My apologies to all our dear friends and readers!!
Well, you've been on my mind quite a bit lately, and I'm sorry, but we've just been too busy to commit the "words to the paper," so to speak. So what have we been doing? Oh, gosh, you name it, we did it! I guess I should pick up where we left off, waaaay back in November, if y'all can even remember that far ago!! I think we didn't see sandcastles, right??? Oh, wait, lemme take care of one bit of business before I forget!!! CHUCK & STU, visit our website by clicking here—> http://thecallanders.name. Thanks, y'all, I'll explain that in a bit! 
Ok, what else? Well, I put my beloved sewing machine in the shop for a tune-up, because I didn't like the way it's been stitching. To overcome its issues, I'd been putting expensive thread in the bobbin, instead of thinner, cheaper bobbin thread....well that uses up thread like Sherman went thru Richmond, so that was getting too expensive to keep on...so, 2 weeks & $125 later, I got the machine back. And I had paid for a quilting class, along the way, so I was missing that, too....but they let me borrow their machine during class...couldn't do any of the homework, tho, and took up valuable lesson time, trying to catch up. But, finally, got him back. Sewed me the first line of stitching, and it was no better than before. Tried finagling a couple of settings, but still no improvement. Still stitching poorly. Showed it to the instructor, and she agreed it just wasn't right. That was not exactly what I was waiting to hear! I wanted to hear how she was gonna make it right (at NO FURTHER CHARGE), but I had to coax that out of her. Eventually, she agreed it should be corrected at their expense, and she told me to leave the machine there. What she didn't know was that I had obligated myself to a table at the craft sale in 4 weeks. Oh, my gosh, was I sweatin' bullets!!!!! FINALLY I got the call it was ready & hot-footed it down to the shop and picked him up!! Oh, and does he sew nicely now! And I sewed, and sewed, and sewed! I embroidered towels& placemats & blankets and lace ornaments, plus made about a dozen casserole cozies. For those of you that haven't had the pleasure, those are like blankets for covered dishes that you (or others) take to pot-luck suppers. I have been making them since the summer, and thy sell quicker than I can sew 'em. So, bottom line, I had about 4 days to put together a table full of goodies for sale. So, sew I did!! And sell I did! I made about a hundred bucks in that morning!!! And got a half dozen more orders!!! I made enough $$ to cover the matrial cost, but no labor, so good thing I enjoy it!!
Since then, we also watched the Venice lighted boat parade, an event that took place one very chilly evening, early in December. We hurried out of work, without supper, even, just to get down there in time. Yeah, go figure, we only work 2 days a week, and seems all the good stuff happens on one of 'em! We had talked about it with some of the residents, and they warned us that without having set up our chairs at noon, we wouldn't get a good viewing position, so we went with low expectations, but still some optimism. We shouldn't have worried!! Jose had scoped it out earlier, via the newspaper, internet & a little drive-by, so we just went down to the end of the parade route, parked in the almost-empty parking lot and carried our chairs down to the water's edge, not quite under the Circus Bridge. A couple who followed us into the parking lot chatted a bit with us, and apparently decided we knew where we were going & asked if we minded if they tagged along. Heck, it's a free country, we said, and as long as they didn't smoke, we didn't mind a bit. Remember that bridge I mentioned? Well, it made a terrific wind break!! Pity the poor people all lined up on the other side of the water. (Oh, the "water" I keep mentioning is the Intra Coastal Waterway.) Oh, there were tons of 'em, lined up 4-5-6 deep, shoulder to shoulder, while we were sitting pretty in our chairs, all bundled up & quite cozy. Even Sunny had on a sweater and was wrapped up inside a blanket with me!! So, FINALLY, along comes a police boat, lights flashing, siren blaring, and a loudspeaker dude announcing the start of the parade. And then, he proceeds to anchor himself in the middle of the canal, JUST IN FRONT of us!! We couldn't have PAID for better seating!! All the boats followed him down the canal, then swung on around him, closer to us, and back up the other side of the canal, the way they'd come. Except for some of the boats that were not returning to the marina or starting point, and cruised on by us, and out to the Gulf. As mentioned, it was the best possible vantage point. Windbreak, water's edge, high enough to see well, and not a soul in front of us!! Some two hours & 65 or so boats later, the end of the parade was finally reached, and we trucked back to the truck. And because we were on THAT side of the bridge, there was still hardly anyone in the lot!!! The couple we met there were from up north (I've forgotten where, sorry, but someplace COLD), and had recently moved to Port Charlotte, not too far off. They said next year, they'll consider being IN the parade. We gave 'em our card, so hopefully, next year, if we're back in town, they'll think of us! I got about 2 hours of video, but it's all in bits & pieces. If I can figure it out, I'll stitch them all together and post them on Photobucket, or somewhere y'all can access. Some of the boats were truly incredible & ubelievable.
Shortly after that, Denise & Carl (co-workers from Branson) surprised us with an in-person visit! They'd told us they were coming, but we weren't gonna believe it until they actually showed up! They DID! They got themselves a cute little hotel room/cottage down by the marina, on Venice Island, where we'd watched the boat parade. We engaged a lovely (and generous) couple here at the park to walk Sunny, and we journeye up to Sarasota, to Troyer's Dutch Heritage restaurant, where we proceeded to pig out. All you can eat fried chicken, salad, veggies and desserts. Didn't know those fellas could eat 2 pieces pie, a piece of cake AND 2 ice creams (well, Dick ate 2) EACH. On top of dinner. After that, we kinda went yard-sale-ing. We know a good time, huh!! Then we went on up to Bradenton, to the Red Barn Flea Market and walked around. I just KNEW they'd have Plant City strawberries by now. Well, they had yard flamingoes and other fresh produce, but the berries available were NOT anything to brag about....so, didn't buy 'em. I can wait for the good ones; I knew they'd be along soon enough. But what a disappointment. Those of you that know me know I loooove my berries! We had a great visit, but too darned short. Tho, we DID walk 'em on Venice Beach (cold as CRAP, too!!), and even managed to find Denise a shark's tooth!! Can't wait for 'em to come back!!!
After they left, Dick had a couple of VA appointments; everything is ok, tyvm!!! He finally got his eyes re-examined and the glaucoma is fully controlled. YEAH!! So, we had a few nice days, finally, and we started looking into the funny smell wafting up from the basement. Always smelled a bit musty & dusty, even, dare I say, "pissy?" Sorry, don't mean to offend, but that was the smell. I likened it to rat pee, but someone else kept insisting it was what doggie was doing to the carpet. Well, now, not like me to say I told ya so, but lemme tell ya what we found when we started pulling out the basement insulation. Talk about pissy. GEEEZ, it was rank. Well, there was a dead & mummified mousie, first off, but that was NOT the source of the smell. Turns out, after pulling out all the wet (yeah, pissy) insulation, we have a leak! It's where the drain on the potty meets up with the holding tank. Yup, probably had it for the last 4 years, ever since we bought the trailer!! Can you just imagine the smell??? OIKS, it was rank. Thankfully, tho, doggie wasn't responsible for a bit of it!!! So, we get all the insulation pulled out and start trying to fix the leak. Well, talk about pissy. You all know Dick's luck. There's a reason we call it Dick-luck. And NO ONE wants it! Some people, like bro-in-law Paul, everything he touches turns to gold. Dick, on the other hand, well, everything HE touches pretty much turns to, well...poop. Or, in this case, pee.
He consulted the local RV repair guy, who suggested using ABS glue. Sorta like PVC glue, in that it melts & fuses the plastic together. So, working in a very small box, thru a very small hole, he did. And, about all he succeeded in doing was frying a few brain cells. The plastic didn't really harden properly, and it did NOT fuse to the tank. Still leaking. At least we had learned the actual source and had been using the bathouse for our needs and found the continued leak using CLEAN water! We may have bad luck, but we do have brains. So, we called the FACTORY. HE recommended this very special adhesive, told us we could get it at Camping World, the Wal-Mart of camping. Uh......Camping World is back in Fort Myers or Tampa....few hours drive, either way. Decided we'd try RV World of Nokomis, just up the road a bit (about 10 miles). THEY sent us on a snipe hunt (keep in mind, this is now Christmas EVE) looking for some other stuff....and when we couldn't locate any, they sold us a tube of Quick Dry, HV stuff, that sets up QUICKLY. For $27!!!! Looked just like any other tube of caulk or silicone, but $27!!! Well, we get that goop home, and get the tank all cleaned up and ready, and the tube opened, and guess what. Stuff is so thick, he can't get it OUT of the tube!!!. Used a hacksaw to saw the end off, thinking he can stick a couple fingers in, dip some stuff out & smear it around the joint. Did I mention that once air hits this stuff it starts to set up? Like concrete!! Oh, and it's BLACK. EBONY black! And cement-like! So, picture this - Dick, in black goop up to his elbows (and remember how hairy he is???), leaning into the basement cubby, trying to see into this 6-inch square hole in the floor, and down 6 more inches to the joint. Oh, and ME, leaning OVER him, trying to shine an intermittent light into the same hole. Sorry, Sarah, didn't mean to cut you short — I really did appreciate your call, but we did have this other project going.... Well, after it's all over, what do we find, but the expiration date. March, '08. Yup, remember that pissy luck? Strikes again! Turns out the stuff gets hard over time. So, today, on the way out of town, we stop back by RV World, and they seemed not to be surprised. Ugh. At least they gave us back the $27, and MAYbe, just MAYbe, he got the goop in there good enough to stop the leak. The only other alternative is going to be a new tank. That just might run us a thousand bucks, so we're trying all other options first.
So, what did we do for Christmas? Well, last year, we instituted a feed-the-Ranger program at Lake Manatee, and this year, we declined an invitation to join the other workers for a dinner on the beach (well, they weren't going to the DOG beach, so Sunny was banned, and we don't generally go if she can't.). So, we spent the morning baking & cooking and packed up a big pan of baked ziti, salad & pumpkin pie, and all the condiments & utensils & dishes and hit the road. Brandi & Mike were kind enough to round up the Rangers & keep 'em in the office, and we all had a real nice dinner & visit. Ranger Ed put me on the register right away & I got to paly with the new program they have for the campers. MUCH MUCH better than the previous version. Couldn't believe it, but they had 3 drive-up campers!!! Just in the short time we were visiting!! Several other people were just coming to fish or ride thru the park!! Ed & Barbara seemed to enjoy the surprise and especially seemed glad to hear we were planning to work on Discover Lake Manatee Day again. Oh, what have we gotten ourselves into!!!?? I seem to recall spending HOURS in the planning & preparation stages for that day!!! And, oh yeah, it's on a SATURDAY. Dunno what Jose's gonna do about THAT.
Today, we had the pleasure of visiting with Chuck and Stu, from up by Charlottesville!! They come down to visit family in Tampa every year about this time, and they were kind enough to make time to come & see us!!! We met them up in Sarasota, back at Troyer's buffet, thank you Denise, for your suggestion!! Boy, was it great to see them!!! They are both doing well, and they look great! Their cottages are doing well, and they've all been booked solid all summer. I'm glad to hear that; no reason EVERYone should suffer because we had fools running the country and economy!! And if ANYone should prosper, it's them. They are both right up there on the GOOD PEOPLE/GREAT FRIENDS list. And, THANK YOU, Chuck, for buying our lunch!!
Soooo, there you have a wrap-up of our last 2 months.....and I've just been reminded that the breakfast dishes are still in the sink. Apparently, the dish-fairy did NOT stop here today. We hope that you all have been well and have had a great Christmas. Diana, I'm sorry we got cut off in our conversation today; I'm assuming you made it back to Elko without issue. I think you must have gone into a dip in the road or something; I'll try to give you a call later. Next year is 2009, and we wish you all a safe, happy, healthy & prosperous New Year. Theresa & Vance, we especially wish you a new club president!!!!
And, as has been said before, "to all....a good night!!"
Ok, what else? Well, I put my beloved sewing machine in the shop for a tune-up, because I didn't like the way it's been stitching. To overcome its issues, I'd been putting expensive thread in the bobbin, instead of thinner, cheaper bobbin thread....well that uses up thread like Sherman went thru Richmond, so that was getting too expensive to keep on...so, 2 weeks & $125 later, I got the machine back. And I had paid for a quilting class, along the way, so I was missing that, too....but they let me borrow their machine during class...couldn't do any of the homework, tho, and took up valuable lesson time, trying to catch up. But, finally, got him back. Sewed me the first line of stitching, and it was no better than before. Tried finagling a couple of settings, but still no improvement. Still stitching poorly. Showed it to the instructor, and she agreed it just wasn't right. That was not exactly what I was waiting to hear! I wanted to hear how she was gonna make it right (at NO FURTHER CHARGE), but I had to coax that out of her. Eventually, she agreed it should be corrected at their expense, and she told me to leave the machine there. What she didn't know was that I had obligated myself to a table at the craft sale in 4 weeks. Oh, my gosh, was I sweatin' bullets!!!!! FINALLY I got the call it was ready & hot-footed it down to the shop and picked him up!! Oh, and does he sew nicely now! And I sewed, and sewed, and sewed! I embroidered towels& placemats & blankets and lace ornaments, plus made about a dozen casserole cozies. For those of you that haven't had the pleasure, those are like blankets for covered dishes that you (or others) take to pot-luck suppers. I have been making them since the summer, and thy sell quicker than I can sew 'em. So, bottom line, I had about 4 days to put together a table full of goodies for sale. So, sew I did!! And sell I did! I made about a hundred bucks in that morning!!! And got a half dozen more orders!!! I made enough $$ to cover the matrial cost, but no labor, so good thing I enjoy it!!
Since then, we also watched the Venice lighted boat parade, an event that took place one very chilly evening, early in December. We hurried out of work, without supper, even, just to get down there in time. Yeah, go figure, we only work 2 days a week, and seems all the good stuff happens on one of 'em! We had talked about it with some of the residents, and they warned us that without having set up our chairs at noon, we wouldn't get a good viewing position, so we went with low expectations, but still some optimism. We shouldn't have worried!! Jose had scoped it out earlier, via the newspaper, internet & a little drive-by, so we just went down to the end of the parade route, parked in the almost-empty parking lot and carried our chairs down to the water's edge, not quite under the Circus Bridge. A couple who followed us into the parking lot chatted a bit with us, and apparently decided we knew where we were going & asked if we minded if they tagged along. Heck, it's a free country, we said, and as long as they didn't smoke, we didn't mind a bit. Remember that bridge I mentioned? Well, it made a terrific wind break!! Pity the poor people all lined up on the other side of the water. (Oh, the "water" I keep mentioning is the Intra Coastal Waterway.) Oh, there were tons of 'em, lined up 4-5-6 deep, shoulder to shoulder, while we were sitting pretty in our chairs, all bundled up & quite cozy. Even Sunny had on a sweater and was wrapped up inside a blanket with me!! So, FINALLY, along comes a police boat, lights flashing, siren blaring, and a loudspeaker dude announcing the start of the parade. And then, he proceeds to anchor himself in the middle of the canal, JUST IN FRONT of us!! We couldn't have PAID for better seating!! All the boats followed him down the canal, then swung on around him, closer to us, and back up the other side of the canal, the way they'd come. Except for some of the boats that were not returning to the marina or starting point, and cruised on by us, and out to the Gulf. As mentioned, it was the best possible vantage point. Windbreak, water's edge, high enough to see well, and not a soul in front of us!! Some two hours & 65 or so boats later, the end of the parade was finally reached, and we trucked back to the truck. And because we were on THAT side of the bridge, there was still hardly anyone in the lot!!! The couple we met there were from up north (I've forgotten where, sorry, but someplace COLD), and had recently moved to Port Charlotte, not too far off. They said next year, they'll consider being IN the parade. We gave 'em our card, so hopefully, next year, if we're back in town, they'll think of us! I got about 2 hours of video, but it's all in bits & pieces. If I can figure it out, I'll stitch them all together and post them on Photobucket, or somewhere y'all can access. Some of the boats were truly incredible & ubelievable.
Shortly after that, Denise & Carl (co-workers from Branson) surprised us with an in-person visit! They'd told us they were coming, but we weren't gonna believe it until they actually showed up! They DID! They got themselves a cute little hotel room/cottage down by the marina, on Venice Island, where we'd watched the boat parade. We engaged a lovely (and generous) couple here at the park to walk Sunny, and we journeye up to Sarasota, to Troyer's Dutch Heritage restaurant, where we proceeded to pig out. All you can eat fried chicken, salad, veggies and desserts. Didn't know those fellas could eat 2 pieces pie, a piece of cake AND 2 ice creams (well, Dick ate 2) EACH. On top of dinner. After that, we kinda went yard-sale-ing. We know a good time, huh!! Then we went on up to Bradenton, to the Red Barn Flea Market and walked around. I just KNEW they'd have Plant City strawberries by now. Well, they had yard flamingoes and other fresh produce, but the berries available were NOT anything to brag about....so, didn't buy 'em. I can wait for the good ones; I knew they'd be along soon enough. But what a disappointment. Those of you that know me know I loooove my berries! We had a great visit, but too darned short. Tho, we DID walk 'em on Venice Beach (cold as CRAP, too!!), and even managed to find Denise a shark's tooth!! Can't wait for 'em to come back!!!
After they left, Dick had a couple of VA appointments; everything is ok, tyvm!!! He finally got his eyes re-examined and the glaucoma is fully controlled. YEAH!! So, we had a few nice days, finally, and we started looking into the funny smell wafting up from the basement. Always smelled a bit musty & dusty, even, dare I say, "pissy?" Sorry, don't mean to offend, but that was the smell. I likened it to rat pee, but someone else kept insisting it was what doggie was doing to the carpet. Well, now, not like me to say I told ya so, but lemme tell ya what we found when we started pulling out the basement insulation. Talk about pissy. GEEEZ, it was rank. Well, there was a dead & mummified mousie, first off, but that was NOT the source of the smell. Turns out, after pulling out all the wet (yeah, pissy) insulation, we have a leak! It's where the drain on the potty meets up with the holding tank. Yup, probably had it for the last 4 years, ever since we bought the trailer!! Can you just imagine the smell??? OIKS, it was rank. Thankfully, tho, doggie wasn't responsible for a bit of it!!! So, we get all the insulation pulled out and start trying to fix the leak. Well, talk about pissy. You all know Dick's luck. There's a reason we call it Dick-luck. And NO ONE wants it! Some people, like bro-in-law Paul, everything he touches turns to gold. Dick, on the other hand, well, everything HE touches pretty much turns to, well...poop. Or, in this case, pee.
He consulted the local RV repair guy, who suggested using ABS glue. Sorta like PVC glue, in that it melts & fuses the plastic together. So, working in a very small box, thru a very small hole, he did. And, about all he succeeded in doing was frying a few brain cells. The plastic didn't really harden properly, and it did NOT fuse to the tank. Still leaking. At least we had learned the actual source and had been using the bathouse for our needs and found the continued leak using CLEAN water! We may have bad luck, but we do have brains. So, we called the FACTORY. HE recommended this very special adhesive, told us we could get it at Camping World, the Wal-Mart of camping. Uh......Camping World is back in Fort Myers or Tampa....few hours drive, either way. Decided we'd try RV World of Nokomis, just up the road a bit (about 10 miles). THEY sent us on a snipe hunt (keep in mind, this is now Christmas EVE) looking for some other stuff....and when we couldn't locate any, they sold us a tube of Quick Dry, HV stuff, that sets up QUICKLY. For $27!!!! Looked just like any other tube of caulk or silicone, but $27!!! Well, we get that goop home, and get the tank all cleaned up and ready, and the tube opened, and guess what. Stuff is so thick, he can't get it OUT of the tube!!!. Used a hacksaw to saw the end off, thinking he can stick a couple fingers in, dip some stuff out & smear it around the joint. Did I mention that once air hits this stuff it starts to set up? Like concrete!! Oh, and it's BLACK. EBONY black! And cement-like! So, picture this - Dick, in black goop up to his elbows (and remember how hairy he is???), leaning into the basement cubby, trying to see into this 6-inch square hole in the floor, and down 6 more inches to the joint. Oh, and ME, leaning OVER him, trying to shine an intermittent light into the same hole. Sorry, Sarah, didn't mean to cut you short — I really did appreciate your call, but we did have this other project going.... Well, after it's all over, what do we find, but the expiration date. March, '08. Yup, remember that pissy luck? Strikes again! Turns out the stuff gets hard over time. So, today, on the way out of town, we stop back by RV World, and they seemed not to be surprised. Ugh. At least they gave us back the $27, and MAYbe, just MAYbe, he got the goop in there good enough to stop the leak. The only other alternative is going to be a new tank. That just might run us a thousand bucks, so we're trying all other options first.
So, what did we do for Christmas? Well, last year, we instituted a feed-the-Ranger program at Lake Manatee, and this year, we declined an invitation to join the other workers for a dinner on the beach (well, they weren't going to the DOG beach, so Sunny was banned, and we don't generally go if she can't.). So, we spent the morning baking & cooking and packed up a big pan of baked ziti, salad & pumpkin pie, and all the condiments & utensils & dishes and hit the road. Brandi & Mike were kind enough to round up the Rangers & keep 'em in the office, and we all had a real nice dinner & visit. Ranger Ed put me on the register right away & I got to paly with the new program they have for the campers. MUCH MUCH better than the previous version. Couldn't believe it, but they had 3 drive-up campers!!! Just in the short time we were visiting!! Several other people were just coming to fish or ride thru the park!! Ed & Barbara seemed to enjoy the surprise and especially seemed glad to hear we were planning to work on Discover Lake Manatee Day again. Oh, what have we gotten ourselves into!!!?? I seem to recall spending HOURS in the planning & preparation stages for that day!!! And, oh yeah, it's on a SATURDAY. Dunno what Jose's gonna do about THAT.
Today, we had the pleasure of visiting with Chuck and Stu, from up by Charlottesville!! They come down to visit family in Tampa every year about this time, and they were kind enough to make time to come & see us!!! We met them up in Sarasota, back at Troyer's buffet, thank you Denise, for your suggestion!! Boy, was it great to see them!!! They are both doing well, and they look great! Their cottages are doing well, and they've all been booked solid all summer. I'm glad to hear that; no reason EVERYone should suffer because we had fools running the country and economy!! And if ANYone should prosper, it's them. They are both right up there on the GOOD PEOPLE/GREAT FRIENDS list. And, THANK YOU, Chuck, for buying our lunch!!
Soooo, there you have a wrap-up of our last 2 months.....and I've just been reminded that the breakfast dishes are still in the sink. Apparently, the dish-fairy did NOT stop here today. We hope that you all have been well and have had a great Christmas. Diana, I'm sorry we got cut off in our conversation today; I'm assuming you made it back to Elko without issue. I think you must have gone into a dip in the road or something; I'll try to give you a call later. Next year is 2009, and we wish you all a safe, happy, healthy & prosperous New Year. Theresa & Vance, we especially wish you a new club president!!!!
And, as has been said before, "to all....a good night!!"
Sounds like you all have bee n busy. Did you get your leak fixed? We just got back from the cabin and it was nice. Have you ever heard of Chinese air balloons or planet X. Look it up.
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