We traveled all of 45 minutes to Whitten Army Core of Engineers Park near Fulton, MS. At this time of year, the park is only a third full if that, and we got our choice of spots. This is the view from the Whale. Yes, that's the Tenn-Tom Waterway. Once we plugged in and sat down with a nice glass of wine to celebrate the next leg of our journey, it sunk in how quiet and dark our campsite is. The parking lot campsite in Red Bay was a bit louder and lit up than we realized.
Saturday was devoted to cleaning and putting the Whale back together. We literally had three weeks of warranty and custom work being done to the Whale - constantly shifting items from one side or one end to the other so the work could be completed. In addition to the multi-item warranty list, we had carpet removed and tile installed in the bedroom, cabinet in the bathroom, drawers to replace the computer station in the dinette, new computer station in the front corner of the driver's side slide, custom cut entry carpet, a dash cover, and lumbar supports in the front seats. All up-grades are wonderful! While the work was being done, we still had to live in the Whale - mildly annoying with some inconvenience, but as long as I had a bag of knitting, my computer and phone with hot spot, I'm good to go. The best part of all the work is getting to know the techs who do the work. While they are working, and I am stuck on the couch with all my stuff and the dog, we talked. Daniel and Shane installed the tile on a Friday night and Saturday a.m. Daniel and his wife are expecting their first child after a really sad miscarriage. Shane's daughter came with him Friday evening between school and the football game. TJ and Greg installed the cabinet work. TJ and his wife just moved into a new house. Frankly, I don't know when he might have done the move 'cause he works in the Tiffin cabinet shop all day and installs custom work every evening. Greg has three grown children, the youngest trying to go back to college. Some folks reading this might think the info about strangers inconsequential, but I'm finding that as much as we have and will enjoy the places we go, getting to know the people in those places will be the richer reward. We're all not so different.
Today is October 28, 2012. Today is my birthday. The sky is clear and fall colors are brilliant. There is just enough breeze to cause a few leaves to fall every so often. Today I take stock of my blessings. Jerry and I are acutely aware that many folks do not get to fulfill their life's dreams as we are doing now. We are grateful.
I also spend time during this day in remembrance of my sister-in-law Penny who died two years ago in May from cancer. Her birthday was October 26th. We almost always celebrated our birthdays together doing something we both really loved. Usually that meant we took an outing to Shipshewana, IN to shop, or we visited a new yarn shop (both avid knitters), or we made a trip to our favorite garden shop. Penny was a much better gardener than I, but I always enjoyed the thought of being good at it. Penny was a good and very strong woman. Related by marriage, we became very close friends. I miss her and hope that whatever I do on this day will be in honor both of us.
Our plans this moment are to stay on the Tenn-Tom until Tuesday a.m. We head north to Nashville, the Louisville, and Elkhart. We are looking forward to seeing family and friends during our brief stay "home" before we travel to Naples in search of warmth.
No comments:
Post a Comment