New Territory!

The weather did cool off in Tulsa prior to our leaving on Tuesday morning, bring much needed relief to the area and us. However, our stay there was about organizing and meeting up with the Rutherford's. While there, we did take advantage of a wonderful farmer's market. We cooked fresh eggplant, greenbeans, zuchini, tomatoes, it was all wonderful.

The drive northeast to Missouri was blessedly uneventful in terms of road conditions, weather (even a smattering of rain!) and ease of driving. We stopped in Dixon at a very out-of-the-way spot on the Glasconade River. We enjoyed the peace and quiet of this country setting, even took a dip in the river, heavenly. The river is spring fed, a bubbling 42 gallons a minute. Hunter was our local guide, a friendly 5th grader who was also escaping the heat in the river.

Our next travel day took us through St. Louis (why didn't we plan a stop here?) to Illionois. Driving northeast on I55 the major landscape feature is CORN! It is indeed King here, rising at least 6ft, going on for miles. We are camped just south of Springfield at the Double J, a wonderful park. We spent yesterday in downtown hoping to see a bit of the Lincoln sites. We were all amazed at the show that Springfield puts on!

A Civil War "Vet" led the tour of the Old State Capital where we met President and Mrs. Grant. He spoke about growing up in Ohio, the son of a successful tanner. Grant lived in Illinois at the start of the Civil War and worked at the State House. We walked to Lincoln's home and neighborhood. The National Park Service manages this area. There is an interesting display about the process of excavation in one home. The Lincoln home is wonderful, especially since Abe himself arrived during our tour. He talked to folks and led a parade to the depot for his trip to Washington as the president. We heard his farewell speech and then a "press conference" a week after Bull Run.

There is so much going in to make history alive you could spend several days in this small downtown and still not see it all. We head back today for a walking tour of the Lincoln neighborhood and a visit to the museum. I expect them to be wonderful, and then I think we will be ready to say so long to the Land of Lincoln.

PICTURE: Abe leaving his home for Washington. The hat sits on the desk occupied by Lincoln while in state legislature, now occupied by ME while listening to Pres. Grant.

Points North!

We picnicked near the bank of the Red River on our way to Tulsa. Most of the trip was highway, but some sections of the east Texas drive had us anxious to get to the Indian Turnpike of Oklahoma. We did not know when we had it good! It was nice to have a thruway, no lights and minimal traffic, but the road conditions had Russell wanting to collect money at the tollbooth for enduring the rough ride. Oklahoma calls itself "The Turnpike State." They actually take pride in taking your money at every off ramp. To end with a more positive comment, we did enjoy the forested rolling hills.

AND what do you call Tulsa if Dallas was a steambath?

It may be less humid but that is small consolation for increased heat. Even in Dallas our A/C cycled off for long periods of time in the pre-sun mornings. Waking up in Tulsa today we could hear the air conditioner cut off only very briefly before kicking into action again.

However, the day must be met and we had things to do. Post office, new car tires, and haircuts made for a full morning. We took a nice stroll through a really good farmer's market and picked up more vegetables than we can possibly eat. Good thing the Rutherford's are arriving tomorrow to help with that.

We'll be here until Tuesday morning when we head north and east:
Springfield, MO;
Springfield, IL;
Lafayette, IN;
Fair Oaks, IN;
and finally Indiana Dunes, IN.

The last 2 locations are within an hour of the true destination: CHICAGO!

According to the weather map, we are literally hitting all the HOT SPOTS. Looks like we could be almost anywhere else in the USA and be cooler. Can we plan a trip or what!

More Texas Fun

WE have gotten to see so many friends and family on this trip, WHAT A TREAT!

We got with the Jones Boys in Coldspring. Now this is a dozen 9th grade boys from Lake Air Jr. High who now happen to be in their 60's with wives, children and grands. But on this weekend in July, they were only about 14. Thanks to JR and Glenda for hosting the party at their lakeside home. Thanks to David, Jack, Billy Ray, Jimmy, Russell, JR, and of course, George Jones for getting together now(7 of 12 is pretty good!) and all those years ago. The wives also had a great time. We met Becky and Jackie for the first time and enjoyed seeing Rosanne and Glenda again. We were sorry that Susan and Susie could not make the trip.

Waco. We always look forward to time with Doug and Linda. They truly take good care of us when we are there and often, when we are on the road. On this trip they surprised us with a trip to Lorena to see Elvis and a troop of entertainers that Vegas can only envy. The buffet of down-home food combined with great music that had all of us singing, and a few folks dancing. The moves of a certain 81 year old gentleman had our table of 60's wishing we had half the energy or flexibility! And Elvis -Johnny Memphis - was terrific!

While in Waco we made sure our storage stuff was ready for the trip to Vegas. Doug is meeting the movers for us in early August to send the numerous boxes and random furniture to its new home. We took care of family related things and the regular chores that had been put off. We enjoyed an evening at Billy Ray and Becky's beautiful home which is very near the airport park where we were camped. In cooler weather we could have hopped the fence and walked, but we certainly did not have cooler weather.

But we only thought Waco was hot, Dallas was a steambath! We camped at Lake Lewisville again, very convenient for visiting the doctors, which we did on a daily basis. The only thing I came away with was a pronouncement that I am completely out of shape and need to get with the program. So much for Sudoku!

We saw more than doctors, however. We spent great time with family - Kyle, Karyn, Bill, and Suzanne - and friends, Mike and Nancy. We also shopped for possible furniture. More planning for the Vegas move.

Our Texas trip came to an end in Longview at the home of Jack and Susan. We were able to park in front of their house which is at the end of the street with no other nearby houses. Susan had a lovely dinner for us and we really enjoyed catching up with these long-time friends.

The Width of Texas

We entered Texas in El Paso with a wonderful visit with nephew Michael and his family, Stephanie and 4-year-old Parker. They have a beautiful new home that they bought this summer. Parker gave us the full tour! It was also an honor to see the awards that Michael has earned during his enlistment with the army. He leaves for a third tour later this month. Like El Paso wasn't hot enough in August, he is headed to the middle east!

Our next stop rattling down I-10 was Boerne. We have driven through many times, but finally stopped for a few days. We enjoyed cousins George and Sharon and friends Nick and Daffnes. We really enjoyed the beautiful town, river walk, and relaxing.

We got off the interstate at Flatonia and headed cross country through beautiful farm lands of central Texas. The fields looked lush compared to the burnt browns we had been seeing, but closer observation revealed the same drought conditions as the west. Arriving at Rainbow's End in Livingston, we were told "No outdoor cooking at all!"

This is our first time at the Escapees Park that serves at our permanent address. I had hoped to see the mail room, but didn't get past the lobby...bummer. Nice to be able to check our mail daily for awhile. We have gotten to put faces on the voices that answer our calls.

The park has the typical camp sites and picnic tables and so much more to make the large area a full community. The camp sites are spread out in three different areas, one is nestled in the pines. The difference here is that privately owned homes are situated throughout the park. Many homes are RVs or have space for one next to the house. Many of the homes have name signs and some have hung a shingle to advertise services they provide. There is also the Care Center. People who want to live in there RVs but can no longer manage the independence can settle here and have the care they need. They have a full care facility with state licensing. There are two activity centers and a nice pool. Of course, golf cart is the preferred mode of transport. Everyone waves and it is a very friendly place to be.

We also took advantage of the location to see some old friends. We enjoyed Diane and her family that had gathered for the 4th, and Mary and Russell, fellow RVers and Escapees members. Diane's parents and mine were friends long before either of us was around, so we grew up together. Mary and I met first day of 7th grade. These are 2 ladies I don't often get to see, so this was a real treat!

Our primary job this week was to fine tune a few things on the RV. Russell had an oil filter project to satisfy his suppressed desire to be a mechanic, even when everything is working fine. We also shook off some sand and dust from our months in the desert. I'd hate to say we were dirty, but some might. With the heat, this meant early mornings to take advantage of the coolest part of the day.

And now, a news break! We have found out that the Las Vegas condo sell has been approved. Closing is end of the month! Our trip has been curtailed somewhat. We plan to get to Vegas in mid August to get our stuff moved in and a few details worked out. We hope to be able to pick up the journey to the northeast in late September. We will have to make decisions about that as we get settled. We are looking forward to getting organized, or at least starting the process.