The Starks Meet another Stark

 Day 13 - Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Lake Haven Retreat, Indianapolis, IN

70 degrees, thunder, and lightning wake us this morning, and from the number of seconds between when we see the flash of light until we hear thunder, we know that the rain will be upon us very soon.  We have encountered rain on the trip, but this is the first lightning.

It rains for most of the day, so we delay our outside activities until afternoon.  A reflection of the sky in one of the ponds at the RV park catches my eye on our evening walk, so my camera comes alive.  I'm fascinated by the streaks of clouds angling up from the orange sunset, and some of them become dusty pink as they are set against the baby blue sky.

I am reminded of the old adage "Red sky at night, sailor's delight. Red sky in morning, sailor's warning." 

In searching for where this phrase originated, I found:

Shakespeare said something similar in his play, Venus and Adonis.  "Like a red morn that ever betoke ned, Wreck to the seaman, tempest to the field, sorrow to the shepherds, woe unto the birds, Gusts and fowl flaws to headmen and to herds."

In the Bible, (Matthew XVI: 2-3,) Jesus said, “When in evening, ye say, it will be fair weather: For the sky is red. And in the morning, it will be foul weather today; for the sky is red and lowering.”

Weather lore has been around since people needed to predict the weather and plan their activities.  Sailors and farmers relied upon it to navigate ships and plant crops.

So it looks like tomorrow will be a good travel day for Herb and me.

Herb is wearing a Stark Industries tee shirt, given to him by Roxie and Ed, and we meet a lady who asks him if Stark Industries is his business.  He tells her about Stark Outdoor Advertising, the business he actually retired from, and explains how he got the shirt.  She remarks that it is such a coincidence, because her son has a plumbing business named Stark Services.

This was a pleasant chance meeting, and we enjoyed visiting with her two dogs, as well.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Have you ever seen a Fliker?

 Day 12 - Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Lake Haven Retreat, Indianapolis IN

It is another great cool morning with a temperature of 70 degrees and a high of 88 predicted at Marion Campground.   I really like this RV park and would love to return another time, but we look forward to getting farther along on our Maine Odyssey.  

With having a long drive today, we are on the road at 7:45a, and soon get a few drops of rain. Yep, we knew it was coming, but we have raincoats, umbrellas, and windshield wipers.  Not to worry.

The route this morning is I-57 North to I-70 East toward Chicago, and due to a very bumpy section of the highway, my camera barely catches the  'welcome to Illinois' sign.   We stop at a Rest Area for coffee and let some of the rainy system move on off.

Back on the road again, I see a digital sign that says, "Scott's Law.  Look it up.  Watch for Lights."  I have no clue what that means at the time, but later find out it is something I already know.  I just didn't know it was Scott's Law.

Also known as "Scott's Law" or the "Move Over Law", the law requires that upon approaching           a stationary police or emergency vehicle using audible or visual signals, you must: Proceed with due caution. If possible, yield the right-of-way by making a full lane change not adjacent to the police or emergency vehicle.

It is pretty scary enough with rain along construction areas, and even more scary to see a digital sign announcing all lanes are closed.  What they really mean is all lanes will shift.

The rain is abating a bit, just a slight drizzle now, and we are glad to see a sign for another rest area.

It is a long day on the road, but we are happy to see sunny skies finally, and arrive to Lake Haven Retreat in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The RV park has gravel roads, lots of curves and tight turns, boulders protecting the street signs from being run over, and the roads don't necessarily correspond to the park map that is given to us when we check in.  I suspect the graphic template for the map couldn't lay out curves.  ???

However, the good news is that our site has an open view to the North, and StarLink can see the satellite.   Seeing another lovely Rose of Sharon blossum lifts my spirits, also.    More pink than lavendar?  Bubble Gum pink?  These pastel colors seem to be the norm in the higher altitude, rather than the tropical bright reds of the Deep South.

Happy to be stopped for the night, we take an afternoon walk and see a type of scooter that we have never seen before.  One young lady explains her Fliker to us.  She says she swivels or wiggles it to propel herself along.

Amazon has:    Yvolution Y Fliker Lift | Swing Wiggle Carving Scooter for Kids Age 7+

Hmmm...I wonder if they have Flikers for adults.

As we finish our afternoon walk, we see a boulder beside muddy tire tracks and wonder what happend here.    Maybe someone had trouble making a tight turn.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Herb Performs Surgery!

 Day 11 - Monday, July 25, 2022

Marion Campground and RV Park, Marion IL

We wake to a pleasant temperature of 71 degrees and a cloudy sky on our third day at Marion Campground, but there is no rain yet.  While walking back from the cocktail lounge last night, we had seen an outdoor dining area that could obviously accommodate more than my estimate of thirty people inside.  So we explore the area this morning on our walk.

There are also more walking paths outside the entrance gate to the campground, so we continue down the sidewalk along the frontage street, where we see lovely flowers.  We are surprised to see Crape Myrtle branches peeking through the Hibiscus plant commonly known as Rose of Sharon.  The beautiful pale lavendar color is one I am not familiar with.

Upon our return to the motorhome, we discover another problem with the inverting system, while we are actually connected to shore power.  Herb uses his meter to check our power cord and finds intermittent transmittal.  Aha!  There is more to the reason for the problem, but I am not qualified to explain.  It is complicated.   A couple of trips to Home Depot for supplies and an hour of work fixes the cord.

He makes good use of his cushioned kneeler and my nice Keys - Phone - Wallet door mat, but I am happy to clean up the mess!

It the cord were a human, I would say Dr. Stark performs an anastomosis to get the system working again.  

I check the Vitron's display in the hallway of the motorhome, and find "Shore Power."  No longer is it inverting.  A video would show the little dots going from "Shore" to "Bulk" and down into the battery at lower left.  While Herb was working, the battery drained  from 100% down to 87%.  

Life is good.  

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Monday, July 25, 2022

Beefeater, Tito's and Brisket - What's not to Like?

 Day 10 - Sunday, July 24, 2022 - Part II

Marion Campground & RV Park, Marion, IL

Today's activities really fill up our day, starting with the send-off to Matt, Liz and Baby Willie.

While checking in at the office on Friday, we had noticed there is a cocktail lounge in the next room, which holds probably thirty people max.  Mike told us most of the patrons are locals, and there are only two campers that had come for drinks the night before.  There are three game machines, also.  I see a sign for pizza, so I anticipate drinks and dinner tonight.

Also, when coming in on Friday we had seen across the street from the RV park some beautifully manicured grounds, buildings, and nice walking paths.  We learn it is the VA campus, and are glad the visitors and patients have safe places to walk.

We are fortunate enough to be able to stream our church service from home, St. Andrew's of Pearland, Texas.  The Rev. Lillian Hyde celebrates The Eucharist.

Larry (at the keyboard and not shown) announces names of the people who have joined the Band today, but I don't remember all of them.  What I do hear is wonderful harmony.  Videographer Gage shows the words to the songs for the benefit of those who don't know them.

In the late afternoon Herb walks over to the cocktail lounge to see if it would be a place we would be comfortable visiting, and sees that Jerry, the owner, is preparing brisket to share with all.  The room looks good, people are already beginning to gather, so he comes back for me.

With all the bar stools occupied, Herb goes to end of the bar to order our drinks, and can be seen at the left of the photo.  Zooming the photo, I see that the bartender is pouring Beefeater gin for him.  The next photo shows all the different beverages available, and I see Austin TEXAS made Tito's Vodka.  That may be what I am served.

Complimentary brisket is servered with a choice of potato chips.

Several people at the bar go to the other side of the lounge to play the game machines, and Larry at the table next to us asks us if we are local.  He is here for an appointment at the VA, and got a good report.

The lounge has all the typical decor, and I have to laugh at the "Free Beer Tomorrow" sign.  If we came back tomorrow, it would still say, "Tomorrow."

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Sunday, July 24, 2022

"I Spy" Baby Willie

 Day 10 - Sunday, July 24, 2022 - Part I

Marion Campground & RV Park, Marion IL

Yesterday we heard sounds outside by the cool looking Airstream RV in the site next to us, and take a look, because "We always need to be aware of our surroundings."

We see a young man setting up a pallet in the shade of a tree between us.  Then he brings out some items, puts them down, and returns carrying a baby.  One of the items is a small chair that he sits in while he feeds the baby his favorite food, a jar of spinach and pears. 

I hate to spy, but I can't help myself.  This is so sweet.  The baby is so cute.  I call Herb to come see.  

To protect their privacy, I don't take photos.  The family pet, a black dog, sits nearby.  

Later in the morning, the father brings out a portable bathtub for the baby and gives him a bath.  He loves it.   At one point the dog goes into the weeds over to the side of the manicured lawn to take care of business, apparently well trained enough to go where people don't walk.  Father is busy with the child, but observes that the dog has wandered away.  After the bath, the father takes the darling baby inside to Mom.  Then he cleans the area and picks up the pallet.  

Next he walks over toward the weeds at the edge of the manicured lawn, appearing to search for something.  He looks and looks, and we see a doggie pick-up bag in his hand.

Fast Forward - to today as we start our early morning walk and see our neighbor outside.  We introduce ourselves.  He is Matt, and the baby is Wilson, nicknamed "Willie."   Mom is Liz, a nurse, who gave up her career for now to be a full-time mother.  The dog is named Shadow, and he really did shadow Willie.  We confess to Matt that we spied on them yesterday.

I am so impressed with this nice family, and pronounce Matt "Father of the Year."

They have a long way to go today, so are leaving around 7:45a.  We continue our walk around the campground and down the sidewalk near the office.

By the time they get to the exit of the campground, we are approaching and see they have their garbage bag and are looking for the dumpster.  Unfortunately, it is back at the other side of the park, so Herb insists on taking it from Matt to toss, so they can get on the road.  We wish them safe travels.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Sunday, July 24, 2022

No More Melting Ice Cream

 Days 8 & 9 - Friday and Saturday, July 22-23, 2022

Marion Campground & RV Park, Marion, IL

I think we are out of the Texas heat, when we wake to 71 degrees in South Marcum.  By noon time we are heading out to our next destination in Marion, Illinois, and book four nights.  We have continued to have intermittant power outages, so choose this area to figure things out and get repairs.

Our last outage caused some appliance damages, so our number one priority is getting the refrigerator repaired.  We have a loaded freezer and things on the lower shelves are fine, but a container of ice cream on an upper shelf has begun to melt.  Friends laugh when I tell them I drank ice cream for dessert.

Outage - inverter/battery charger - shore power -  it is too complicated and I won't even try to explain it.

Herb inquires at the office for a recommendation, and Mike suggests Kirby of Appliance Solutions.

In just under two hours Kirby has diagnosed the problem and repaired the refrigerator. At one point he had to almost completely get his upper body into the freezer compartment, and commented that he was lucky to be so skinny.

I was surprised that the culprit is this tiny little fan.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Saturday, July 23, 2022

All Creatures Great and Small

 Day 7 - Thursday, July 21, 2022

South Marcum Campground, Rend Lake, Benton IL

Sweet Georgia Brown does get cooler weather - we wake to 68 degrees and are quite comfortable in just a long sleeve shirt as we begin our morning walk.  There are so many loops with several campsites, and a really nice bike trail that we find paralleling the highway.  We walk directly from our loop toward the bike trail.

As expected, we see lots of deer along the way.  We stop to watch them, and they stop to watch us.  In the second photo, it seems this animal's foot itches and he scratches it the only way he can.

Oh, my goodness!  I see a fawn with its spots.  He is so cute!  The animals feed for a time but as they scamper away, I see there are not one - but two fawns, one of which has been hidden behind the doe.

In summary, on today's walk we see 14 deer, one Little Rabbit Foo Foo, 2 Bambi, one skunk with its tail raised, no squirrels, and several birds.  We also meet a man riding a bicycle, and ask  if he is riding the entire bike path of 11 miles.  He replies that he has ridden from the town of Benton, which is 19 miles away just to get to the bike path.  He does have a couple of water bottles on the bike.

There is no photo of the skunk, as we tip-toe past him, hoping he will not notice us.

We quickly walk toward our campsite on Owl's Roost Loop.  We have enjoyed this beautiful campground, and look forward to continuing our trip to Boston and Maine.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Thursday, July 21, 2022

Sleepless in West Memphis, AR

Day 6 - Wednesday, July 20, 2022

South Marcum Campground, Rend Lake, Benton IL

There was a power outage during the night, and our air conditioning quit working for a time.  I wondered why I had no many sleep disturbances, and then learned about the outage the next morning.  With power restored and the air conditioning back on, we are much more comfortable in this summer heat.

The rest of the trip is uneventfull, and we arrive around 3 pm to South Marcum Campground on Rend Lake, near Benton, Illinois.

After we get parked, Herb puts out the slide-outs and pulls the awnings down to help shield us from the sun.  Even this far north, it is very hot in the upper 90 degree range.

Fortunate to again be in a clear spot where StarLink can see the satellite, Herb places it on the ground and calls me to watch it move as it searches and locks onto the satellite.  He puts it down flat, and when it finds the satellite, it tilts slightly upward toward it.

Then he checks the speed and is happy.  

Even with the heat still at 95 degrees, we decide to sit on the patio at Happy Hour to watch the deer.  One thing I love about the Corp of Engineers parks is seeing the animals free to roam at will.  When they see us, they watch to see if we will be a threat, then they continue feeding.  In the third photo, I hide behind the picnic table as the deer come closer to us.

Sweet Georgia Brown is home for the night, and anticipates cooler weather as she travels north tomorrow.

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Wednesday, July 20, 2022

Lunch is in the Third State

 Day 5 - Tuesday,  July 19, 2022

Tom Sawyer's RV Park, West Memphis AR

On our second day by the Mississippi River, we drive the Jeep into town for supplies around 11:30 am, and watch for a restaurant for lunch.  We see a Popeye's Chicken and decide to do our shopping first and stop for lunch on the way back to the RV Park.

Yikes! Just as Herb pulls into the Walmart parking lot, he notices that the Jeep's right rear tire has low air pressure of only 10 lbs.  Fortunately, Walmart has a tire shop and he gets the tire aired up to 35 lbs.  

Discount Tire in Pearland sold us the tires, which are still under warranty, so we should find their store near us for the repair.   Uh, oh, there's not one in West Memphis.  Or Memphis, Tennessee.  Herb locates one in Southaven, Mississippi.  

If we had stayed at Walmart to have the repair done, it would have voided our warranty.  So there is no option but to drive to Southaven, about 25 miles from West Memphis.

I have a sinking feeling as we drive into the parking lot, seeing so many cars.  They can't all be employees, so there's probably a lot of customers getting service.  Yep, the waiting room is full.  When we walk in, an employee checks us in, and says it will be a couple of hours until the tire can be looked at, so we should be ready to go around 7 pm.  It is now about 1:30 in the afternoon, and we wished we had picked up Popeye's on the way into town.

Herb says, "7?  What happened to 'couple of hours?' "  I mention to the employee that we have not had lunch, and we don't see any restaurants nearby, and he then says "I'll see what I can do."

He also tells us that there is a What-a-burger just over the hill (across some major highways), so we don't want to walk in that traffic.  There's a Jimmy John's (not one readily available where we live) a few blocks away, and we would have to cross only some side streets.  Oh, no sidewalks for pedestrians, so we walk through the shrubs lining the Tire Store's parking lot, and head toward Jimmy John's.

Did I mention that the temperature is just as hot as it was in Texas when we left?

Herb quickly find his choice - Chicken Caesar Wrap.  Not being familiar with the menu on the wall, I take several minutes to find what sounds good to me - Tuna Sandwich.  It takes a few minutes for our orders to come, as they are made fresh.  We get a drink and have to ask where the soda straws are - up above the drink machine - we just have to look up!  "And do you have any napkins, please?"  The man behind the counter says to look down on his side of the counter to get our napkins.  

We work hard to get our act together, but it is worth it.  The food is delicious.  And I recall that one of the first times I had lunch at a Jimmy John's restaurant was in Seattle with my good friend, Vicki Brown, about nine years ago. 

Then we get good news!  Discount Tire texts Herb that our Jeep is in the bay.  Yay!

Well, when we return to the tire store, we find only one vacant chair, so I take it, and Herb goes to check on the progress with our car.  Only ten minutes later we are back on the road again with a fresh tire patch where a screw has been removed from the tire.

Not 7 pm, but well in time for Happy Hour!  We laugh about having to drive from Arkansas through Tennessee and into Mississippi for lunch!

Willie of Sweet Georgia Brown,

   and of Walldog and Willie

   Tuesday, July 19, 2022