Sights of Savannah

Hey Folks,

Our two weeks in Savannah are coming to an end today.  The survey is finished here and vacation begins.  Margo and I will be Florida bound to visit family and friends then Tennessee bound for more family visits and Christmas.  Our time here was brief but we did get a chance to visit the historic downtown area a few times and see the sights.  There's so much history and quirkiness associated with this city it's impossible to pass it on here in this little blog.  Suffice it to say that when you combine buildings from the 1730s with visits from George Washington, to modern day tales of Johnny Mercer, to the feather drifting to the feet of Forrest Gump you have a place that can hold your attention for quite some time.

Before I begin though I have to pass on some sad news.  I lost my little buddy Pepper last week to old age.  His 15 years with me will always be cherished and remembered as a time that I had a good friend always by my side.  With the passing of Shiloh the big black dog, just 4 months ago, we find ourselves without a dog in our lives for the first time.  It's a void that's definitely palpable.  Rio the cat, although certainly not a replacement, is keeping the smiles on our faces with his antics and we'll carry on with just him.

My little buddy

Okay, let's take a look at Savannah.  As I said, it truly is a mishmash of history and legend.  If you visit, I highly recommend taking a trolley tour as we did.  For a reasonable fee you can ride through the squares and get the lowdown, block by block, from the conductor as you go along.  We recommend Old Town Trolley Tours.  Look for the green and orange trolleys.  You can hop on and hop off as you choose, so it's very flexible.

I'll make the rest of the post a picture story from here on out.  Pay special attention to the last few pics.  It's a homage to my all time favorite movie "Forrest Gump".  Being able sit in the same spot, although not the same bench (that's in a museum), and expertly recreate the movie poster was a thrill.  I doubt you'll be able to tell the difference.

Get your cookie on.

Julia Roberts filmed a scene from "Something to Talk About" here.  Caught her husband cheatin' she did.

Lady Chablis from "The Garden of Good and Evil" is a real person and performs monthly at Club One

Inside the Massie School

Inside the Davenport house.  Amazing architecture.

Rain downspout

Maritime history abounds

Cathedral of St. John the Baptist.  The Forrest Gump feather was launched from the spires.

Inside the cathedral. 

One of the many wonders inside the cathedral

 

Savannah River tug

Talmadge Memorial Bridge

On River Street

Nailed it!

I'll be signing autographs in Ocala, FL and Elizabethton TN, in the next 10 days or so during our travels.

Have a great holiday season and be safe in YOUR travels.  We'll be headed to the company mothership in Atlanta after Christmas, so stay tuned for more adventures.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

Hey Folks,

Our blog, though a staple of the Internet for many years now, had simple beginnings as just a way to keep our "millions" of readers informed.  It still maintains that role and this post is just that, an update to family and friends as to our whereabouts and goings on.  

As the title suggests (you literary folks got it right away, I'm sure), we're calling Savannah, Georgia home for the next few weeks.  The Savannah South KOA to be exact.  The boss sent me to this southern bell of a city (with less than 24 hours notice - much to Margo's consternation but she's a trooper), to help catch up the survey which will be ending in a few weeks.  After that, we'll take some vacation time and head to Florida to see family and friends and then Mom's house in Eastern Tennessee for Christmas.  Expect vacation prose and photos from there in the future.

For now I'll leave you with some photos of the KOA as well as a suggestion to get to the bookstore and purchase a copy of John Berendt's excellent novel for yourself or someone you love.  As most of you who have passed through this area are aware, the smell of wood pulp mills for the paper factories demonstrates an essential aspect of the Coastal Georgia economy so make it a hardcover edition, will ya.

o

LuLu among the pines

Tepee on a tent site

Swans wintering over at the KOA lake

Santa's camping here before the "big trip"

"Continue on Route"

.....so the GPS said.  Sitting in our RV site at the Provo/Springville, Utah KOA I punched in Augusta, Georgia.  Our survey of the Salt Lake Valley had wrapped up for the year and we had been informed by the boss to hit the road.  He needed me down in the Peach State until about the middle of December so it was time to head east again.  After a little extra time calculating, a mini map of 2/3 of the United States popped up on the screen.  Mr. Garmin suggested I-70 through Denver but we decided to make the little machine recalculate.  We wanted to take a few extra days and see some things we hadn't seen before as well as take a route we hadn't taken.

We planned to exit the Interstate, take a right at Albuquerque and make a beeline to Roswell, NM to get to the bottom of the alien invasion controversy.  From there we'd take I-20 east through the girth of Texas.  Scoot north of the Hill Country.  Cruise through the bayous of Louisiana.  Begin the home stretch in Birmingham and sail through Atlanta on the weekend, arriving in Augusta before the next Monday.

It was a pretty uneventful trip. Again, a 2000 mile trek without breaking anything, but we did get surprised by a few things along the way.  All for the good.  Let's start with the hot air balloons.

Our second night on the road saw us at an obscure little state park just east of Gallup, New Mexico.  For a mere $20.00 we had a nice quiet full hook up site in a very sparsely populated campground.  Early the next morning though we heard a lot of activity outside.  A dozen or more SUV's with utility trailers were invading the place.  Come to find out we had accidentally happened onto the annual Red Rock Balloon Rally.  Soon the whooshing sound of 15 propane burners filled the air, then the balloons themselves sequentially filled the sky just feet from our campsite.  For close to 2 hours in the still New Mexico morning air we had a front row seat.  This was really one of those special occasions where we were in the right place at the right time.  One balloon landed just a few feet behind LuLu, all the while the pilot reassuring me from the gondola he wouldn't land on top of her.

Next stop, Roswell, NM.  This place has been on my bucket list for quite some time.  We pulled into the Trailer Village campground in Roswell and on checking in were directed to a site next to 3 other Airstreams, all from Florida. They were returning home from a 2 month long caravan throughout the West.  There's nothing like the instant camaraderie from fellow "'streamer's" inviting us to join them for an evening nightcap.  The next morning we hit the International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell. I have to tell you folks, they DO exist.  The museum operates on the assumption that it really did happen.  They take their research seriously and even though there was a faint smell of "tourist trap" the exhibits were very well put together and quite informative.  After you're through here visit their site if you want the whole story. 

LuLu happy with her bunkmates

They DO exist

See!  I told ya

Eastbound again, we found ourselves in the endless expanses of West Texas.  They're right when they say everything is bigger in Texas.  It just goes on and on but eventually we stopped for the night in Sweetwater.  We camped at a brand new RV park with our good friends, and co-worker, Pat and Nancy, who were there visiting relatives.  The next morning we shared a nice breakfast and some local lore.  They showed us the house they had built in the 70s when they lived here then wished us safe passage as we pulled out the next morning.

We tackled Dallas/Fort Worth in late morning on day 4, which wasn't as bad as it could have been, then rode on until we found a nice state park just before dark. State parks are always the best way to go when you have the chance.  They simply don't compare to commercial RV parks.  The Tyler State Park was no exception, just outside of Tyler.  It's a gem - if you like to camp in the woods for $20.00 and see a million stars at night.

Tyler TX State Park - beautiful site

In the remaining days we crossed into Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia without fanfare.  Yes, most of the trip was just piling on the miles but the weather was great the whole way.  Atlanta was a concern.  We had no choice but to take it head on.  Approaching from the west we had a decision to make - go around on the beltway to the south or to the north.  The south is shorter and was our plan but just before the exit a trucker on the CB mentioned a backup on the south end and to take the north route.  We took his advice and never dropped below 60 mph the whole way around.  Piece of cake.

Sunday saw us safe and sound in Augusta - thankful for a safe journey.  As I said, the plan is to be here until December 15th or so.  Work has precluded us from visiting Augusta proper, and right now, rain is preventing us from even getting outside, but we'll get downtown and check out the Savannah River and everything else Augusta has to offer.

Till next time.
 

The Great Cat Compromise

Hello everyone.  Margo here.

Let me set the scene.

Cedar City, Utah.   A bright sunny day in September 2015  The whole crew is here for a gas leak survey of the town (see our Cedar City Post).  While the guys are at work the ladies decide to take a trip to the Frontier Homestead State Park Museum.  They enter the museum and as Margo is signing the guest book, a kitten jumps up on the desk:

Act 1: 

Margo:  "Oh, look! What a cute kitten!"

Park Ranger:  "Yes.  He's been here for about a week.  He's precious but we just can't keep him.  He needs a good home."

Margo:  "Hmmmm..."

The little fluff ball of black and white rubs against her hand and follows her throughout the museum.

Act 2:  Later that afternoon, as Kevin returns home from work

Margo: "Hi Honey.  There's something at the museum we visited today that I need you to go look at.

Kevin:  "I'm really tired and had a long day.  What is it"?

Margo:  "Well actually, it's a kitten that needs a good home."

Kevin:  "Absolutely not!"

Act 3:  Later that evening

Co-Worker Mike:  "So Kevin, I see ya got a cat."

Kevin:  "Yeah.  We compromised.  She wanted the cat.  I didn't.  So we got the cat."


That's how it really went.  Let me introduce Oreo Meowseum Mason - Rio for short.  I know, Oreo is spelled with an "e" and we call him Rio with an "i" but who cares.  It's my cat. 

As I write this at the end of October, not only has he grown in size but he has grown in our hearts.  Even Kevin loves him but he just won't admit it to anyone.

Our little fluff ball, who, when I first saw him had really big paws, has now grown into them.  With his muscular body structure, extra soft, long hair, bushy tail and unique markings we wondered what kind of cat he was.  We researched and found that he is a Turkish Van which neither of us had ever heard of.  It's a rare breed named after a lake in Turkey.  He fit the profile perfectly with his friendly disposition, love of water (he plays in his water bowl and in the sink) and physical size being well on his way to the reported 16 pound average and length of 3 feet.  Did I mention that LuLu is only 25 feet long?

We were worried about how he would do traveling.  We have been known to take long trips (one of Kevin's arguments) but we got lucky and he is an excellent traveler.   He never complained and was content to look out the window and enjoy the scenery.  He spent most of the time in a small cardboard box without a lid, that we affectionately called his car seat, but would voluntarily alternate to his expensive, stylish cat carrier (door open all the time).

Cruzin" Cat

Nap time somewhere in Texas (note "car seat box"

He's adapted very well to the trailer lifestyle.  He's chosen a few purr-fect cat perches and window seats.  He's also doing very well on his halter and leash training for going outside.

Final Scene:

Rio settles in for yet another cat nap.

 


In-Joy,
Margo

Cedar City

Hey Folks,

As any good farmer will tell you, you have to let your fields lay fallow in between plantings to get a better yield.  So it is too, with blogs.  We haven't posted much lately but now it's time to crank up the tractor again and turn some dirt.

Let's get you updated first then I'll tell you about our trip to Cedar City, Utah.

Shiloh the big black dog passed on last month.  He had cancer and we had known it for a while.  Margo and I decided to let him live out his days as comfortably as possible and he did just that.  He was a lucky dog in that he ended up with a mom and dad who had the ability to work from home and because of that was never left alone during the day.  He traveled the country and investigated many a highway rest stop - his favorite places on earth.  I swear that dog could spot a blue rest stop sign long before we could.  He paid back our kindness many times over and will be sorely missed.

On a brighter note, I've been promoted.  When we arrived here for the Salt Lake project in March I was working as a crew leader of 3 other technicians in the Provo area.  Since then I've been tapped for the field supervisor position over the whole project.  I now supervise 12 technicians across the Salt Lake Valley which will increase to 19 when the project starts up again next March.  The current project will end October 9th but a crew of 4 will remain here over the winter.  The job title pretty much explains my duties.  I'll still be walking the gas lines so won't get fat sitting in front of a computer, although I do have some additional duties that will require toting my laptop around with me.

There is a lot of travel over the fall and winter planned at press time.  Down to Texas and back to the Southeast to do field evaluations on the many technicians scattered about.  Then in early March it's back here to beautiful Utah.

Speaking of beautiful Utah, let's get on with our trip to Cedar City from where I am writing this.  As in the past, our gas company client has sent us on out of town jobs.  This allows them to service the towns and small cities outside the Salt Lake Valley.  It was Cedar City's turn this week with me and 5 other techs traveling 200 miles south, descending on the KOA, and branching out to survey for four intense 10 hour days.  It went well, as I knew it would.  I've said it before, when you bring a highly trained and motivated crew with you the job just gets done - simple as that.  We all gathered together each night for a feast and some socializing then hit it at sunrise each morning.  The pay off, a 4 day weekend in some of the most rugged and beautiful country around.

Margo, Pepper and I took a drive yesterday to take in the local area including Cedar Breaks National Monument and the little town of Brian Head - the highest town in Utah (in elevation - this isn't Colorado....).  The pictures really can't do this place justice as there isn't anything to give it scale but believe me it's spectacular.  To think that all of this was created by wind and water is amazing.  We left Cedar City at 5,500 feet and 79 degrees and in less than an hour were at 11,400 feet and 50 degrees.

Visitor center built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s

Pepper didn't care for the wind very much

Not for the faint of heart

Yeah, 15 sounds about right....

Well, we'll be seeing you soon. We'll be headed back to Provo.  Then, as I said, there's going to be a lot of travel and adventures coming up so stay tuned.

Score!

Hey Folks,

Spares are good to have around.  Spare change, spare tire, even spareribs are great but a spare hubcap - priceless.  In the many miles I've walked on country roads over the past 2 years chasing gas leaks, I've come across many a stray wheel cover.  Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of caps but never a coveted 8 lug Chevy/GMC to fit my faithful steed, Hank.  Oh, countless 6 lug specimens off of puny 1500 series pick-ups but Hank is a 2500.  Best in breed in my opinion.  He's never lost a hubcap himself, and maybe never will, but the possibility is always there.

Fear no more my friends because today off the side of Utah Hwy 198, just outside the little town of Salem, I scored.

Well, well, well.....lookey there