Apr 12, 2019 - Changed plans, then changed them again

So originally we were to move on Wednesday then the "Bomb Cyclone" hit the central plains so we changed plans to stay till Friday to let it pass thru and then head North to Kansas. On Thursday we checked the weather in Oklahoma and Kansas and they were predicting heavy rain for Saturday also that I-80 in Nebraska was closed due to the blizzard. We then extended our stay to Sunday thinking that the rain will pass and that I-80 would be cleared and open. Well this morning it was 41 degrees outside and I hadn't turned on the propane yet so the...

Apr 11, 2019 - Spinning our wheels at the Casino

One of the many great things about traveling like this... you learn how to spell city names. Well Wichita, (took Mike took a few tries to get this spelling right) you were hot when we pulled in yesterday 86F (30C) and in twelve hours it was just a few degrees above freezing. The wind roared all night and the TV news crawling banner kept on flashing blizzard warnings for points west and north of us. It should have been easy to sleep (we were tired), but our proximity to a very active train track and the engineer's deep need to honk their...

Apr 10, 2019 - Fleeing the winds, heading east

This morning looking at the weather and things haven't changed much, so we're packing up and heading on to Wichita, KS. That should get us out of the freezing temps and rain/snow but the wind will follow us for another few days. Since we had only a short drive to make today, we took in the city zoo that was next to the RV park before pulling out. So following our old school maps, Mike took a detour to get gas. Minutes after getting back on the road - well lets say 10 minutes after filling up with gas, we discovered we were going the wrong...

Apr 9, 2019 - Yes Dorothy, we are in Kansas

We developed problems with our GPS, over the past few days so we decided we were going to call up tech support when we got up. Well the call turned into a 5 1/2 hour waiting game that didn't, in the end, fix the GPS. By this point it was too late to move on so we decided to stay the second day at the horse hotel and Mike worked to fix the GPS on his own. The Good news was that by 3pm Mike had the GPS working again and he began to reload all our data back into it... and by 3:30 Mike loading the last data file, the one for all the Walmart's...

Apr 4, 2019 - Elk City to Topeka on Two Hours of Sleep

After nine days at Rolling Retreats and with everything repaired we were anxious to get on the road again. I guess it was time for Murphy’s Law to play with us because severe weather moved into the area with thunder, lightning, pouring rain, strong, gusty wind and red all over the TV screen when the weather people were explaining things. The result was that on the night before a seven or eight hour haul with the RV we had a total of two hours of sleep. I felt exhausted and worn out as we shared our morning coffee but we were soon finished...

Dec 11, 2018 - We Gotta Get Outta This State

Tuesday, December 11 After scraping the frost off the windshield and a quick stop at a Madison west side Starbucks we were rolling down Highway 151 toward Dubuque by about 7:30 Tuesday morning. The weather report promised partly cloudy and warming temps as we headed toward Kansas City. One of the many nice things Jill does on these trips is keep a daily journal of where and when we started, what we saw and did, and when we arrive, where we stay and anything special about the day or where we end up. Needless to say, I rely on it a lot for...

Oct 14, 2018 - What a day!

We got up this morning and it was starting to snow and 32 degrees. After yesterday, with it being in the 50's we figured the roads would stay clear even though it was snowing. We pulled in the slides last night so that if it did have any accumulation of snow in the morning it would not build up on the slides and cause a problem closing the slides. The wind was blowing pretty good out of the North and what was falling was a mixture of snow and sleet. As we were hooking up the trailer and disconnecting the power cord our neighbor came up and...

Oct 13, 2018 - October 13, 2018 – Homewood, Kansas and Longwood, Missouri

October 13, 2018 – Homewood, Kansas and Longwood, Missouri I got a fairly early start this morning. I stopped at the cemetery at Houstonia to put fresh flowers on Mom and Dad’s graves before I went on to the church. I got there just as they began serving lunch. After lunch I visited with folks and scouted out the goods to be auctioned and decided what I wanted to bid on. I get 3 quarts of home canned green beans and 5 quarts of vegetable beef soup. I know both of the ladies who did the canning so I know I got good stuff. I also bought 2...

Oct 12, 2018 - October 12, 2018 – Homewood and Emporia, Kansas

October 12, 2018 – Homewood and Emporia, Kansas I got the coach to Carl early this morning. They finished up a little work on the coach and got my bill organized. I was at the doctor’s office this morning to get my blood test done before my doctor’s appointment this afternoon. After that, I got my hair cut. Then, I went back to Carl’s where they finished up the work on the car for the rock guard. I had lunch at Bobbie D’s which is a great barbecue place in Emporia. After the doctor’s appointment during which Dr. Rachel and I spent a lot of...

Oct 11, 2018 - October 11, 2018 – Homewood and Emporia, Kansas

October 11, 2018 – Homewood and Emporia, Kansas I got to Williams this morning just after 8 a.m. which is when they open. Brad wasn’t there, but the guy who was substituting for him seemed to have things in hand. However, the parts which he had ordered for the car weren’t there. Somehow, they had been sent back. So, they had to go to Kansas City to get them. That meant that they couldn’t get started on the car until 1 or so. I spent the morning reading. I had lunch at Pizza Ranch and then headed back to the garage. They began work on the...

Oct 10, 2018 - Kansas City, MO to Hays, KS

Said farewell to Gerry after still more interesting conversation. The drive was boring and very windy. Nothing interesting to report or memorialize with a picture that we have not done before. Lots of wind vanes and fields! The David McCullough John Adams book is keeping us entertained and we are learning lots about the writing of the Declaration of Independence, his relationship with Jefferson/Franklin and Abigail’s thoughts. Well worth a read. Bob has an app Allstays that tells where there are all sorts of conveniences including waste...

Oct 10, 2018 - October 10, 2018 – Garden City to Emporia, Kansas

October 10, 2018 – Garden City to Emporia, Kansas Before I left Garden City, I stopped by to see the World’s Largest Outdoor Municipal Concrete Swimming Pool. This is located in a city park. Also located there is a Lacebark or Chinese Elm. This not to be confused with the Siberian Elm which is a relatively short-lived weak-wooded tree. The Lacebark Elm is a native of Eastern Asia. It has small, barely visible blooms in the fall which are wind pollinated. They can grow to 60’ tall and have 50’ to 60’ wide with a slender trunk and crown. The...