hot & humid weather.  Well at least for awhile anyway & with that cooler air this morning I was energized not only to wash the Jeep but to wax a large section of the Big EEE's front end.  Fired up the genny for a bit & cleaned some bin doors on the rig as well. 

Nice to feel some travel urges beginning to stir.  Been tossing around some ideas on how to make the rig's interior more comfortable.  It's all very nice of course but as most RV'ers know the furniture that comes standard with many RV's is definitely not always the best practical furniture for one's maximum comfort.

PHEEBS & i STOP FOR A BITE TO EAT AT AN EATERY IN SEAFORTH ONTARIO

LIKE HOW THIS PLACE HAS SO NICELY DECORATED THINGS WITH COLORFUL FLOWERS

Talked over some travel plans Wednesday regarding our route to the South-west in a couple months.  First thoughts a few months ago were to head straight to Congress from Bayfield.  We're now looking at a couple options.  Due to problems with our rig & Kelly's health last year we had to cut our trip short mid way & fast tracked our way to Arizona from southern Saskatchewan.  A brief stop in Custer South Dakota to see Mount Rushmore & we were back on the road heading quickly south again.  We said at the time maybe this year we could return to South Dakota via the U.S. route & take in additional highlights around Custer missed last year.  We had also planned to take in Utah's Capital Reef National Park a year ago as well but had to by-pass that too.  We may put Capital Reef back into this year's travel plans.  Just some early thoughts at the moment & as readers know our travel plans have a habit of changing even as we're rolling down the road.  Sometimes we don't know where we're going until after we have actually ended up somewhere.

AND A FEW MORE BARNS FOR MY COLLECTION

LIKED THE SIGN

Haven't had any dizziness for 5 or 6 days now & bending over has not been a problem.  Have not had a feeling of wooziness either.  Been taking things slow & am still comfortably sleeping in my recliner.  I actually get a much better sleep in my recliner than my bed.  No rolling around.  Have not tried laying down flat yet & am in no hurry to do so until I feel comfortable enough to do so.

SOME OF OUR COUNTRY ROADS CUT RIGHT THROUGH PICTURESQUE SWAMPS

  

Had to slip into Clinton this morning with a slow leak in the Jeeps driver side rear tire.  Didn’t take Pheebs because I had no idea how long I’d be waiting.  Turns out they took me right in.  Nothing serious but it still relieved us of another twenty five dollar bill.  We thought there were 4 new tires on the Jeep when we bought it back in the Spring but the tire guys said only the 2 front tires were new.  Said the passenger side rear needed replacing.  Said it would be $215+tax for a tire.  I picked myself up off the floor & slunk off home.

Have noticed for awhile now a problem with our sidebar's 'Blog Followers/Friend Connect list.  We have had about a half dozen new Followers over the past few months but every time I click on one of the them all the thumbnail pictures disappear.  That is why I haven't welcomed each & every one to our site like I have been in the habit of doing over the years.  I generally like to add each persons link in my welcome.  However this no longer seems to work but despite that I would like to welcome Sondra, Larry, Manoel, Havanadan, Deb, Hong Long, Budhi & Cyndi.  Thanks for dropping by folks.

 

Long time readers know every once in a long while I generally go though a short writing slump.  Sometimes a day, occasionally two & maybe once or twice over the years a 3 day slump although I don't recall a 3 day slump since becoming a daily Blogger a number of years ago.  Every once & awhile my interest temporarily slips & my mind goes blank.  In case anyone was wondering I do enjoy writing & taking photos every day & have no plans of giving my hobby up any time soon.  As long as there are readers I'm hoping there will always be a writer & vice versa:)) 

GROANER'S CORNER:(( While working at a pizza parlor I observed a man ordering a small pizza to go. He appeared to be alone and the cook asked him if he would like it cut into 4 pieces or 6 pieces.  He thought about it for some time before responding. "Just cut it into 4 pieces; I don't think I'm hungry enough to eat 6 pieces."

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I was on vacation, playing the slot machines. It was my first time in a casino, and I wasn't sure how the machines operated.  "Excuse me," I said to a casino employee. "How does this work?"  The worker showed me how to insert a bill, hit the spin button, and operate the release handle.  "And where does the money come out?" I asked.  He smiled and motioned to a far wall before saying, "Usually at the ATM."

MAYBE TOMORROW

SEEN ALONG LAKE HURON SHORES THIS AFTERNOON

Everything is fine & I’m feeling good.  Just couldn’t get myself interested in writing anything tonight or taking many photos today.  Maybe tomorrow…………………

SCOUTING OUT A LAKE FRONT PROPERTY NORTH OF GODERICH FOR SOME FRIENDS TODAY

GROANER’S CORNER:((  You know you live in a small town when...

...The "road hog" in front of you on Main Street is a farmer's combine.

...The local phone book has only one yellow page.

...Third Street is on the edge of town.

...You leave your jacket on the back of the chair in the cafe, and when you go back the next day, it's still there, on the same chair.

...You don't signal turns because everyone knows where you're going, anyway.

...No social events can be scheduled when the school gym floor is being varnished.

...You call a wrong number and they supply you with the correct one.

...Everyone knows all the news before it's published; they just read the hometown paper to see whether the publisher got it right.