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Friday, September 30, 2011

Stuck

Stix n Brix
Clayton, NC

We left Lake Jordan Wednesday and pulled in to the driveway at the house to spend a few days here doing things that need doing.  We were gone about 3 weeks and we really didn’t want to come back.  Walking into the house felt even more different than last time.  It just feels like a shell to us.  It’s not “home”. 

While we were gone this time, the house was shown only once.  It is being shown this afternoon so we are relaxing in the MH so that we can spy on the prospective buyers.  By spending most of our time in the MH, the house stays clean and show-ready.  I still get my hopes up every time we have a showing.  Think positive thoughts!

Gin’s Mom finally has a date set for her surgery in October.  She has an aneurism and is getting that taken care of.  We want to be nearby for that of course but I think we will have time to take another little trip before then to a familiar place.  We are luckier than so many people yet we are ready to hit the road and not come back.  We still have this house so we have responsibilities here.  Our time will come when it’s meant to be.

Thanks for dropping by, and enjoy each day of your life’s journey by finding beauty in the ordinary.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Rain and Visit

Jordan Lake State Park
Poplar Point CG (site #E100)
Apex, NC

It has rained some just about every day that we’ve been here.  I sure wish there was a way that Texas could get some of this rain to help with the drought out there.  It’s so wet here that big mushrooms are popping up all over the place!

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I was surprised to see some Fall colors already showing on this Maple tree.  These red berries are abundant in the area.  Since the birds aren’t eating them, I would assume that they are poisonous.

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We are on a waterfront site but we haven’t taken the kayaks out yet.  It’s been too rainy.  We’ve caught up on our rest and we’ve read the book “The Help”.  We like to read aloud using different accents for the characters.  Maybe we’ll get to see the movie soon.

Here’s a typical site here at Poplar Point.  Notice how wooded it is.  It’s water and 30 amp on this one but some sites don’t have electricity.  They are open to the main lake instead of up a cove like we are. 

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It cleared up enough today to have our friends Gail and Rick of Gypsy Turtles join us for the afternoon.  They are staying nearby at the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh and enjoying FHU (50 amp even) for the same price as here ($25).  There aren’t any trees there yet and the sites are close together but it’s much more convenient for appointments.

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I think that they enjoyed the trees here and agreed that this is the kind of cg that they like too.  We enjoyed the visit and know that we will run into them again some time down the road.

Thanks for dropping by, and enjoy each day of your life’s journey by finding beauty in the ordinary.

Friday, September 23, 2011

What’s Up

Jordan Lake State Park
Poplar Point CG (site #E100)
Apex, NC

I have been enjoying the wonderfully detailed blogs that Nancy and Bill have been posting about the Carolina Clan weekend in Cheraw.  It was such a fun time, and we still smile broadly when we reflect upon it. 

We left Cheraw on Thursday and landed in Rocky Mount, NC to spend some time with Gin’s folks.  We stayed there for a week and played all the Canasta we could stand.  I never keep track of who wins but it was fun.  We did go to Roanoke Rapids to visit with my Mom one day and played Hand and Foot.  Gin’s parents will be moving into a new home soon.  The contractor had a little setback so it will be near the middle of October before the place is ready.  They want to move things over there a bit at a time after the final deal is done so there wasn’t that much for us to do.  I did cut the grass while Gin went shopping with her Mom for some paint and things one day.  On Wednesday, we washed their MH.  They’ve run ads and a fella has called about it and seems interested.  Hope it works out.

We are now at Poplar Point CG at Lake Jordan State Park.  They’ve closed half of this cg after Labor Day and the other main cg (Crosswinds) will close for the season entirely after this weekend.  It’s going to rain most of the day so we may not get out of our pajamas.  Not bad.

Thanks for dropping by, and enjoy each day of your life’s journey by finding beauty in the ordinary.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

More CC Fun and Leaving

Cheraw State Park (site#15)
Cheraw, SC

The rest of the Carolina Clan arrived to play on Friday including Laura and Bruce, and Nancy and Bill, and Steve and Evin.  They didn’t waste any time getting their boats wet.

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Gin and I were still sore from our first paddle so we rested while just about everyone else went out.  Group shot…

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We enjoyed a potluck dinner at Bill and Nancy’s site and some ice cream by the campfire and of course, a ton of laughter.  My abs felt like I had done 50 sit ups.  No wonder why they say laughter is the best medicine.

Tricia’s son and DiL, Brandon and Amanda, and her sister and Bil, Cathy and Bruce, joined in for the fun weekend.  I’m just glad that they were warned about how silly this group can be.  For instance, there is a George Foreman grill that hasn’t found a home yet.  Check Gail's post of the weekend for a great wrap up.

Saturday morning, a lot of folks took a hike but I didn’t join in.  We had washed and waxed Wanda last week so I had gone up and down the ladder too much for my crunchy knees to handle.  We all went on a moonlit paddle led by a Park Ranger.  There were over 20 boats and we had glow sticks attached to the front and rear of each boat.  It was very neat, especially when a beaver slapped it’s tail right beside Gin’s boat.  It even hit her paddle.

Sunday was departure day for Bruce and Laura, and Ray and Kris.  They had to return to work.  Hang in there guys.  Retirement income certainly makes fulltiming a lot less stressful.  We had our last group campfire at Bill and Nancy’s site and enjoyed some roasted marsh mallows.

Monday was departure day for Bill and Nancy and today was Gail and Rick’s departure day.  It’s much quieter here and we are about caught up on our naps.  Dan and Tricia, and Paul and Jill plan to leave tomorrow and we plan to have one more day before we hit the road.  We may even take one more paddle around the lake.  Needless to say, this has been a wonderful gathering.

Thanks for dropping by, and enjoy each day of your life’s journey by finding beauty in the ordinary.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Carolina Clan

Cheraw State Park (site #15)
Cheraw, SC

Sorry I haven’t posted in a while (not really), but we’ve been busy.  After a little more than a week at the house, we had to get back on the road for a while.  When we went to the RV-Dreams Rally last April, a group of us from NC and SC had decided to get together some time in September and enjoy a few days together.  We all enjoy nature and kayaking on calm waters, and Nancy and Bill knew of a perfect place; Cheraw State Park in Cheraw SC.  It’s a small cg (only 17 sites) and it’s on a calm lake.  There is a golf course on the other side of Lake Juniper but I don’t think anyone made it over there for that. 

The first to arrive were Gail and Rick who got here on Tuesday.  We arrived on Wednesday along with Paul and Jill and Dan and Tricia.  Others arrived later for a total of 7 couples on site and another couple (Steve and Evin) who have ordered a new rig, staying nearby.  Here’s our site #15 right on the water and the views from our spot.  As always, if you click the pic, it gets bigger.

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This is definitely our kind of place with the squirrels running around and the water lilies blooming.  Too bad the hydrila is thick in the water.

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Most of us were here on Thursday and decided to take a paddle on the lake.  It narrows a bit near the headwaters and the Cypress trees grow in the middle of the water.  It’s really a nice place, but swimming isn’t really allowed.  Here’s Roamin P. Duck keeping an eye on Ray and Kris and Gin chatting with Dan and Tricia near the spillway.

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All of the inflatable kayaks are different models of Sea Eagles.  Paul and Jill are ready to row and so are Gail and Rick.

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And one last shot of the group as we get our oars wet.

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I didn’t take many pictures because I couldn’t keep pace if I stopped.  There were a ton of water lilies and this Egret is just walking in a very thick batch of those lilies.

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After getting a bite of supper, we all met at site #11 for a campfire.  That’s Nancy and Bill’s site but they aren’t scheduled to arrive until Friday.  We just had to initiate the place with multiple outbursts of laughter.

Thanks for dropping by, and enjoy each day of your life’s journey by finding beauty in the ordinary.