Hello Houston

Nice spring weather you're having for us!
We just skirted by below the line of bad weather that swept across the southeast - horrible devastation!  The only thing we experience were some really terrific wind gusts on Wednesday; reduced my speed to about 50 (we are one BIG sail out on the open freeway).

Doesn't seem like it but we've been gone almost 5 months ... wow; time really does fly. This time last year I was thinking about retiring .... and now "I are one".   We are all really blessed !!!!

We are planning on being here (in Pearland) for a week or two, and then possibly in Galveston for a week. It all depends on Charlie's doctors appt. for a shoulder that may need surgery and physical therapy.

Later,
Marilyn

sand plows in biloxi

Spent the night in Baton Rouge .... will be in Houston later today.
We saw something along the coast in Gulf Port, Pass Christian, Biloxi areas that is totally opposite to my former life experiences:   they were SAND plowing. Actually they were plowing sand off the roadways into furrows and scooping it up into dumptrucks -- I suppose taking it back to the beaches.
Where I come from they use dumptrucks to scatter sand on the roadways in icy weather; or, use plows to get snow off the roadways !!!
This was a very wierd concept for me to accept.
Furthermore, a campground security guard told us they do it all the time --- every day !   Wow, what an investment in city/government manpower.   I suppose there's no other way to "handle" mother nature; and of course, they are protecting their tourist appeal/investment.

Later,
Marilyn

palms to pines

Short note:
We are in Gulf Shores, Alabama .... on the way to Houston ..... more later.
Marilyn

handywoman project #2

We are so proud of ourselves .... we are starting to get pretty good at "fixing" things.
A loaded desk drawer came rocketing open when we turned a sharp corner .... busted the slide on one side; but Vera got out her handy tool box and FIXED it.  Tonite Vera and Charlie are installing a swivel wall bracket for one of the TVs.  At home you take for granted there will be wood studs at fairly predictable spacing inside the walls ..... guess what - motorhomes are different.... when you poke a hole you just keep your fingers crossed.

We are actually in the campground with EVERYTHING done and we will be ready to go as soon as we "rest up". See, when you take your <motor>home in for service, you have no place to stay for the day except in the car.  When you have three dogs, and very hot weather, it is downright tiring to haul the dogs around wherever you go (when you go in anywhere you leave the car running with the ac on or you find a good shade tree to park under - if there is any breeze).  Consequently, we have left the dogs in daycare severl days recently, but then we wear ourselves out running errands, sightseeing, etc in the heat.
Anyway, we are going to REST a couple of days before starting for Houston.
We are anxious to see our friends !!!!

Marilyn

Got it !!

We got the new tub and shower surround installed (the new sink we got installed several weeks ago) ..... and it's beautiful ..... worth the wait. 
It's off-white, with "faux" tile .... and it makes the bathroom look so much bigger and brighter than the taupe/tan that was the original color.
So .... to celebrate our new bathroom, we went shopping (of course, how else to celebrate except for eating), and purchased two recliners to replace the couch.  Uh, oh, there went our guest bed ... but we do have an air mattress.   We just thought we needed more comfortable seating.

We are back in the main campground and will hang around long enough to see if everything they worked on is correct.  Example: they did annual service on the generator and before I even got to the campground across the street I tried it and it cuts itself off after about 3 or 4 seconds ......... worked fine before (is this a typical repair story or what ?).

We saw a very large farmer's market yesterday and are going back to check it out tomorrow.

Later,
Marilyn

bay 77, still waiting for a new bathtub

"In the bay" means many things:  free overnite stay, covered parking ..... and having to be out of your home all day long from 8am to 6pm while they work on it.

Yesterday "in the bay" we took the dogs with us in the car and ran errands and searched for remaining strawberry fields (all gone).
Today "in the bay" we left the dogs at daycare and drove down to Sarasota (one hour south of Tampa) to have lunch and do a little sightseeing along the coast.   Much more relaxing today.

But the people who are staying in the bays become our own little temporary community, walking the dogs, talking about what we're "in for" ..... 
Right now, we hold one record for sure:  our bathtub has been ordered 4 times, and came in wrong 3 times.
Got the right color and drain location this time.... just waiting on installation.

We will be glad to get on the road to Houston ... but right now that may not be before the weekend.

Later,
Marilyn

concrete, hammer and an iron skillet

We accomplished our first real "handywoman" job today !!!  We bent the hinge on the bathroom door (by pulling the slide in while the door was in the open position) -- (not a good thing to do) ... so the bathroom door wouldn't close (not a good thing either).

Jump back about sixty years when I wanted to "help" my grandfather with his building or repair jobs (early indications of architectural interest) ...... he would give me nails to straighten. Being very frugal, he salvaged and reused nails, which were usually bent, but could be straightened with a hammer on the edge of a piece of concrete.

So..... straightening a hinge seemed similar ..... I just threw in the iron skillet for interest in the story (no, not really).  I wanted to straighten it all the way accross uniformly or else it might end up warped ... so the only heavy metal bar we could come close to was the iron skillet.  Worked perfectly, and the beautiful sound of the hammer on the iron skillet was just a bonus.

When we put the hinge back on and the door closed and latched perfectly; we did BIG high fives all around.

Still in Tampa waiting on the bathtub.
Later,
Marilyn

held hostage by a bathtub

Many of you remember how we had a hard time getting OUT of Houston (delayed by 2 months due to medical issues); and now we are finding it hard to get BACK to Houston (warranty parts for our motorhome being shipped wrong - not once, not twice, but three times). We are currently waiting in the campground adjacent to the service place for a bathtub to come in (in the right color), (with all the pieces), with the drain hole in the correct end.  The gelcoat on the fiberglass tub peeled off and now they don't make that color anymore so we <will> have a nice new off-white tub, shower surround and sink - which we like much better than the former 'taupe' color.
We had a LOT of doctor/ dentist/ haircut/ dog grooming/ retirement party/ etc. appointments made for the last week of last month.... in Houston...  and here we are in Tampa.  Oh well, we're retired; and we really aren't in a rush.
So, we've been playing tourist again with all this new time in the Tampa area.  Saw the manatees in the Homosassa Springs, picked out my own watercoloring sponges in Tarpon Springs at the boat docks.  Who knew that the nation's largest sponge industry is just off the Tampa Bay shores.  The sponges are the skeletal remains of sea creatures.  They are harvested by divers, washed clean, strung in long lines to dry, then sold at the Sponge Exchange for shipment nationwide.  We went to the new Salvatore Dali Museum on the bayfront - very interesting architecture.
Anyway, I've had lots of time to watercolor, walk the dogs, and just sit out in the beautiful weather.

Later, Marilyn

In bay #78

We're at the largest RV dealership/service business in the world .... BIG.   When you come in for service (hundreds of RV's per day) they provide a HUGE lounge area for customers while you wait .. pets may be brought in and wait with you all day. Starbucks station is free; breakfast and lunch are free.  There is doggie day care available (not free); but you see customers walking all over the building with their dogs, sitting watching TV or reading with their dogs, etc.
Then, if they are not finished with your service and need to keep your motorhome overnite, you are welcome to spend the night "in the bay". Now, this is quite a unique experience! First there is the sheer hugeness of being in a warehouse type structure, very tall space, about the size of a football field, with many other motorhomes in various stages of being worked on.  By 6pm each day they make sure it is usable for the night (electricity, etc) and just leave all their tools, ladders, etc. wherever they are and vacate the building for you to come spend the nite. 
Well, there are a couple of  interesting things about this little "hotel" setup: the warehouse lights stay on all nite; you have to walk around tools and tool boxes everywhere; and one time at 11 pm a shop radio started blaring (took several men to figure out where to unplug it).  Most campers have dogs so you have to walk and walk around these hundreds of motorhomes to find grass for the little poopers; you park your car right up close in front of your motorhome; and you have to be gone by 8am for the workers to return. It's interesting, and 'free' camping is a relative term.
There's 24 hr. gated security, so when you go and come to eat or whatever at nite you have to sign in and out .... we were 'bay 78'.

More later,
Marilyn for The Three Travelers