I have no doubt someday I will be famous, though I might not be rich because my fame might be posthumous. I sometimes imagine how I will be discovered. Will one of my descendants be looking through piles of old treasures in the attic, blow the dust off   “Connie’s Story” and begin to read it? Will she be mesmerized and unable to put it down? A couple of days later people may notice they haven’t seen her around. Her best friend might come to my descendant’s house and yell, “Yoo Hoo!! Are you home?”

My descendant will shake the cobwebs off her head. “Boy those spiders work fast,” she might think. Book in hand, she will stumble to the ladder and make her way down from the attic. She’ll walk into the kitchen and scream because she didn’t hear her friend yell, “Yoo Hoo!” It may take a minute for both to identify the problem and settle down.

My descendant will speak first.

“I was going through some boxes in the attic and I found this book. It was written by one of my ancestors way back in 2017. It’s actually pretty interesting.”

“Let me see it,” says the friend. “I used to be a book agent back in the day. That was before they started putting those little chips in our heads at birth.”

“Amazing isn’t it that our ancestors actually had to know how to read? The only reason I could read this book is because I got one of those chip adapters that allows you to look at a book and the story is automatically transferred to your brain. You have to be careful though. Once in a while it tries to convert several books at a time and it all comes out as one science fiction mess!”

“Well,” says the friend, “I’ve gotta go! When you get a chance, chip-shot this story to me. I’ll see what I can dig up on this ancestor of yours.”

Two days later…

The friend is outside my descendant’s house banging on the door. “Yoo Hoo, ding dong, Yoo hoo!!”

My descendant runs to the door. “This better be important, my friend. I was just about to go to the gym and lose ten pounds.”

“What?” The friend exclaims! “Are they running that ‘take one off lose one free in less than an hour’ special again?”

“Yes…and in my case, they’ll give my tinfoil crown a brilliant sheen and resize it if I lose fat from my head.”

“Your head will forget all about that when I tell you the news! Your ancestor was the original creator of the Beasterhop!”

“Really…my very own ancestor? They have been trying for years to solve that mystery. Everybody has been trying to figure out what brainiac made up that story about a rabbit who rides on a bicycle?

“Where did your ancestor grow up?”

“She was raised in Murdo, South Dakota. Her childhood home is buried beneath a tree at a motel right off old Highway 16.”

To which the friend says, “Is this one of those science fiction messes you were talking about?”

***************************************************

The poor dear…It’s only a pipe dream, whatever that is. The family promised never to speak of her again. It’s just like I always say, “A rolling book gathers no dust.”

 

Have you ever felt the fright, of something that is black and white?

Do other colors frighten you…like brown or green or navy blue?

A witch in black thinks she’s real scary. If dressed in white she’d be a fairy.

A goblin isn’t even real. And a vampire’s not a real big deal.

What other things are black and white that will or won’t scare you tonight?

A newspaper is black and white, but red all over every night.

Salt and pepper? Don’t make me laugh. That won’t scare a big giraffe.

Okay..guess I’m reaching now. It’s bedtime for me anyhow.

If you want a big surprise. One that’s bigger than your eyes.

Don’t blame me if in the night …you get scared by black and white.

Black and white scares everyone. Look at yourself you might be one.

If you’re black and white and so is he…. it’s all about the size, you’ll see.

 

 

 

Some of you may recall that Kip and I recently took a two month trip in our RV.  We had a wonderful time and feel sad that we can’t go on another long trip until next fall. We have limited ourselves to one epic journey a year. We will go on shorter trips in between, but it’s nothing like living on the road. A couple of my friends told me this morning that they enjoyed the travel blog and couldn’t I go on another long trip so they could read about it? The sad truth is…No! I decided to write about a trip to Mabank, TX, since that’s where we live in the off-season. Yes…it is possible to stayca in an RV.

An RV trip to Mabank

We woke up this morning ready to go. We like to pack-up and buy our food ahead of time, so all we have to do the next morning before hitting the road is put the animals in and hook up the car behind the motor home. When we go someplace we haven’t been before we really check out the parking lot situation. We have to be able to make it around, because we can’t back up the rv when we’re towing the Jeep. 

This proved to be a difficult task in Mabank. We wanted to go to a nice place for breakfast. We ended up parking at the Shell Station where we bought a box of those yummy chocolate covered cake donuts and a cup of coffee. (They have good creamer flavors there.)

After breakfast we programmed our GPS for the next stop. We found a place to spend some quality time and it had a big parking lot. We went to Hometown Cinema. Since we didn’t have a choice anyway, we didn’t bother to inquire about what movie was showing. We parked in their lot and spent the time between getting there and the start of the movie, walking the dogs.

At last, movie time rolled around, so we put the dogs inside the rv and started the noisy generator so we could keep the air conditioning on for them. We heard a voice telling us, “You can walk from here. You can walk from here.” After investigating, we finally figured out it was Miss GPS. We had forgotten to shut her up, I mean turn her off, when we reached our destination.

The movie was about a dog who dies and wakes up a different kind of dog, then dies and wakes up a different kind of dog again and again. I think the name of it was, A Dog’s Purpose. We were sure glad they don’t allow dogs in the movie theater, because our dogs are chicken enough and would be afraid to go to sleep even though they get the two recliners and the pullout bed.

It was lunch time by now so we went back into the movie theater to buy some popcorn. A lady came out of nowhere and confronted us about the noisy generator. Kip said, “Unless you want a real live, A Dog’s Purpose, outside in your parking lot, you won’t push that idea too much. The noise didn’t bother me at all when we were inside the theater, but I guess it could be because I’m used to it.

By the time we were ready to leave Hometown Cinema, it was close to three thirty, which is when we usually try to estimate where we will be when we’re ready to stop for the night. Since we weren’t actually leaving town, we decided to stop at Walmart and do what you call Boondoggle. It’s where you self-maintain. You use your generator for power, hope you have enough potable water, and that’s it! Unfortunately, it was only four-thirty when we got there and a real long night loomed before us.

We walked the dogs and put them in the rv while we went inside Walmart to buy something for dinner. We found some great looking steaks, a salad from the deli, rolls from the bakery and peach cobbler, but we bought sandwiches at the Subway inside the store. Kip didn’t feel like setting up the grill and everything in the Walmart parking lot….The way I looked at it, we were saving money by boondoggling, and we were on a stayca, therefore we should have sprung for the steaks.

Here are a few RVing tips I have learned in the past couple of years. I learn almost everything by watching YouTube videos, listening to other RVers, or the hard way.

Spray Bottle
Fill a spray bottle with water and a tiny bit of dish-washing soap. Spray your dishes before you put them in the sink. This simple step will act as a pre-soak and help you use less water come washing time. AMAZING. No more soaking the dishes in a sink full of soapy water like Mom did. I wish I had known this years and years ago.

Plastic Bin Washing
I saw this idea on a YouTube video and have been using it ever since. Traveling with no time to wash socks and undies? No problem. Fill a plastic bin with cold water, your laundry and a dash of soap. Click the lid on for a tight fit. Place the bin in your shower and head out on the road. At the end of the day, the movement of your rig will agitate the clothes. Just rinse and hang. The perfect emergency washer! SO EASY. While an excellent trick, it is not meant for boondogglers who don’t leave town… You don’t drive your rig around enough to agitate the laundry. Why not just go home for a couple of hours if you really must wash…though some might label that cheating.

The Electric Fly Swatter
Yup. They make these, and some RVers don’t want to live without them. Electric fly swatters or bug fryers are a great way to keep your RV free of flies and their ilk. (I’ll get into varmints another time.) The nice thing about these high voltage swatters is that if you like tennis, this will double as a racket and send a ball over the net at high speed. Once you get the hang of it, and can keep it in bounds, you will be the winner you’ve always wanted to be. Oh, I almost forgot, keep your battery charger handy. There’s nothing more embarrassing than having to stop a tennis match because your battery needs charged.

1. 

2. 

   Zap-It! Bug Zapper – Rechargeable Mosquito, Fly Killer and Bug Zapper Racket – 3000 Volt – U

3. 
   Tomorrow we’re going to practice selfies or knock on people’s doors and run.😁 And we heard the Exxon station has good pizza…

I’m so tired of school, I honestly don’t think I can make it until the end of the school year without a break. This is not good because it’s only October. Mom says I’m grumpy and need more sleep. Grace said she doesn’t think I’m eating right, and Pearl the human says I complain too much. Just between you and me, I think it takes a complainer to know a complainer. Anyway, I have decided to go one whole day without complaining. I only mean out loud. I can still complain in my mind where nobody can hear me.

There’s Grace with her dish towel and Pearl with her air cigarette.

I’m on my way to Pearl the human’s place to walk Pearl the dog before school, which will give me a little time to prepare for the day. Oh, by the way, if I hear anyone else complaining, I will suggest they listen to themselves because they might benefit from an exercise like I’m embarking on.

I was doing just fine until Pearl asked me what was wrong. I said, “nothing.” Then she said . “you haven’t said two words this morning and that’s not like you.”

I was about to argue with her, but remembered my self-test, so instead of saying, “I hate getting up early and I hate school,” I said, “I would be more than happy to say two words, Pearl…Good bye.”

As I was walking out the door, Pearl said, “You’ll walk through life much easier with a smile on your face.”

I didn’t think the school day would be as hard as it was. You’re not supposed to talk in school anyway, but it seems the less you talk, the more people get suspicious. My best friend, Kathy, thought I was mad at her. Instead of saying, “I’m not mad, get off my back,” I said, “I’m not mad at anybody in the whole world.”

I’ll admit, I didn’t say much all day because most of what I was going to say would have sounded like I was complaining.  I kept telling myself what my mom always tells me. “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything.” I pretty much had to keep my lip zipped all day.

Mack’s Cafe is on the corner

After school I stopped in at Mack’s cafe for a Bing and a Coke before I took Pearl the dog for her long walk. I had been thinking about that Bing all day so you can imagine how I felt when I accidentally dropped it into the trash. I threw the candy bar away and kept the wrapper. I must have been overwrought. I wouldn’t have done that if I hadn’t been so distracted by the new girl at the cash register who couldn’t make change. She felt so bad, she took a dollar out of her pocket and offered to buy me another Bing.

“It’s not your fault.” I said. “I should have been paying attention to what I was doing.”

The waitress looked at me and said, “Most kids would be mad that they dropped their candy bar in the trash and take it out on the first person they see. You must be a real nice person. It’s like my dad always says, “keep your face towards the sunshine, and you will never see the shadows.”

The windows above the store are to Pearl’s living room and bedroom.

I left the cafe and walked across the street to Sanderson’s store and climbed the stairs to Pearl’s place. Grace was there and when she saw me, she bustled across the hall to her rooms and came back with three homemade chocolate chip cookies, a box of cracker jacks and an apple. She was grinning from ear to ear when she gave them to me. It was only then that I remembered Grace thought I wasn’t eating very good. This was her attempt to try to help. I ate the cookies so she would feel better. I could have used some milk with them, but I didn’t want to complain.

Pearl the dog had been sitting there beside me, without complaining, but she was really ready to go for a walk and I was too, so away we went. I wanted to go see what the kids south highway sixteen were doing, but Pearl wanted to go to the elementary school. She just loves to watch the kids swinging, and when they go down the slide she stands down toward the end where she’s just tall enough to stick her head over the side so the kids can pet her as they slide by. Pearl and those kids could do that for hours, but I get kind of sick of it. (I just thought that, I didn’t say it.)

“Come on Pearl. We’ve gotta go,” I called her like that three times and she ignored me. “Pearl!” Come here! I want to go back.” I was really starting to get mad, so I stomped over by the slide. Then I heard her whining really loud, so I decided to find out what was wrong before I complained. It wasn’t Pearl whining, it was the little kid that lived down the hill from the school. Pearl was licking his hand.

“What’s wrong, Pearl?” I asked. Pearl whined, which is a high pitched complaining sound. I could tell she wanted me to follow her. She looked up at the top of the slide where the little wooden stand that you push yourself off from is. I did as Pearl wanted me to and climbed up to take a look. I didn’t see anything at first and started back down, but Pearl whined again like she wanted me to keep looking. Then I saw a big old rusty nail sticking out. It had a piece of the little kid’s shirt on it.

Well, we took the little kid home and he never stopped bawling the whole time. (I just thought that, I didn’t say it.) Anyway, we told Mrs. Anderson that he pierced his hand on a real rusty nail that was sticking out at the top of the stairs.

I hate to tell you this part. The next day Mrs. Anderson told everybody that I had saved her little boy from getting lockjaw because I told her he injured his hand on a rusty nail. He got a tetinus shot just in time. I didn’t tell her that Pearl was the one paying attention, not me.

Pearl the dog still acts like she loves me. At least she didn’t complain. She didn’t care who got the credit, she just wanted to take care of that little boy. I guess Pearl the human is right when she says Pearl the dog loves all living things…even crying little boys. Uh Oh…where did the kitty come from?

 

I’m just not sure what I should do. Even though I’m only eleven, my shoulders are feeling the burden of too many responsibilities. I don’t have back-up either, and that is a very unsettling feeling. Pearl the dog depends on me. Pearl the human is getting too old to make sure Pearl the dog gets down all those stairs behind the store and outside when she needs to go. She can’t go out front because there’s no grass…it’s Main Street.

I worry that one or both of them will take a tumble, so I try to be there every four hours…five at the most, and they’re both always happy to see me.

Sometimes, I don’t get to go with the other kids Pink Sandy takes to the swimming dam. I fear I’m getting behind in my swimming know-how. I’m not even sure if I could save someone if I had to. People get tangled up in that moss, you know, and a kid can get real panicky and not have presence of mind.

I would sure hate to get too far behind. If I don’t keep up with the other kids, I won’t know as much as they do and I might be a big kid in a little kid’s pond.

Who should I consult about this? Pearl the human will feel useless. Pearl the dog will worry that someone, like me, won’t come along in time. Pink Sandy won’t say anything because he doesn’t talk much. He just teaches kids how to swim.

I am not going to involve Mom. She’ll just tell me she has her own cross to bear.

I guess I’ll try Miss Grace. She’s got a pretty good head on her shoulders.

“Come on, Pearl…let’s go for a walk first.”

When Pearl the dog and I got back from our walk, I knocked on Miss Grace’s door. She hollered at me to come in, so I did. She was running back to her little kitchen to take some cookies out of the oven. I took a moment to appreciate my good timing?

I don’t think I have ever seen Miss Grace walk. She always runs…not fast, just short, running steps. Pearl the human calls it bustling. She says Miss Grace always bustles around.

While eating my cookies, I told Miss Grace about my dilemma. She wiped her hands on her apron, and then sat down with me.

“Well, Ellie,” she said. “There is a solution to your problem.”

“I knew I could count on your quick thinking,” I said. “What is it?”

“What is what?

“What’s the solution to my dilemma?”

“Oh, I have no idea,” Grace said. “Every problem has a solution dear, or it wouldn’t be a problem. Now, would you like a cold glass of milk with your cookies?”

I could see I wasn’t  getting anywhere with Miss Grace, so I said goodbye and went out the door to the hallway. Guess who I ran into…both Pearls. They were acting funny too…like they were hiding something.

I asked Pearl the human where they had been.

“Well,” Pearl said to Pearl the dog. “I guess she caught us, Pearl. I just let Pearl out.”

“You shouldn’t  ever, ever walk down those treacherous back stairs, Pearl,” I said. “Your eyesight isn’t very good since you caught diabetes.”

“You don’t catch diabetes, Essie, you have it. There’s a difference. And I didn’t  go down the treacherous stairs.” 

“How could you let Pearl the dog out without going down the stairs, Pearl?”

“It wasn’t rocket science,”  Pearl said. “I opened the door at the top of the stairs and told Pearl to go potty, and then come right back.”

Pearl the dog came over and licked my hand as if to say, “You poor dumb bunny.”

I cried all the way home. I felt useless.

Today’s Pearl of wisdom from Pearl the dog…

 

Dear Son,

I’m writing this on your birthday, although I have been thinking about your big day for a long time.

Not that long!

I can’t believe you’re forty-five. You could easily pass for thirty-five. You take after my side of the family. We always think we look younger than we are. You have my perfect little ears, dark hair, and sense of humor. You aren’t going to like this, but you have what your Grandma Retta used to call, “mad-hots.”

Everybody knows when you’re done, you’re done. Your Uncle Bill has a little bit of a temper too, but you both recover quickly. On the other hand, I never have mad-hots.

You’re smarter than I am by far, but we’re both quick thinkers. If patience is a virtue, then we’ll have to live without it.

I don’t plan or think very far ahead. Do you? They say you should stay in the moment, right? We don’t have Bill’s genes on that one. He has his week planned several weeks ahead of time. We’re more focused on what we have to do next, not next week, or even tomorrow. We work better if we know the deadline. When we’re almost out of time, we make it happen.

You have a wonderful family…so do I. You love spending time with them…I do too. You are a terrific hands-on Dad and you picked a wonderful wife.

I’m happy I’m your mom…I’m your biggest fan. I love you honey. I know you know that…

Happy Birthday! I’m celebrating with you!

Love,

Mom

 

We woke up Wednesday morning with nowhere else to roam

So we packed up one last time and brought old SeeYa home.

The weather? Well, it was beautiful as far as we could see.

But if we weren’t out by one, there would be a hefty fee.

We gently woke the dogs up. We had to break the news.

No more long walks, extra bones, and  no more friends to schmooze

Pattie took it the hardest. Her eyes said, “you’re unkind!

Can we please stay longer? Won’t you change your mind?”

Sammie looked dumbfounded and her wagging tail stopped dead

Without a bark she turned around and headed back to bed.

Cyndie Lou was speechless or bark-less I should say. Her traveling days were over…for this trip anyway.

Dollie usually comes  running, when she hears our call.

She stayed in the window and coughed up a big hairball.

Kip and I will miss eating , all those foods we love

The clothes that once were loose, now fit us like a glove.

To family and friends, who live both far and near.

Come see us, but call first…cause we might not be here.

Living our Dream

We had such a unbelievably great time on our epic journey!! We have our amazing friends and family to thank for their kindness, fun spirit, time, food, side trips, etc.. Kip is in charge of the thank you notes.

“Grace…do you think Essie has been acting a little surly lately?”

“Goodness, Pearl, why are you bent on using big words that I don’t understand?”

“Grace, ‘surly’ isn’t a big word. It only has five letters in it. I was referring to her mood as of late. She’s been snippy and she hasn’t played poker with us since I don’t know when.”

“Well now, Pearl…don’t you remember? Ellie caught you cheating, and it’s not the first time. Do you remember the time you got thrown out of the church’s bingo fund-raiser and…”

Pearl, (interrupting )…Yes, yes I remember. I had my heart set on that beautiful ashtray. I took two thingamajigs off of that kid’s card when he wasn’t looking. I should have switched our cards. I will always regret that I didn’t switch our cards.

“Pearl!” Grace was distraught. “The child’s name is Ellie, not Essie, and that boy was her friend. I don’t believe Ellie has many friends.”

“Well he won anyway didn’t he?” Pearl was not backing down.” I’ll never forget that surly look on his face.”

By now Grace was wringing her hands in a wadded up dish towel. I know this because I was standing in the doorway of Grace’s kitchen. Without even looking, I knew she had that nervous grin on her face.

Both of these ladies live in the rooms above Sanderson’s store. Each of them has a little apartment. I help them with chores almost every day after school.  They give me a meager sum of money in exchange for my services.

It sounds to me like they don’t think I do a very good job. Rats! I need cash to maintain the lifestyle I’ve grown accustomed to ever since I got this job. I had better toe the line. I don’t care if I can swing a Bing and a coke every day after school, I have to resist…it’s not worth it.

I knocked on the door before I walked in and  hung my coat on a hook.

“Why do you want an ashtray, Pearl?” I asked. “You just blow air out from a pretend cigarette.” Pearl did not answer my question, but Grace did.

“It’s for Bradley Crandall. He smokes air cigarettes too, but he always asks for an ashtray for his pretend ashes.” Grace was dead serious.

About that time Pearl the dog came running into the room. She had waited as long as she could to go for her walk. 

I don’t even have to put a leash on her anymore. She stays right beside me unless she sees kids or another dog. She runs off then. Besides, Pearl the human doesn’t want her dog to run around like a floozie and get fleas.

I would love to have my own dog but my mom is an unreasonable person. She said to pretend that Pearl the dog is mine. I try to, but it isn’t the same.

I want to be an entrepreneur. I heard Mr. Crandall say there’s a lot of money in it. Maybe he’ll be at Pearl’s when I get back. I really want to put a plan into action. I’m already  eleven.

 

.

Today was our last day of exploring new places and tomorrow will most likely be our last day on the road. I’m really torn between wanting to keep going and wanting to go home. I know Kip feels the same way. The dogs get more attention when we’re on the road so that would be their choice, but I have no idea what the cat would rather do.

Anyway, here are the best of the pictures I took this morning while at the Vicksburg National Military Park.

(Yes, we saw another little fawn today.)

The Vicksburg National Military Park commemorates the siege and the defense of Vicksburg in 1863 and includes more tham 1,300 monuments and markers, 16 miles of tour road, a restored Union gunboat, and a National Cemetary. It’s an historical must see.

After leaving the park, we took the dogs for a walk by the river, and then brought them back to the rv for their afternoon nap.We wanted to explore the downtown area and have a fun lunch someplace where we didn’t have to unwrap our food. Today was sunny and in the mid-seventies which made it nice to walk around and snoop inside some of the stores as well.

We found a cute little bakery and had a delicious lunch. Kip wanted to taste the brownies. I took a cheese danish to go.

The Mad Baker Bakery

The railroad station

The skies were beautiful today. 

Our epic journey has been an unforgettable adventure.

Thanks dear friends for adding to the fun.

SeeYa Soon!!!

This post is a snapshot in time. I’m getting behind and it’s already past my bedtime. I have included lots of pictures to take up space.

Sunday, we left wherever we were and drove to wherever we are.

Sunday

Here we have some pics of the drive along Trace Natchez Parkway. The road has an interesting history. It was traveled by highwaymen and Presidents. It’s a beautiful and peaceful drive, so we took our time making our way from Meridian to Vicksburg. 

Around noon we pulled into a roadside park and made some sandwiches for a picnic lunch.

The leaves haven’t turned as much here as they have in some of the colder climates.

**********

Vicksburg

The Vicksburg Battlefield Tour

“See what a lot of land these fellows hold, of which Vicksburg is the key. Let us get Vicksburg and all the country is ours. The war can never be brought to a close until that key is in our pocket.”

President Abraham Lincoln

It took three months of continuous fighting before Vicksburg fell to the Union Army in the Civil War. 

Most of the battles during the siege of Vicksburg were fought on the grounds inside the Vicksburg National Military Park. A few were fought on land given to the city, but the battles fought there are marked as well. 

Below: The Shirley house, which was sometimes referred to as the Southern White House and a picture of the view looking across the battlefield…beautiful country.

We stood on the same ground as the soldiers fought on as we followed the story on a CD we purchased at the visitor center. It directed us to pull up to one of the locations on the map and listen to the description before getting out of the car to view the place where it had happened.

There are sixteen tour destinations but you can go at your own pace. You can also hire a guide or download the tour on your cell phone.

The Illinois memorial was one of the most impressive. Below is the rotunda of the memorial.

The cemetary

The cemetary within the park

We stopped to take a picture of this little fawn that was  standing on the roadside inside the park between the 3rd and 4th stations. A little later, we left to grab some lunch and when we got back, the little one was laying on a narrow spot beside the road.

We knew he must be hurt, as he had been in the same location for almost an hour. We watched as he got up and crossed the road. Nothing appeared to be broken, but his hip looked like it was badly bruised. It could be he had fallen down the steep hill to the inside of the winding road.

We called the visitor center and they sent a park ranger out right away. She said she was going to leave the fawn alone now that he was off the road . There were no animals in the park that would harm him and his mother would most likely find him soon.

Below: The fawn runs off. At least he’s no longer close to the road.

Below: Kip talks to the ranger and another, older fawn we saw a few minutes later.

We’re going back to finish the battleground tour and see the historic downtown area today. Then tomorrow we head for the homestead. Below are a few shots of our rv park (location.) We’re right across from the Mississippi River.