Olustee Battle

I’m working in northern Florida for a couple of weeks. I had Friday through Monday off this weekend for President’s Day. Jan and Paul stayed in our campground for the long weekend on their way to middle Florida. They are the couple we met at the axle repair place in Whitehorse, Yukon, on the way to Alaska.

Jan and Paul has been having trouble with a mouse or meece in their RV. They have a dog and 2 pussy cats, but apparently the hunting instinct has been bred out of them. Paul said he saw the mouse running across the mantle by the TV in the family room. The 2 pussies saw the mouse and ran into the other room. The dog never noticed any of this. Paul set several traps, but the mouse kept eating the bait and not setting off the trap. Finally it ate so much food over several days that the extra weight caused it to set off the trap. One more problem solved.

We celebrated Roxy’s 9th birthday with them. In the video you can see the 3 of them singing to her. I had to keep the camera steady so I was unable to participate. We also went to the Olustee Civil War battle reenactment. According to the lady that owns the campground, this battle is a big deal since it is the only one that the South won in Florida during the Civil War. Friday the 4 of us went downtown where they closed off the streets so vendors could set up their booths. Paul and I shared a fried Twinkie. Saturday we went to the Battlefield at the Olustee State Park. While walking around we saw a medical tent where they showed how to amputate an arm, or pluck out an eyeball. The little kids loved the demonstration. We also saw an authentic plastic cooler with old fashioned Bud Light in it. Some people take this stuff very seriously. We then went to the battlefield where they reenacted the battle.

Fort De Soto County Park

Although the campground in Bowling Green, FL is a nice place, there isn't much for Roxy to do here. We take her for walks around the campground, but there's no place to swim or run. She gets so bored that we thought about changing her name to cigarette because we have to take her for a drag rather than a walk. I decided to drive 1 1/2 hours yesterday to go to Fort De Soto County Park that has a dog beach by Tampa Bay. She couldn't believe it when I put on her "fun" collar that we use for swimming or hunting. After swimming in the bay she puked up some salt water. She's never been happier. Today she's sleeping it off.

Sebring, FL

We are still in Bowling Green, FL. Last night Nan and I played poker at a nearby Thousand Trails campground. We both got bumped out of the first tournament, but the second one Nan got first place for $35, I got second place for $20, and I got high hand for $13. Our investment for the 2 tournaments was $24, so you can do the math.

Today Nan wanted to go shopping in Sebring, FL. While there we stopped at the Sebring International Raceway. There were a lot of non race cars going around the track. I asked some guy what was going on. He said during the workers' lunch break you can pay $30 and take your car around the track about 3 times. You follow a pace car so you can't go that fast. The track is 3.7 miles long. If I ever get something faster than a Smart Car that may be something to do someday.

Boston

I have a 2-week job in the Boston area, so I flew north to the frigid tundra while Nan waits for me in Florida. Today is Saturday so I took a trolley tour around Boston. The tour was $42 which was worth it, but the nearby parking garage was $35. That seemed a little steep. The tour guide had an interesting story about Paul Revere and his midnight ride in 1775. Apparently Paul picked up 2 other men on the way. One guy fell off his horse and broke his leg. Paul got captured by the British. The other man, Samuel Prescott, finished the ride and warned the people that the British were coming. Then in 1861 Henry Wadsworth Longfellow decided to write a poem about the midnight ride. Unfortunately for Samuel, not much rhymes with Prescott. But there are a lot of words that rhyme with Revere. As a result, Paul Revere got all the credit. In Boston they also have a statue of Christopher Columbus who was a slave trader that decided to call Native Americans indians only because he was lost. But that's a whole other story.

Tampa RV Show

We stayed with my mom until 1/1/2012, then headed to Clermont, FL to one of our favorite Thousand Trails campgrounds. We can stay for free but had to pay $30 for our 10-night stay to get upgraded to 50 amp electric service. That was no problem since they have 2 Texas Hold-em tournemants each night that only cost $6.00. The first night I got first place each game and won enough to pay for our electric. Nan and I played each night and won much more than we lost.

We left Clermont on 1/11 and went to Tampa for the big RV show. We stayed in a space at the fairgrounds that had electric, but no water or sewer. We came with 90 gallons of fresh water in our tank. I wasn't sure how hard it would be to live for 5 days with only 90 gallons for showers, toilet, kitchen, etc. But we leave tomorrow and have plenty of water left. Since Nan did such a good job conserving water I'm going to let her take a shower tomorrow morning.

Nan and I have talked about getting a motorhome in a few years after getting a house. It would be easier for me to go on jobs by myself in a motorhome rather than our current rig. We saw some nice ones that should be in our price range once they are a few years old and being sold as used. We also looked at the Prevost motorhomes that usually go for $1.7 million to $2.4 million. If I ever become a lobbyist I may be able to afford one of these, but for now I'll stick with something less expensive.

Brooksville for Christmas

Nan and I left Cleveland to spend Christmas with my mother in Brooksville, FL. We spent a couple of days in Mt Airy, NC, then went to Silver Springs, FL for 2 days. We wanted to try kayaking since we had never done this and they rent them at the campground. It was around noon and they told us we could have the kayak until 5:00. They said you go up stream until you see a fork in the river. Then go right at the fork, and in about 2 hours you will reach Silver Springs. We went upstream until we had enough, and floated downsteam back to the campground, and got back by 1:30. I didn't take my camera since there was a good chance we would flip the kayak. Although it was fun, I'm considering inventing a kayak that has a transom on the back so people can use an outboard motor to get to where they want to go in a reasonable amount of time.

We are in Brooksville now visiting my mother. The campground is a little tight for a rig our size, but we were able to squeeze in. There were leaves all over our site when we arrived. Yesterday a guy came to the site next to us with a leaf blower. Nan went out to talk to him thinking he worked for the campground. Actually he was just a friend of the guy that had the site next to us. He was going to do him a favor by blowing the leaves off his lot. Nan talked to him for a while, and next thing you know he's blowing the leaves off our lot, and he left the leaves on his friend's lot. Even at 54 Nan's still got it.

Back in Ohio

Nan and I are back in the Cleveland area until Dec 15. We are seeing doctors/dentists and friends. Today Nan and I went to see the eye doctor in Berea where I grew up. The first house I bought was in Berea. I paid $31,000 in 1985 and sold it for $52,000 in 1989 after a lot of work. It is now for sale for $28,900. There's something going on with the house since it is to be sold "as is" and the buyer is responsible for outstanding tax liens. I attached pictures and videos of Nan and my first love shack.

I have a truck mechanic I use close to Berea. I dropped my truck off for service when I got to the area, and picked it up today after looking at the house. I had the usual oil change/lube service, plus a new transmission cooler, AC recharge, and exhaust section, plus a couple of little things. All that for only $2,000. This guy only charges $75/hour compared to $130 at a truck dealer.

I have a 2 week job starting the Monday after Thanksgiving. Then we head to Florida for Christmas.