Jimmy Buffett Concert (at Woodstock?)

Had a few people over to the rig last night to watch a broadcast of the Jimmy Buffett concert on Margaritaville.TV.   One of the neighbors said it was kind of like Woodstock.  (Um, yeah.  No.)  Only one picture because I didn't get any shots before it was too dark, but had probably 8-14 people at any one time.  Also a good test of a new recipe of Key Lime Martinis*.

Was a good test (for football season) since cutting the cord of the new set up with the FireTV, the projector unit and the screen.  Got to be really dark, though.  At least 15-20 minutes after sunset.

* - Key Lime Martini Recipe:

1 part Eagle Brand Milk
1 part Pineapple Juice
1 part Lime Juice
1 part Whipped Cream (or Vanilla) Vodka

Growing Older But Not Up

Like most of us who full time RV, we meet friends along the way and really enjoy each other's company.  Thanks to Facebook, email and the like, we're now able to keep in touch even though we haven't actually "seen" each other in awhile.  Such is the case with Jim and Susan Lovay.  Married for 43 years, they're who Connie and I want to be when we grow up.  😉  Like Jimmy says, they're "growing older but not up."

We met at Pioneer RV Resort in Port Aransas, TX very haphazardly.  I noticed a Sparty "S" on the back of his jeep while walking our girls one day, mentioned something about their big game happening that day, and struck up a conversation about our Big Ten roots.  Turns out he's not a Spartan fan, he's an alumni.  Like I've told many people who call me an Ohio State "fan", there's a big difference.

Anyhoo, it just turned out to be one of the greatest wins in MSU history as Sparty picked up a mishandled punt and took it to the house for a game winning score.  I'm a Buckeye alum, but I'll root for anyone playing U of M.  Watched the video again.  Sean McDonough's call and the look on that Wolverine fan's face are both priceless.

Truth be told, I watched the whole game, gave up on Sparty, came back out and couldn't figure out why they were showing MSU players in the end zone celebrating.  I look down at Lovay's (they watch games outside like us), and they're all up celebrating.  A friendship was born.

It was a magical season for MSU as they beat OSU on the last play of the season (one of Jim's happier moments as we watched it together at Sting-Ray's) before getting flogged by Alabama in the playoffs.

They were like us, arrived at Pioneer for October, got November free then went to their winter destination (South Padre KOA).  We saw each other again the following April on their way back to the UP in Michigan, and that was the last time we saw them.  Until two days ago.

We were fortunate that the spot right across the road was available.

Jim and Susan would love to full time, but they're trying to sell their house in Manistique, MI which hasn't happened yet. We hope someone steps up and buys it from them.  Here's the link, contact their realtor soon! They were gracious enough to include us in their summer plans as they celebrated Canada Day, went to Niagara Falls, then looped around to our park.  

The girls just love Susan.  We tried (and failed miserably) to bring their new puppy Lacey, into the fence, but that went awful. 

The weather kind of cooperated for the couple of days they were here.  Was muggier than hell, but the rain stayed away enough for us to enjoy ourselves, especially at our favorite watering hole along the Vermilion River, Quaker Steak & Lube.

After coffee in the morning (Sloopy did what Sloopy does to Susan), we mapped out our day.

We went into Cleveland where we first went to First Energy Stadium home of the Browns, and where are daughter works.  She was nice enough to show us around.  Forgot to take pictures.  My bad.  Then, we went off the East Flats.  Only disappointing thing of the visit was the Rooftop Bar at Margaritaville Cleveland was closed because "it could rain".  

We moved down the river to Coastal Taco and enjoyed some appetizers, cold beverages and the view of the river which Jim reminded us maybe a dozen times that had once caught on fire.  Again, couldn't sit outside, but we were in the first level under cover.

 We decided to have a late lunch at one of our favorite places to eat, the Flat Iron Cafe.  It did not disappoint.  

Jim and Susan went old school and had a Stroh's.

They left this morning (after we had coffee together and Lacey explored the neighboring field).  Connie and I wish them safe travels, a buyer for their house, and that we see each other again soon.

It's Been Sooooo Long.....

Slow internet is a terrible thing.  Awful.

New Smyrna Beach RV Park was BY FAR the slowest our Verizon Mi-Fi has been.  Because of that, there was just no motivation to keep waiting, and waiting, and waiting to upload pictures, blog, actually much internetting (is that a word yet?) of any kind.

Not that there wasn't a lot to blog about, my goodness.

 First, we had a wonderful short cruise on the U.S. inaugural of the Carnival Breeze.  That review will be here when we are finished with it.  Had dinner one night with our friend and VP at Carnival Mike Julius, along with senior cruise director John Heald who writes a terrific blog for Carnival Cruise Lines.  Thanksgiving Night on a cruise ship was wonderful -- no preparation time, and no dishes/cleanup afterward!  Eating on a cruise is a main factor.

 Also on this sailing was our friend Ron Pass in the piano bar.  He's a terrific entertainer, and by far, the best in Carnival's fleet.

We spent Saturday with the Ohio State Broward County Alumni Club to watch the Ohio State/Michigan game.  We were there a few years ago (during another inaugural for another cruise line) and met some great folks from Jefferson, OH.  We've kept in touch and sat with them this year.  Great time, great win!

Sunday through Wednesday we spent at Disney's Port Orleans French Quarter at the Walt Disney World Resort.  Disney is magical this time of year.  Not all the decorations were up, but enough to give a great holiday kickoff.  Loved the theming of the French Quarter Resort, did some good recon on some things that had been updated or added since the last time we were at Disney.

The eating from the cruise continued at Disney with the Disney Dining Plan.  Some great dining experiences and a great value.

Returning back to New Smyrna Beach, we got the girls from their vacay (they were exhausted!) and pretty much hung out till getaway day.  We did get an opportunity to go to Toni & Joe's, our favorite place we've been to have a beer and watch the ocean.

We returned to Tallahassee on December 8th to the Elks Lodge for a quick overnight.  When we got up the next morning, we noticed a drip coming from the basement of our Fifth Wheel.  Not good since it hadn't rained.  Crawled inside, took off a panel and found out that the check valve from our hot water heater was leaking.  That took the morning, we got a piece to work without a check valve and got on our way since the system wouldn't be pressurized while we rolled.  I hate plumbing.  Hate it.

Got to Foley, Alabama and the Gulf Coast Elks Lodge which has a campground.  Yesterday was a run to Lulu's at Homeport Marina in Gulf Shores.  Lulu's is owned by Jimmy Buffet's sister, Lucy.  Enjoyed their Honey Ale "Crazy Sista" as we sat along the Intercoastal Waterway, then headed to the beach for a drive.

Today will be tear down day, then getaway day will be Wednesday.  We'll be off for an overnight in Louisiana before a few nights in Houston at the Houston Elks Lodge.

Mini Vacation with Family

We didn't waste much time after getting set up in Sycamore, IL.  After arriving on July 5, we took the dogs to the Bed and Biscuit for their vacation the next day.  Then, it was time for us to start packing for our quick weekend trip to our hometown - Wilmington, OH.

It was Connie's Mom's 80th birthday and we had planned a surprise party for her complete with a surprise visit from us and our daughter and son-in-law.  Since the dogs could not make the trip, Dad decided to have them put on the cake.

She was surprised and it was great to visit with family and friends.  Quick trip, but was fun.

The next day, we headed to the airport for our flight back to Chicago.  Bonus was that our daughter took some time off to join us for a couple of days.  She doesn't do the flying thing very well.  And, since we were only flying from Columbus to Chicago, we were on a very small plane.  She wasn't too crazy about that.  As you can see, we got a chuckle out of it.

Her time with us was also going to be short.  Once we landed (after an hour plus delay), we made our way right to Millennium Park.  There is so much to do in Chicago.  This area is a must see!  We only hit a tip of the park.  We had to get pictures of the Bean.

Of course, all that traveling made us hungry.  We went in search of a Chicago style pizza.  Just around the corner from the park, we found Giordano's Chicago Famous Stuffed Pizza.  The pizzas look just like the photos on the website.  They are delicious and very filling.

It was getting late, so we boarded the CTA Blue Line back to our truck to head home.

Tuesday was spent just relaxing and watching the All-Star Game.

Bethany had a late flight on Wednesday, so we headed back to town for some more sightseeing.  The Navy Pier was on our agenda this time.  The weather was perfect.  We wandered around a bit before having an early dinner at  Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville Bar & Grill.

 Then, it was off to the airport to send her back to Ohio.  Again, time was short, but was so enjoyable.

"My kind of town, ...Chicago is..."

Looking forward to the next couple of months here.

A trip to downtown Nashville

We found a boat ramp about a mile from where we're staying.  Looking forward to adding the Cumberland River to the bodies of water the raft has travelled.

Made our initial trip into downtown Nashville.  Beautiful, clean downtown.  Loved "the District" on Broadway.  Tons of live music, eateries, pubs.

We checked off the Margaritaville in Nashville with a great lunch.  Have hit the ones in Key West, Orlando, Las Vegas, Waikiki, New Orleans, Cancun, Ocho Rios, Gran Turk, and Grand Cayman.  Still a few left to do, as he keeps opening new ones.

After lunch, we rounded the corner and took a photo of the Ryman Auditorium (former home of the Grand Ole Opry).  Tours are available and there is still live entertainment on certain nights.

The area was full of activity for a Wednesday afternoon!

Honey.....the NASCAR folks are here!

We're proud alumni of THE Ohio State University and big Jimmy Buffett fans.  Tailgating is nothing new to us.

This is, however, our first time being in a city where the NASCAR guys come to town.  And with them, of course, their fans.  We had some of the workers in early who detailed the cars, but now we're getting the true fans of the race coming in and decorating their rigs.

Flags are flying,

the DirecTV Blimp is flying overhead, 

there's a Jeff Gordon chair in a tree (his cardboard cut out used to be up there, but they burned it one time),

and the party is seeming to begin here at the Indianapolis KOA.