Sunshine On Our Shoulders.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, USA.

By 7:00 this morning I just couldn’t stay in bed. When my back starts to ache I know that if I continue to lay in bed my entire day will be lost. Since the sun hadn’t risen yet I busied myself getting my morning reading completed before Kathy got up just before 8:00.  We had finished with breakfast and we were outside by 9:00 with the hopes of going for our last bicycle ride around the park for this year. Since I am slowly adding parts on our new Tandem Bike there is always fine tuning to be done such as adjusting seats so you don’t feel like you’re sliding off. It was amazing how many times it took to get it right but once it was good it turned out really comfortable. 

We headed in the direction of the marina to start our ride and were surprised at how strong the wind was blowing. We continued our ride outside of the park riding down Indian Hills Drive past the office all the way out to highway 80 before turning around. Our ride back into the park brought us to Elaine and Rick’s trailer where we spoke to them through the open door of their trailer. They were both down with major colds again this morning and were planning on just mellowing out for the day in hopes of recovering. When we got back to the trailer Kathy stated that she wasn’t as worn out from our ride together than if she had been riding her own bicycle. She was pedaling as much as I was and even sometimes when I was wanting to slow down to make a turn. 

Kathy the back seat rider.

While Kathy was inside busy making our meals and doing more book-keeping I busied myself flushing the tanks packing the rest of our site up. After lunch I took an hour to take care of our medical Daucets knowing that I would be too tired to do them this evening. Kathy took that time for a Snap as it seems that she’s still dragging with her cold. It also took additional time packing because we had purchased new waste hoses that needed the fittings transferred over from our old hoses. 

We did speak with our neighbors Tom and Fran for a short while after supper and they are also getting colds. As we continued talking the wind was dropping the temp quite a bit so we called it a night. After closing the windows we again needed to run the cube heater to take the chill out of the air in the trailer.   

Tomorrow after we dispose of the trash and fill up our water cart jugs we’ll be heading for Punta Gorda and more adventures. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

Office Jokes, Quotes, and Anecdotes

If your manager says: Top Priority

 They really mean: It's a stupid idea, but the head honcho wants it.

Chloe Rhodes, The Office Book

Store Searching.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, USA.

Last night was the last night forecasted to have temperatures close to the 40 F mark. With all the humidity in the air that low temperature felt nearly as cold as our first couple of nights on the road back in December. Yes we wimped out and used the cube heaters rather than piling on the heavier blankets. We actually slept in until nearly 8:30 because our environment was toasty warm. 

After doing the usual morning habits of having breakfast, reading E-mails and blogs the temperature was comfortable enough to start doing things outside before 10:00. Since I’d managed to get quite a bit of our packing done yesterday and Kathy was looking forward to going for a bicycle ride that’s why I started working on our Tandem Bike.

After changing the seats we went for a test ride but by just changing to a more comfortable seat Kathy found that her knees were once again hitting the handlebars. Returning back to the trailer I was about to install the new handle bars we had also purchased when it was discovered that I didn’t have the bottle of solution for installing the handlebar grips.

With Kathy’s suggestion we were soon on our way to Clewiston. We had a shopping list that needed to be filled and it had everything on it from groceries to hardware and bicycle parts. By the time we arrived in town it was already past 12:00 but we stopped at the Dollar Tree and managed to check a few things from our list. 

We now realized this could take longer than we expected so we stopped at Wendy’s to have our lunch. There were plenty of travelers stopping in as well as students from the nearby high school. While we were eating I noticed a Family Dollar in the same parking lot so as soon as we were done we walked over to check it out. That store was in such a state of disorganization that it made it nearly impossible to find anything and we ended up walking out empty handed.

Across the street was a Dollar General and it was nearly as disorganized as the competition across the street. We could only find a single item we needed so our search continued. We walked around inside Walmart for nearly an hour where we managed to find the hardware and groceries we needed but still no bicycle parts.

Instead of leaving town I thought about trying the Ace Hardware Store down the street. After not finding anything to do with bicycle parts in the store I asked a clerk where there might be a store that sold bicycle parts nearby. He suggested the True Value Hardware in the next block. They had everything that we needed,

It was past 3:30 by the time we got back to the trailer. While Kathy put away the groceries I got the new handlebars and grips installed on the rear of the Tandem Bike. Our second test ride of the day had Kathy traveling in comfort and looking forward to future rides. 

For supper we only had a bowl of soup and a piece of cheese which was more than satisfying. Tomorrow we’ll see what we can get into besides finishing the last of our packing. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

You Might Be a Redneck If

Your wedding reception featured a moon bounce.

Slowly Closing Up and Supper With Good Friends.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, USA.

What a surprise it was to wake up at 8:00 this morning and to find that the temperature was already at 52 F (11 C) outside.  After watching the weather report while having our breakfast we were thankful of where we were when we saw that not only was a large snowstorm hitting the northern states but back where we live in Ontario as well. We did spend a short time reading on the computers before I headed outside. 

Starting to close up our site.

Starting to look barren.

Kathy still had some unfinished book-keeping she needed to do while I started closing up our site. Last year we had put everything away on our site the day before we hit the road and found it too hard our bodies. Since I had needed to empty the basement to work on the wiring there is much more that needs to be done. By doing the packing over the course of two to three days we hope we won’t be so tired. By early afternoon Kathy also came outside in an attempt to absorb some warm sunshine as well as giving me a hand to close up our gazebo. We’d managed to get quite a bit accomplished without over-extending ourselves by 4:00 so we called it a day. 

Attendance was good for Bean-Bag Baseball today.

Tonight we went over to Rick and Elaine’s trailer where we had been invited for supper. We arrived just before 5:00 and enjoyed a delicious spaghetti and meatball dinner complete with homemade garlic bread and dessert. The conversation carried on well into the evening as we enjoyed one another’s company. Since we’ve been getting in a few more visits in this year than last even Tucker and Lily are barely making a fuss when we arrive. 

Lily and Tucker are starting to know us.

Tonight is supposed to be our last cold night while we’re in the area but the day time highs will again be in the low 70’s so we are not complaining. Tomorrow we’ll do what we can even though we’re not sure what that is at this time. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

What happened to the thief who stole a calendar?

He got 12 months.

Finishing Touches and Grilled Chicken.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, USA.

That was different! Would you believe we both managed to sleep past 8:00 this morning and we both felt well rested when we got up. The temperature was below the 50 F (10 C) mark here until nearly 10:00 this morning so after having breakfast and doing our morning reading we found a movie on television that we’d never seen before. It felt good to have a Lazy morning as we are still nursing our stuffed and runny noses in hopes of slowly being able to breathe more normally. Even a nice bowl of soup along with a cup of tea for lunch helped to warm us enough to start cracking open the windows soon after. 

Once the table was cleared I started getting things wrapped up that had been delayed by our catching that cold last week. In order to get our new Fantastic Fan up and running it needed to be wired into the 12 volt fuse panel and since there were no open feeds I fused the wires that had been run, shut the 12 volt feed and wired off the main feed. Now our only problem is getting used to how the remote control works. 

Going outside the first thing I did was fire up our Weber Q to let it warm up. That gave me a chance to reinstall the sewer hose holder that I’d had to remove while running the wires between the frame rails for the Fantastic Fan. After washing my hands I lowered the heat on the grill to a quarter from the lowest setting because of the wind it would have blown the flame out if it had been set totally on low. It was then time to add the medium sized partially frozen chicken we had on the grill. 

Kathy spent time on her computer doing book keeping and banking. At one point she asked for my assistance to help deal with a banking message sent to her E-mail address. After a quick call we were told not to worry about the message even though it was legit and was not a scam trying to get our personal information. 

My next chore was returning up to the roof where I had found a few problems while running the wiring on the weekend. The junction box that had been installed last year in preparation to add solar panels to our roof had broken free from its bossing. To fix this holes were drilled through the bottom of the box where it would be held by screws supported by fender washers making it better than new. I also added additional wire loom over the cables to prevent any UV deterioration of the cables. Finally I replaced the screening over the fridge vent. By the time all the sealing was refinished it felt good to be back on the ground. Even though the temperature reached a high of 66 F (19 C) the north wind chill made it feel much cooler even though I’d worn my jacket the entire time. 

Checking the chicken with our meat thermometer after two and a half hours on the grill it was perfectly cooked. Handing it off to Kathy she covered it with foil before putting it in the microwave. Microwaves are very well insulated and even in the off mode kept the chicken piping hot until it was supper time. 

Since it was nearing 5:00 I rehung the rear basement wall before starting to put some things away. Supper was delicious and there’s plenty of leftovers for a few more meals. We’ve still got two more cold nights to put up with this week but the day time highs are slowly starting to get back to normal starting tomorrow. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

You Might Be a Redneck If

Your kids think "past due" is a return address.

Walgreen, Walmart, Visits and Phone Calls.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, USA.

Last night after going to bed early because she just couldn’t keep her eyes open Kathy spent most of the night struggling to be able to breathe due to her sinus congestion. Taking another Tylenol sinus and cold tablet did help her to get a few more minutes of broken sleep. By 7:30 when we both got up Kathy felt like she hadn’t been to bed yet. Even though she had remained in the trailer all day yesterday to recover it was like the cold had gotten worse instead of better.

The cube heater had been on all night taking the chill from the air but we still sat shivering while having breakfast. We weren’t surprised to see that there will still be another three nights this week before we can leave the heat off to sleep. We took the time to do our morning reading before getting down to what had to be done today.

Since we’ll be relocating to Punta Gorda on Sunday we needed to get our laundry done where we are familiar with the area. That meant doing bed linens, towels as well as personal articles of clothing. It was just after 11:00 when we arrived in Clewiston so we decided to have chicken nuggets at Burger King that would tide us over until supper. 

Kathy walked around the corner from the laundromat to the Walgreen drug store to try to find something that might help her shake this cold. When she got back she sat in the truck and had a couple of Snaps until I had finished folding the clothes. 

We stopped at Walmart to pick up a few food stocks to tide us through the weekend. As we were getting bread we ran into Rick and Elaine who decided they also needed some groceries. They told us they had just ran into three other couples from the Glades RV Park in the same store. 

When we got back to the park we drove straight back to the marina where I filled one of our water cart jugs before returning to our trailer. We had just finished putting all our groceries and laundry away when we had a knock on the door. Elaine and Rick stopped over to reschedule our dinner date because her 87 year old aunt called to say she was coming to visit tomorrow. Aren’t all RVers plans written in Jello. 

Kathy made a wonderful vegetable salad while I grilled a couple of hamburgers on the Weber. Even though I was wearing a jacket outside the temperature was still cold enough that my hands were nearly frozen by the time I finished. 

Still needed extra tension lines on the Gazebo today.

After we’d finished the dishes we received two phone calls. The first was from our dear friends Vera and Bill from back home and not even ten minutes had passed afterwards our daughter Karen called. They both reported that they didn’t get any snow but the temperatures are very cold.

We’ll keep our fingers crossed that Kathy has a better night’s sleep tonight. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

The World's Great Proverbs

The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.

Walloping Wind.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, USA.

On Sunday night’s blog the Krackers was a saying that I recall growing up to and constantly hearing that getting a good night’s sleep is the way to be healthy and wealthy. Going to bed before 10:30 last night we were both awake shortly after 6:00 this morning and we were both so congested that we couldn’t breathe enough to fall back to sleep. The fact that we are both retired we haven’t seen an increase in our pension cheque either. The person who created that saying surely wasn’t thinking of retirees that are dealing with sinus infections.

Watching the local weather channel while we ate breakfast we learned that the forecast was for rain throughout the morning followed by increased winds this afternoon. The high winds that were heading our way were the part of the same storm presently causing blizzard conditions in the northeastern states. To say that the forecast was accurate would have been an understatement. The torrents of rain hitting the trailer encouraged Kathy after taking her medication to try and recover some of her lost sleep. That gave me the time I needed to start closing the vent openings from the Fantastic Fan project. 

Nothing different looking today. 

By 11:00 the rain had stopped but the winds were blowing harder than they did the other day. It was bad enough that it woke Kathy from a sound sleep shaking the trailer. Looking outside we were worried about the wind destroying our Gazebo so I headed outside to add additional tie-downs in order to save it. Fortunately I still had extra rope and tent stakes and was able to better secure the gazebo by bracing it against the wind. The wind was actually blowing hard enough to push both the flags on the front of the trailer straight back without them hanging down. 

After lunch I checked the parcel tracking and found that our additional parcel from Green Zone folding bicycles had arrived. With the high winds still blowing I simply drove the truck to the office to retrieve our parcel. This definitely would not have been a day to safely do any kind of work on top of the trailer today.

Rick and Elaine stopped over later in the afternoon to see how we were doing. Since our medical conditions are slowly improving we’ll be getting together with them later this week. Our meals today were light and simple but sustainable. Other than the cooler temperatures for the next few days we hope to enjoy better weather for our last few days at this park. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

Office Jokes, Quotes, and Anecdotes

What Ails You

The No.3 cause of work absences lasting three days or longer are minor illnesses such as headaches and upset stomachs.

Work Foundation Study

Wiring Maze.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, USA.

After running the cube heater for warmth last night we both managed to sleep until nearly 8:00 this morning helping us to feel much better than we did yesterday. There was very little breeze when we first got up but there was so much humidity in the air the windows all looked as if they had just been rained on. Since the temperature was still on the low side after breakfast we took the time to complete our morning reading before we started getting busy.

The first thing I needed to do was to go fill our water cart jugs as they were both very empty and we were down near the bottom of our pump jug. Since we’ve been out of sorts for the last few days our supply of quarters dictated how much fresh drinking water we were buying. By the time I’d returned to the trailer if you were outside in the sunlight it was cool but tolerable but if you were in the shade you were actually cold. Once the jugs were put back in the cart I started opening the roof vents and the south side windows in order to get fresh air inside the trailer in hopes of taking the stale germ filled air out. 

Even though we were still not feeling that great with less than a week left at our present location time is of the essence to get the projects that I’ve been working on completed. Climbing up onto the roof I needed to open the upper refrigerator vent to be able to run the wiring needed to connect the Fantastic Fan. Working at it alone I finally managed to get a line down to where I could bring up the wire that was bundled behind the fridge. Kathy came out to guide the wire against kinking while I pulled it up to the roof. 

Wire hanging from AC vent connects to the Fantastic Fan on the left.

For lunch a warm bowl of soup and a cup of tea was more than adequate for our lunch. Returning to the roof I made way too many attempts to feed the wiring fish through the maze created by the roof supports. I then tried feeding it from inside the Air Conditioning opening again with no luck. Finally I asked Kathy to help listen where the wiring fish was making noise in the ceiling while I again fed it from the roof. Once she had pin pointed it for me I was finally able to remove a baffle plate in the AC vent and cut a hole in the ceiling of our cupboard before we were finally successful in running the wiring to the Fantastic Fan. The holes will be patched over at a later date but they are hard to see. 

Since it was already past 5:00 Kathy took charge of cleaning the mess inside the kitchen while I was outside closing things up on the roof because it’s supposed to rain tonight into the morning. Once that was finished even though we were tired we started making supper.

With the forecast calling for rain in the morning I can finish putting things back together so we’ll be able to enjoy some time outside tomorrow. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

The World's Great Proverbs

Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

Wind Shaking The Trailer.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, U.S.A.

We were both in bed before 11:00 last night because of our unwanted gift that we attained from one of the big box stores in Fort Myers on Thursday. Even though we had a broken sleep we were fortunate enough that the last night’s low stayed close to 70 F (21 C) which allowed us to sleep with a few windows open.

By early morning the wind picked up even though the actual temp never changed the wind chill truly fell. It was a strange site seeing only the odd golf cart driving by with the occupants wearing winter garments. The wind was actually shaking the trailer which was something that hadn’t happened since the installation of the stabilizers. Throughout the day we both could be seen horizontally recovering and spending most of our sitting time consuming soup in order to get back on our feet.

With colder nights and days forecasted for the next week we’ll hope the closed up trailer will still allow us the environment we need to recover. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

You Might Be a Redneck If

You've ever plucked a nose hair with a pair of pliers.

Sugar Cane and Orange Juice Processing and A Turtle Rescue.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, U.S.A.

After going to bed with scratchy throats and stuffed sinuses last night we weren’t surprised when we woke up with heads that felt like bushel baskets this morning. We really would like to thank the idiots in the big box stores yesterday that were hacking and sneezing while making no attempts to cover their mouths. We both woke before the 7:00 alarm because we needed to be on the road bright and early because we’d already paid for the Sugarland Tour for today and we had to be at the Clewiston Museum before 9:00 this morning. The best we could do was take whatever over the counter meds we had and hope for the best. 

Our Guide Bob.

Of course we arrived before the building was unlocked but as soon as it was we were able to look around on our own. The tour was delayed by fifteen minutes due to a large tour bus stopping in for information and passes to get into the plants as we’d later do. Our guide Bob started the presentation with a ten minute video before giving a personal narration of what was inside the museum. 

The picker looks like a Dinosaur from this angle.

Wagons dumping Sugar Cane into railcars.

Our first stop was on a privately owned plantation that was in the process of their harvest of Sugar Cane. The importance of the burning of the fields was explained to us and we then witnessed how the mechanical harvesting was done. In the southern part of Florida once the Sugar Cane is harvested the tractor drawn trailers are emptied into nearby waiting railcars that will bring them to the processing plant. Bob then demonstrated how the process was done by hand giving us each a short stock each to bring home to plant and a smaller bite sized piece to experience the taste of the raw cane. 

Since sugar cane is not the only agricultural crop the area has to offer our next stop was down the road to the Orange Juice Processing Plant. We witnessed how the hundreds of truckloads of oranges were unloaded and the early stages of making juice every day. The different processes for regular juice and concentrated juice were explained along with the fact that no packaging or bottling was done at this plant. Each producer of juices has a special blend for their own product that is done before the juice is shipped sometimes as far as California by truck. We all were given a taste of one of the finished products. The waste orange products gets processed into animal feed. 

Trailer full of Oranges being unloaded.

Oranges being cleaned and sorted.

Tankers being filled with Orange juice.

Hundreds of trailers full of fresh picked oranges

We then drove back into Clewiston where we were given a driving tour of the area’s history and shown many of the historical buildings. It’s hard to believe that the town Clewiston is only 85 years old. We drove out to the dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee and it was explained its importance and history to Clewiston and its surrounding municipalities. 

One of the original homes in Clewiston.

Lake Okeechobee Waterway from on top of the dike.

Our last stop was the Sugar Cane processing plant where over 700 railcars of Sugar Cane are processed daily seven days a week during the harvest season. All the different processes were described that are necessary before it is suitable for human consumption. At one point the tour bus drove into a warehouse that was over a quarter mile long and all that was in there was Sugar Cane that was only half way ready to be packaged. Even the waste stocks are used as fuel to generate the power for the plant and the excess gets sold to the Florida Power Company.  

 

Hundreds of railcars full of Sugar Cane.

Sugar Cane processing plant.

The tour ended around 1:30 so Kathy and I needed to have lunch so we stopped at Wendy’s. Since it was over 6 hours since breakfast it took a while before we started feeling better. Kathy then went next door to check out Bealls and found a nice hoodie but they didn’t have it in her size. 

That's all Sugar Cane only 50% ready for consumption
piled four times the height of the bus.

Now we needed to get home and we were following the speed limit until we came to the junction of our road which is on a raised overpass. Suddenly the cars in front of us were swerving around something in the road. Because of the size of the truck the only thing I could do was come to a full stop. There was a huge Gopher Turtle trying to cross the highway. Kathy said it would get killed out there so I threw on the four-ways and went out and picked him up. By then smaller vehicles were squeezing by the truck and it was thirty feet over the edge of the road so I couldn’t just toss him over. Just then a woman whose name we never got pulled up next to me and said to put it in her car and she drop it off down the road. We followed her down the ramp where she released it near a ditch. 

Never found out her name but she knew what to do.

All I could do was watch as the rescued turtle was freed.

Back at the trailer the first thing we did was lay down because our heads were pounding. Just before 5:30 Elaine and Debbie stopped off to see how the tour went. Our supper was a cup of tea and a bowl of Chicken and wild rice soup. We’ll see how we’re feeling tomorrow. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

What do you get if you pour boiling water down a rabbit hole?

Hot cross bunnies.

Ft. Myers Shopping, Blood Donor and Colds.

Our Location today is Moore Haven, Florida, U.S.A.

We were both up just after 7:30 this morning with the intention of making a full day of errands in Fort Myers. After eating breakfast we only spent a few minutes on the computers before heading out the door. There is one big advantage of not staying at an RV Park too close to any large community you don’t have to worry about rush-hour traffic. 

Our first stop when we arrived in Fort Myers was a woman’s clothing store that our friend Elaine and her friend Debbie had both suggested for Kathy to try. It must be a popular place because I had to wait in the truck until a parking spot opened in the small parking lot. After some hemming and hawing and some convincing from me Kathy finally purchased a new denim jacket and blouse. Since it was nearly noon we stopped at Perkins where we had our lunch before continuing on. 

Next on the list was the oneblood Blood Donor Clinic. They were more than happy to have me help them with their monthly blood donations thus making this my 92^nd Whole Blood donation. Since this is a different branch of the blood collecting in Florida than Life South Community Blood Donation Centers that I donated through last year I had to go through the process of reregistering all over again but we had plenty of time on our hands. Surprisingly they had a separate room from the rest of the office for collecting blood. After the traditional juice and cookies Kathy and I were soon on our way to another stop.

We were told by the people at Camping World two weeks ago to go to Lowes or Home Depot to purchase shower door sweeps but after visiting both today I will tell you shower doors for homes are different than for RVs. I did however pick up a few supplies that will help me finish more projects on the trailer. Since it was across the street we also stopped in at Walmart where we picked up a few supplies for upcoming salads back at the trailer. There was one thing that these three places had in common. People all around were coughing and sneezing and all we could do was hope for the best. 

Now it was nearly 3:30 and I wanted to stop back at Camping World before heading home. Following the directions of our GPS twice today we made the turns that it called for only for it to turn us around and put us back on the road it had just made us turn off of. A similar thing happened last week while we were in Fort Myers. At Camping World I was finally able to purchase the last of the supplies I needed but they had been out of stock on our last two stops. 

It wasn’t long and we were heading down State Route 80 heading east towards home but it was already past 5:30 when we entered the small town of LaBelle. As soon as we saw the Log Cabin Restaurant we both knew what we wanted for supper. We both ordered the half rack of ribs with different sides and enjoyed every morsel of it. 

The sun was already starting to set when we once again started heading for home. About half way home both Kathy and I noticed that we were getting scratchy throats and stuffy sinuses. Remember all the people from those big box stores that were sneezing and coughing. Well they gave us something that neither of us wanted. 

Tomorrow morning we have a tour booked for 9:00 so hopefully we’ll be feeling better by then. Thanks for following along and feel free to leave a comment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

It’s about time.

Krackers

You Might Be a Redneck If

You avoid having a girlfriend between

Christmas Eve and February fifteenth.