Ellis2Roam

A Vacation Trip

Holy crap, where does the time go? It seems I just updated our blog then I turn around and a month has past me by! Where to start? I think in my last posting – oh so long ago, I pretty much covered off January. Let me recap – lunches, happy hours and quilting for Barb and BS’ing for me. I will try to bring you up to-date on our February activities so far.

Our neighbour has had a difficult time finding a reliable guy to wash her rig so I offered to do it for her – isn’t that the SKP way? The weather has not co-operated but I finally finished it March 1st and now onto some of our own projects and it seems the weather is warming a bit here. We haven’t even been out kayaking very much because of the cool temps or rain.

In early February, our Ladies thought they should make a trip to Ocean Springs, MS for fabric and the guys would meet them at The Shed for a BBQ lunch. We left an hour or so behind them so we wouldn’t be sitting and waiting, consuming way too much while they shopped. Well, the fabric store was closed and the Ladies were waiting for us! Now that’s a role reversal for ya.

At least once a season, we trek over to Felix’s fish camp for a most excellent lunch. It is always a treat and this year was no exception as it was Ann’s birthday lunch. There was 10 of us and the restaurant set us up in a small room for our ‘party’. We had a wonderful feast and of course, a great time.

It’s Mardis Gras time here again and Tom & Cheryl have not been to a parade so we took them to Point Clear for the Mullet Mardis Gras parade – a smallish family style to break them in gently. Maybe next year we’ll do a bigger night parade to give them the complete experience!

The next day, the three of us – Bill & Ann, Tom & Cheryl and Barb & I – hooked up our rigs and head off for a little sight seeing/get-away to Ho Hum campground in Carrabelle Florida. The original thought was to take our kayaks and spend a lot of time on the water as the campground is right on the coast and easy in and out. As we got closer to our getaway, the weather did not co-operate again and we decided to leave the boats here and instead, picked up more beverages! We arrived in time to set up, have happy hour and then out for dinner – remember, we don’t cook on travel days. After dinner, we were back to our place for night caps.

Monday was Cheryl’s birthday and we tried hard to give her the best celebration – happy hour at 10 then off to lunch! A great start for her day. After we got back, Barb & I went out for fuel and happened on a Bald Eagle on our way back. We pulled over and even though we were a few yards away, Barb managed to get a few pictures. Then we all converged on Tom & Cheryl’s for more happy hour festivities!

Tuesday was a trip to St George Island, a little walk around on the beach and lighthouse but it was cold and threatening rain. After this, we’re off to Apalachicola, FL to wander the downtown (read shops) and lunch. We end up at Caroline’s on the river for lunch. Unfortunately, is was too cold to sit out on the deck to watch the world go by but the food and service was great anyway – not to mention the company! After we get back to Ho Hum, Barb & I drive further down the coast ( the others have been here before but we’re newbie’s and wanted to see more) to Alligator Harbor Aquatic Preserve. Here the government leases 10 acre sites to shell fish farms. Rather interesting and we caught a couple of good pictures of a Blue Heron that was standing nearby. We travelled further than we expected and were a little late for happy hour – now that’s not legal!

The next day we head back to the Plantation and brings us to February 19th and a good place to stop for now. Hope all is good where you are and come back again mainly if you are snowed inside. . . . .

Thank Goodness for Weekends!

When we retired, we said that everyday was a Saturday but now, we look forward to the weekends for a rest! When we finished the reno of the house this summer, we thought it will be great to get down here and kick back – that feeling lasted about a minute. Now we are go go go – Barb quilting, knitting, quilting, wool applique, quilting and shopping for fabric so she can quilt! Me, I mill around the clubhouse and kibitz with some other guys there and we have become known as the board of directors, chaired by none other than Dick T. We generally have lots of laughs and when we get serious, we solve all the world’s problems. Also, the next time we gather, we solve them again! Then there is computer group on Thursday morning where we open the session with a discussion on restaurants – the good and the bad. This is important information down here! You don’t want to go out for a $20.00 meal and be disappointed.

Early in January, we had a freeze warning so the park shut off the water. Our water pump was leaking so we had to get another one. I went on line and ordered one from PPL Parts and it was here the next day and I had it installed before the park turned off the water. We didn’t expect the fast delivery so we had bought a couple of gallons of water to flush and a case to drink – isn’t that the way? Buy something you don’t really need to avoid a crisis – like a snow blower – and it doesn’t snow.

We have been to one of our favourite lunch spots – Big Daddy’s a few times already, sitting at a picnic table on the deck over looking the gently flowing Fish River. Have I mentioned how good life is yet? And it is legal! We did take a few days off lately – we both came down with the crud – a little bug that made it’s way through the park and affected lots of others too. After we recovered, we have been kayaking twice and plans for more to come. It is coming up to Mardis Gras time again and they have started skits early to build the fun. It’s an added bonus to our ice cream socials on Sundays.

I needed an oil changed, a head light and the truck was slow to accelerate when asked to. The repairs turned into a 2 day adventure, replacing a lift pump, a fuel sensor and oh, what is that dripping I see? Not much, just a water pump. Now it should be ready for another 500K.

There is no good reason why I am so late in updating our blog entry except that time goes by so much quicker down here. Between the activities in the club house, lunches out, going to the movies and trying to keep everything in shape, the weeks are zipping by and before we know it, we’ll be heading north. Whew, that is a thought we try not to have. Going north means going to our house that has no furniture, food or entertainment stuff. Sounds pretty bleak but we are looking forward to it when we get there but for now, I gotta go, it is happy hour and someone needs a refill.

Hope everything is as good for you, where ever you are.

A Close to 2014

The year has been tumultuous for us. We had tragic losses in the beginning of the year and we will forever miss Gerry and Jim. After a such down start to 2014, we were home working on our ‘hobby house’ and had many lows and highs with the reno but we were successful in the end which was a tremendous high for us. We made it safely to our winter rest and now we are in full swing again. It has been a whirlwind time here leading up to Christmas and New Year. This time of year we have our favourite things we like to do. We try to drive by one of the more extravagant Christmas displays we have seen. Unfortunately we do not have any pictures that show the size and beauty of the light display, complete with music so I have included a link that will take you to a news article on the owner of the mansion. As many of you know, we exchange our Christmas cards to each other in the store while they are still warm from sitting on the shelf and this year is no different!

We always have difficulty deciding what we want to do for each other for Christmas and this year is even more difficult. We have had a few fun ideas – Barb’s of course. Two years ago, we treated each other with a lunch, we wrote our own menu and the other had to prepare it. It was a terrific gift and we had fun doing it. Last year we decided that we each separately had 20 minutes and a $30.00 budget to load up gifts to each other. That was fun too but once you do something like that, the second time around isn’t as much fun so this year we decided not to do anything, my idea – yes, that sounds grinchy but what can we do when we have everything we want or need.

One day when Barb was out shopping with some ladies to decorate our Christmas dinner table at the club house, she saw a few decorating items that we could use on the house back home or even on the empty wall in our bedroom in the trailer. So, we went back and agreed on the item for the house but couldn’t find anything suitable for the bedroom wall. We came up with another idea that will work great – we want a beach type picture that we take and have it mounted for the bedroom wall. Now, this will get us out and about to find that ‘perfect’ shot that we both are involved with finding. More to come I’m sure.

Our New Year’s celebration was pretty simple – a progressive appetizer party. We started here, then over to Tom and Cheryl’s and then Bill and Ann’s. Good friends and good fun, what can anyone ask for? Barb & I watched the ball drop in New York – it’s just not the same without Dick Clark or am I just showing my age. Then we watched the Pelican drop in Pensacola (our time zone). Here’s a link to last years event. New Years day is sort becoming a tradition for us – we do nothing. We go to the club house to watch the ‘polar bear’ dip – when asked why we were not in, we just said the water was too warm for Canadians! After, we wandered around the campground to see who was out and stopped by to chat with a few folks. A nice relaxing day and then off to the club house again for dinner. Again, is having this much fun legal?

Our close friends Bill and Ann are heading off to Texas for a few months and we’ll probably be gone back north by the time they return so we got a bunch of us together and had lunch at McGuires in Pensacola. We did a late lunch so the ladies could stop off and do some fabric shopping – some call it a FART (Fabric Acquisition Road Trip). Going late means McGuires didn’t have any problem seating 14 of us at one table. Good food, good friends and great beer – what a combination.

So much to do and so little time before we head north so stay tuned for more good times. We hope all is good wherever you are.

Let the Good Times Roll

Bill & I helped Tom & Cheryl build their 8x16 deck along side their new motorhome. To celebrate having a new deck, they had Bill, Ann, Dick, Marcia, Barb & I over for happy hour on the deck. It was a perfect day, blue skies, no breeze and warm sunshine to help make the day. After, we all went over to the ice cream social at the club house. It is usually busy and noisy until Gary rings the bell and starts his announcements for the week, then the ice cream is served and then all is quiet!

Monday was a quiet day for us – we’re still trying to calm down from our summer of fun. Barb spends any spare time working on a sewing project and I am trying to find a water leak that is coming from the fresh water tank.

Tuesday is the quilt guilds Christmas party and sometimes the men loiter around the club house to scam a morsel from the ladies goody trays and today is no different. By the time I got there, the trays had been passed around but Marcia saved a little something for me from her tray – it pays to have friends in high places. Later, Bill & Ann and Barb & I had lunch on the patio at Big Daddy’s – have I said this before? Life is good, this can’t be legal.

Wednesday was a big outing – we had tickets to the Christmas show at the Beau Rivage in Biloxi, Ms. We were on the bus by 11:15 and drove through to the Beau Rivage for the lunch buffet – 50% 0ff on Wednesdays so of course, you can’t miss that. We spent some time looking around the resort and the shops. The Christmas decorations were quite beautiful and then there was the casino. After all said and done, we left less than 20 bucks behind to visit next time we go. The Christmas show – Santa and Friends on Ice – was in the main theatre and was a fun time. I’ve seen bigger frozen puddles back home than the size of the ice rink they used to perform on but they did it. The stage was covered with fake ice that was used for introductions etc but the throws, twirls and serious skating were carried out on the ‘real’ ice on the main floor. The high light was at the end, the cast brought 4 sleighs out on the ice and took kids from the audience to ride them around the ‘rink’ with Santa. There were a few kids that did not look impressed and they sure did not want to be there – it was funny to see the looks on their faces. The bus ride back was a little quieter than the ride down and we arrived home around 11PM.

The rest of our week was more of the same – club house activities, happy hours somewhere and laughs and fun with our friends here. To top the week off, Dick & Mary had a few of us in for a Christmas party on their site. It was a blast, lots if not too much to eat and sweet treats and a few beverages. We all had a great time but we always do here at the Plantation.

That is all for our week of adventures here, we hope all is good wherever you are and Happy New Year!

A Home Coming…

It doesn’t take long to get into the swing of the happenings here at the Plantation. After having a restful day on Saturday, we found some energy and washed the rig after a summer of neglect. It was incredibly filthy and took some extra elbow grease to get’r clean again. I guess we didn’t have time to look after it this summer – go figure. Anyway, once that was done and all the tools put away, we were off to Ann & Bill’s for happy hour then onto the ice cream social at the club. We shook hands, hugged and spoke to many friends here at the Planation – it was a warm home coming for us.

Like I said, back in the groove already and off to the Original Oyster House for an Escapee chapter lunch with Bill & Ann and about 100 other Escapee’s from the park. Lots of hugs and hellos, chatter and fun. We had to leave the park at 9:30 – what for lunch! – yes, we have a shortish meeting then lunch and we’ll be gone before the lunch time crowds descend on the restaurant. So maybe it should be called a brunch but without breakfast items. And, who doesn’t want a feed of seafood at 11AM? That (Monday) evening is the annual Christmas concert provided by the Baldwin Pops, our local concert band. It was 90 minutes of great Christmas entertainment and all for the price of a toy for the Toys for Tots program here at the Gulf.

Tuesday morning, Barb made her first appearance at the clubhouse with the regular ladies for the sewing and quilting fest every Tuesday morning. I found other stuff to do around the rig but most importantly, we planned to decorate the rig for Christmas so I brought the bins in from the shed. I also made an emergency booze run – you can’t decorate properly with out a rum ‘n eggnog in hand.

The rest of the week was of usual stuff, dinner at the clubhouse, happy hours, craft and quilting and I attend the computer group meeting on Thursday morning. A couple of the guys say they only go for the entertainment but sometimes you actually learn something too. It’s always good fun here no matter what your interests are. You can be as busy as you want to be or not, it is entirely up to you on what you get involved in.

The highlight of the week was we – about 16 – went out for dinner at Lulu’s and to watch the Christmas boat parade. We went somewhat early in an attempt to get a table at the rail, overlooking the Intercostal Waterway where the boats will sail by. But, it was a hit and miss chance, the place was packed – everyone doing the same thing. The hostess said some people had been there since 11AM! It was also Dick’s 74th birthday and we all celebrated as he shared his brownie sundae with us. Again, it can’t be legal to have this much fun!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year where ever you are….

Give Us Some Heat

What a flurry of activity in our last couple of days in Ontario. Sunday sees Barb cleaning up and getting the house ready for our departure and I’m in the attic – try to picture my 6 foot frame in a small space where I can only kneel on 2x6 ceiling joists while trying to connect flexible ducts to the air vents and the air exchanger. Ouch… Anyway, I finally get the holes cut in on the outside and on the interior walls for the air vents and the wire is run for the wall control. We turn the unit on and surprise, surprise, it is running, blowing air out where it should! Now to do the WiFi thermostat so we can monitor the house temperature and make adjustments if need be.

We had to return the tables and chairs on Monday morning, pickup some much desired Canadian cheese for our friends at the Plantation and get our prescriptions filled for our stay in LA. I also had a low beam out on the passenger side and of course, waited until the cooler weather to change it. It appeared to be a simple task of just reaching in from under the hood to remove the old bulb and insert the new one. Well, removing the old bulb was not a problem but inserting the new one was a different story. I just couldn’t get enough room for my hand and arm to push the new bulb into the light. Out comes the battery and the battery box so I could get enough room to push the bulb in. Once in and all connected, all was good, low beam working again. Now the bad news – since I upgraded the bulb to a brighter model, I had to do the drivers side too. Again, a simple task to remove the old, perfectly good bulb but again, could not insert the new one. So, out comes the battery and the battery box and was able to get the new one in, replace the battery box and battery. Now, I know enough that I can not put any body oil on the bulb and I wore latex gloves but did not notice the grease on the gloves from removing the battery etc. I didn’t think I touched the bulb but must have because within a few minutes, the blub exploded in the light lens. Off to get another bulb and try again. Out comes the battery and box and old bulb. Inserted the new one and turned on the lights. What? The lights are on but on high beam and I could not switch them off. Put the old low beam in and all is good except now the low beam does not work but at least they are not on high beam now and can be switched. Don’t know what I did but the parts guy suggests it may be a defective bulb so make the exchange and tried again with the same results – high beams on and can’t be switched off! I’ll wait until we get south and have a professional look at it down there.

Tuesday and we are putting things away, tiding up the garage, picking tools etc that will go with us to LA – they might come back too. We decided to hook up in the morning but brought the slides in so we wouldn’t have snow to knock off. Barb made sure the inside was secured for morning.

Wednesday, we are on our way, planned to cross at Buffalo and take the NY toll road after we looked up the toll costs online and realized it was not that expensive and shaved 2+ hours off our trip. Our first stop was duty free. We were sitting on a downward slope as I remembered to call Visa to let them know of our plans. So, we’re sitting at near freezing temps, the heater blower on, the trailer running lights on and holding the brakes to keep us from rolling downhill. We were like that for about 25 minutes talking to Visa and I smell burning rubber but there was a highway bus next to us and it could have been him. Ok, so we’re ready now and we start up, pulling around to the ramp to the bridge when our alternator gauge goes to zero! The check gauges alarm comes on! Great, we’re on the bridge, no where to pull over so we have to keep going. There was no delay so we pull right in to the guard gate and switch off the engine with our fingers and toes crossed that we will be able to move out without the hook! Our stay was brief and soon ready to roll. I asked the guard if he knew of a place nearby that could look at our problem and he did not so now what? Our decision was to kick it up and see where we get to, there has to be something around if we need help – after all, isn’t that what ERS is for? We start up ok, the alternator starts reading about 10V and by the time we were on the freeway toward I90, the alternator was reading full at 14V – yippee! We were still on edge that the problem might come back and of course it would at the worst time.

By the time we were approaching Cincinnati, it was getting dusky and we had to turn on the running lights so I was a bit nervous in case the alternator would not carry the extra load but we were good! Soon we were at the next chasm and that was the headlights - or should I say headlight, anyway I turned them on and the alternator continued to work fine. I will have to get it checked when we get settled in LA. we stayed the night at the FlyingJ in Walton, Ky. It was close to our turn off to I71 to Louisville and we could get some dinner since we do not carry much when we cross the border.

Thursday and the alternator issue is still on our minds but after fuelling and heading to I71, all was good so we sat back and enjoyed the sleet, snow and rain that we drove through on our way to Louisville. Once we were clear of Louisville and head’n south on I65, the skies cleared and the temps started to rise – it must be an omen for us that this is going to be a terrific winter for us. We stopped at the Walmart in Clanton, Al for the night and to restock our groceries. It was wonderful, sleeping with the windows and vents open, one of the best sleeps lately.

On Friday, we were up and at’m early, we were both anxious to get to the Plantation, get the jacks down and kick back. Bill & Ann had us in for dinner so we don’t have to cook, what a treat. Our site looks so different as our Eucalyptus tree had died and was taken out during the summer. It did make it easier to back in without it stretching out into our parking space. As we were setting up, Bill & Ann came by to welcome us back. We went to there site soon after and caught up on the news and gossip – along with a few beverages.

Saturday was a wind down day, we checked in at the office, stopped and chatted with some friends along the way and made our way back to the rig. Whew, who wants to cook – no one put their hands up so we asked Ann & Bill and they didn’t want to either so hello O’Charlie’s.

That was our trip for this week, we hope all is good where you are and wish you a Merry Christmas…..

Final Inspections Mark an End

Well, after the last snow fall, we had a melt and when we looked out the RV window this morning, we saw puddles of water laying on top of the weeping tile that goes around the house foundation! What is that about now? There should never be water laying on top of the weepers! When there is water standing on top of the weeping tile, we know there is water in the crawl space! My first thought was the pump outtake line was frozen so I proceed to take the line apart – thank goodness I installed a union so it would be easier to maintain the pump – and plugged the pump back in and let it spray out onto the road for a few minutes to ensure the pump was ok. I reconnected it to the out line and it also worked. Then I noticed the electric wires hanging in the way of the pump float. Oops, the float is supposed to float upward and turn on the pump to drain the water in the sump tank but it could not because of the wires that power the pump tangled with the float and held it down. So, a quick re-route of those pesky wires and all is good and the puddles are gone. That was enough excitement for Sunday, we have to get ourselves and the house ready to host our family Christmas this coming Saturday.

Now that we have the tree up and decorated, Barb builds a tree skirt to finish it off. We have created the menu but since we have not prepared a meal for this many in 14 years, we were little unsure of how much to prepare. Like many other things we do, we decided to go big, better to have too much than have to little. In the mean time, with Barb working on decorations, I start installing the handles on the kitchen cabinets. None of the doors or drawers are pre-drilled so it was a bit nerve wracking for me to not screw it up – we don’t want extra holes.

On Tuesday Nov 25th, we had our final building inspection – we were confident that we would pass this one and we wanted it done before we headed south. The inspector arrived on time and started his walk through. We have had good experiences with our inspectors and appreciated their tips and information. It was interesting that he looked under each sink to see if there was any water leaks – as if we would leave anything leaking – and then he checked in the crawl space to make sure the water meter and water shut off were accessible. Again, who wouldn’t make these things available but he deals with all types of DIYers. The next area he checked was in the kitchen and he thought the cook top was too close to the microwave and he says we may have to raise the cabinets to increase that space but he was not sure and will check the code when he gets back to the office! What? There is no room to move the cabinet up or to drop the cook top down. We followed the manufacturers instructions and exceeded the space requirement between the cook top and the nuke! This kinda sent us into a tail spin for a few days. A couple of days later, he requested the installation manual so we sent it email and waited. We still did not know the permit status when we left for LA and it played on our minds as we thought about solutions. The easy one would be to remove the cabinet over the nuke and raise the nuke up, have another inspection and once passed, lower the nuke back down and replace the cabinet back where it was originally. Seems like cheating but it was the easiest and a better solution than redesigning the kitchen to the inspector.

The next day, we had our final electrical inspection. The inspector was a little late but, he did his walk through with his little test unit and kicked off the GFCIs, made sure lights came on when he operated switches and then checked the load centre. Oops, we had a higher breaker for the air conditioner than what is called for – both Barb & I are sure the HVAC folks told us 30A was needed but reality says it is 20A. When the inspector left, he kindly agreed that he would accept a picture of the change since he was not expected back in our area for a week. That day, we picked up the breaker and had it replaced and the picture in his email by the next morning. He contacted us and said he would pass us and close the permit. This gave us some peace of mind that we had one permit out of the way before we hitched up.

Now with the colder weather here and the furnace working, we have some moisture on the windows which surprises us. We have been running a dehumidifier for a couple of weeks now but it is not getting better. We spoke with the insulation folks and their explanation suggests that with spray foam, it seals the house like none other and we should consider installing an air exchanger to bring dry fresh air from outside and exhaust moist stale air. Apparently, new construction and we have had lots of new wood put in, and new drywall and paint brings in lots of moisture and a house takes more than a year to dry out. So, another expense we did not plan on and off to Lowes again. Since we know nothing about air exchangers, we asked for assistance and they sent over the most knowledgeable rep. We asked a few questions and he said yep to each including which installation kit we needed to complete the job. We left with confidence that we could get this in before our Christmas. After our inspections, we crack open the boxes and get ready to install the unit in the attic in the back half of the house. Now we have all the parts out, we realize the Lowes rep knew nothing – he sent us home with the installation package of a bathroom, not a whole house – now we have to go back to Lowes and exchange this for the whole home installation kit. Now, for the price we paid for the unit, one would think that the manufacturer would include all the parts required but I digress. The Lowes customer service person was very generous and courteous with our return and complaints – we left happier than when we came in. Unfortunately, this side trip put me behind and could only get the unit installed in the attic but not connected to any ducts or vents so we did not have it for our Christmas dinner.

Saturday arrives and most of the dinner is already cooked. We did the turkey in the oven in the rig since we were unsure how to do it in the new microwave/convection oven. We were out yesterday and rented tables and chairs for the day and once back, we washed them down and set everything up and set the tables. It was exciting for us, taking us back to our Christmas’ when we had a house. Our ‘guests’ start to arrive and the island kitchen gets a workout, it was perfect – great designing Barbie! Once everyone is here, we pick up our past traditions and soon we’re all seated for dinner – all 19 of us – it was noisy but fun. The kids – all the kids – are excited to open gifts and we asked Mackenzie to do the Santa job for us – small tree means to far down to retrieve the gifts. Anyway, he did a fantastic job and everyone was happy. The wonderful celebration soon came to an end as Dawn had a 5 or so hour drive home. It was a great time and so good see everyone for our little family Christmas.