We have arrived!

Thibodaux (don't pronounce the h - just say tea), Louisiana is a loooooong way from NY but we finally made it!!! It's not only where we'll be working on Habitat houses for the next two weeks, but is the home of the Venetian Bar & Donut Shop (why don't New Yorkers think of such creative food combos as donuts and Bud Light?!!!)

Today was Thibodaux's Mardi Gras parade and we managed to catch our fair share of "beads" which we trust will bring us good luck the rest of the trip. I can't imagine how many pounds of those things they must throw to the crowd. Folks bring BIG bags to carry home all the loot they're thrown. My question is what happens to it then?! This float was just one of 50 in just one small town. Apparently parties/parades have been going on all week with more to come through Tuesday. Guess we picked the right time to come.

Spring has started here. A few trees have leafed out and what looks like wild mustard is blooming. Stopped and bought freshly picked Louisiana strawberries from one of the roadside vendors. Crawfish are in season so we had freshly boiled ones for supper - messy but nice & spicy & sweet. We scoffed down 3 pounds of them with hardly a thought (the thought was then how to dispose of the shells & heads - NOT something one wants to sleep with in a camper all night. John found a dumpster far, far away...)

This is our first night to actually sleep in the "beast" which John has now decided to call Rambo (it has a Dodge Ram engine after all... and the name sounds so ridiculous it makes me laugh so...)
Do I dare tell you after all this we don't QUITE have water yet? John turned it on & it proceeded to spring a leak under the sink and give it a good soaking. I hear Home Depot calling after work tomorrow. Sweet dreams...

Hot tea????

After George, good "Elk" that he is, took us to the "Club" for a fine southern breakfast (you know it was southern because they looked at me like I was out of mind when I asked for a cup of hot tea - cold tea is what you get in the south) we headed west. Wait!, you're probably saying aren't we supposed to heading south? Well, since "the beast" (John really does need to decide on a name for it - none any of us have suggested so far have been to his liking) seems to be running fine, I suggested we take the slightly longer scenic route through Asheville & Knoxville before heading south.

This route is beautiful taking you over the eastern Continental Divide and through the Smokies. Again we knew we were in the south because the farmer's market in Asheville had fresh beans (not the type of green beans we get in the stores in the north, but string beans that you're supposed to cook to death with a piece of fat back), a BIG display of turnips, fresh okra from a crate that was already half empty (from sales - not because it came that way), and a token bunch of asparagus for the "half-backs" (folks from the north who moved/retired to Florida until it got too crowded, then they moved half way back to NC).

On to Knoxville. As we began to drive through snow (why don't we ever learn to ALWAYS check the weather where we're going?!) I begin to worry. We pass the Ultimate Beef Jerky Outlet featuring 200 kinds of jerky. To take my mind off the snow I begin to mentally list all the types of jerky I can (when I begin to wonder if it's legal to make raccoon jerky I decide I might be better off worrying about the snow). We pass the exit in Knoxville for Broadway Hall of Fame Drive. (Do you suppose there's a Broadway Hall of Fame down that road - they don't tell you that, or do they just like the name?)

Finally, we drive out of the snow heading south at last. Slowed a bit by the route through the mountains and the snow, I reluctantly let John drive by exit 60 (remember that exit) where the billboard said they sell the "softest socks in the world". Next time...

Chattanooga is next and we wave at the Choo Choo (we stopped last year - that visit was plenty to last for several years). We blink and almost miss Georgia (you catch the top western most corner, 8 miles of it, before you get to Alabama). Birmingham is next, home, of course, to "John's Plumbing - We repair what your husband fixed".

Tonight we're in Meridan, Mississippi and confess we aren't camping yet. Tomorrow. We're hoping for an early start so we can make it to the Habitat site by noon. Apparently there are parades in the two neighboring towns tomorrow afternoon (Mardi Gras is Tuesday), so we want to be there to enjoy them. The project is even giving everyone Tuesday off for Mardi Gras - should be fun. We have no idea what the internet connection possibilities will be so don't be surprised if we post or don't post - will keep you and us in suspense.

Rollin'

Rollin' at last! Personally I think it's because "the beast" experienced two nights outside (a first -it's been in one warm shop or another since we've had it) and decided it would much rather go where it's warmer. John & I on the other hand were getting used to being spoiled by Judy & John with 5 star food & drink, movies, a hot tub, toasting our toes by the fire... But all good things must come to an end.

Moving south proved almost as difficult as keeping "the beast" running earlier in the week. Some highways were closed (our connecting road west was one of them), high WIND ("the beast" is a bit more stable than Tillie but...), traffic slower than slow going south, an accident closed one of the main roads south we intended to take and so it went. However, if we had not taken yet another alternate route we would not have seen the first robins heading north (they're in Virginia so maybe spring's not so far away after all). Nor would we have seen the sign near South Boston (that's VA nor MA - at least we weren't headed in the wrong direction) for their Mud Festival in Sept. If you're into red clay mud, this is for you!

Finally, just 5 days late, we're at George & Vicky's in Hickory, NC. Who would have thought it could take so long to make a ten hour trip?! Our lesson? Always head STRAIGHT to Cousin John & Judy's when starting a trip - if nothing else, they'll make sure you have air in the spare tire (it does now).

Relocating to NJ???

We're growing quite attached to New Jersey and seem to be finding it VERY difficult to leave. However, John & Judy's woodshed seems to be getting a bit low on wood so we better start heading south soon!

The Johns put in the new alternator with the extra "something" on it yesterday afternoon. The snow & ice had let up so John G. drove "the beast" all over town picking up goodies (valentine cookies, a movie, etc.) and it ran fine. This morning we load everything in "the beast" and it has the same problem it had two days ago. (Tillie is looking better all the time - so what if she doesn't have heat or a toilet!) This time Cousin John takes "the beast" down the road to the electrical expert... diagnosis - voltage regulator. A new one is expected in this afternoon so we're keeping our fingers crossed.

This may sound unlucky to you, but it turns out it may have been lucky. If we had started out as planned we would have gotten stuck in one of the worst traffic situations ever created. The main road between here and Harrisburg was completely closed down (not expected to clear until this afternoon) which means John & I would have been sitting there for hours with a "flaky" voltage regulator in wind chill temps below zero and probably getting towed. As it is the Johns are entertaining themselves at the shop and Judy & I got to go shopping. Downtown Hackettstown is really kind of fun... especially in comparison to the alternative!

Cupids in Winter Gear

NJ may be getting ice & snow & wind, but the Johns were out and about in Cousin John's dump truck with the snow plow on the front. After all, "the beast" was waiting for new parts, John & Judy are trying to get rid of us before spring thaw, and John & Patty WOULD like to make it to Louisiana by Sunday.

The good news was the part came in this morning. The bad news was it had an extra "something" attached to the side. The good news was they didn't cut it off. Another mechanic from down the street was able to tell them the "bad" part we had was jury-rigged in the first place and the new one should work IF the "something" was attached.

Anyway, the Johns are off attacking and attaching and hopefully getting "the beast" running again. In the meantime, Judy & Patty are napping and cooking and staying cozy in front of the fire. Not a bad division of labor.

A new day...

Aw, a new day! We're up at 5:30, John to go start "the beast" to make sure it's still working (guess what... it's not not NOT - it starts but is not charging correctly). Patty is watching the weather channel (not good on that front either - looks like we may be heading into ice). Oh well, things have to look better after breakfast. On the cheerful side we're NOT still at home in NY where 2 feet of snow is expected AND we're NOT in Lousiana where tornados have just gone through. John calls Cousin John to get his take on the situation. We decide to be at the Dodge dealer in Scranton when they open.

Load stuff into "the beast" and (probably because it feels threatened) "the beast" starts and runs perfectly. We decide to take our chances and head south. Stop at rest stop for John (who, in his stewing on the problem, has consumed FAR too much coffee for traveling any distance without stopping). John starts "the beast" and it once again decides to turn beastly. Patty decides to use the rest stop too (perhaps John & "the beast" just need some quiet moments together). When she returns "the beast" starts and works fine. Cousin John & Judy call (aren't cell phones GREAT?) saying the roads are icing where we're headed - suggest we come their way instead. (NJ sounds like HEAVEN to me!!!)

We're now in New Jersey with what looks like the full crew from Red's Body Shop (John & Judy's business) at work on the problem. New alternator definitely needed (the crew is VERY polite & don't mention all the other stuff that's probably needed as well - I think they're all amazed "the beast" is running at all!). Part ordered but won't come until tomorrow. Ice & high winds will be here tomorrow as well so will probably enjoy NJ hospitality for a couple of days.

Judy thinks perhaps we should consider taking the "street rod" in the back work room. As she so tactfully put it - the guy who owns it has probably put more money just in the tires than what we have in "the beast" (and, although she refrained from saying this, it's probably going to be a WHOLE lot more reliable!)

Grapes of Wrath

Remember the movie "Grapes of Wrath"? Well "the beast" could probably play at least a supporting role in an updated version.

Listening to the weather this morning and hearing of the approaching storm, we decided to toss some belongings into plastic bags of various sizes and "hit the road" a day early totally unorganized. Our goal... North Carolina.

So... instead of leaving at 6 or 7 like we had planned to do on Tuesday morning, we left at 9:30 this morning. Stopped in Earlville to touch bases with our "manager" Jeff who will be looking after our house, mail some things and pick up some cash at the bank. So far so good until... I try to "step" out of the beast at the bank only to find my foot entangled in the "not always functioning" retractable seatbelt. Luckily snow is soft... a bit wet and a little dirty but soft so no harm done.
Finally, we're on our way at 10:07!!!! Stop in Norwich (about 20 miles south) at the light and everything goes dead. (Where is Mary when we could have used her to help push as we did Tillie?!) However, a strong "guy" showed up and, for once, I got to steer as John & our "guy" pushed us out of the intersection. Across the street was a collision/repair shop who very kindly came to the rescue and got us going again (no charge - people are great!). However, before we left Norwich, John decided perhaps we better swing into the Dodge dealership and have them test things. Stopped the van in their lot - wouldn't start. Their diagnosis... low battery. They get us started (no charge) and we swing over to a friend's house (thank you Betty!!!) for hot tea (since we were heading south and didn't expect to break down so soon, we did NOT bring our winter coats) lunch and cookies and to recharge not only the battery but the auxiliary battery charger (why don't we leave home with things charged???!!!)

Anyway, 12:45 and we're on our way again!!!! Until we get to Scranton. The battery has drained once again. We exit, we ask for a garage, we make it there. The mechanic is NOT there (nor is anyone else for that matter) but the mailman thinks the owner will be back in 10 minutes. Time goes by. John gets out the battery charger and plugs into the garage's outdoor outlet - very handy. I go to the dentist office just down the street (I seem to have this thing for dentist offices) and ask for advice. Come back and the guys from the car sales place next door have decided to come back from wherever they have gone and have come over to get us started (no charge). They recommend another repair place and off we go.

Southside Collision may look like a junkyard but it's run by angels related to Click & Clack. They took us in right away (by this time it's 4:00), determined the alternator wasn't working properly, went after another one, found they didn't have the right testers to make sure it would properly connect with the computer, put the old one back on finding in the process one of the connectors wasn't "good", repaired that. Meanwhile, the twins, Jerry & Jim had been keeping me entertained while Jeff & the two nephews worked on the van. Bottom line... they felt the bad connection was probably the problem but gave us their cell numbers, directions to a good hotel, directions to a Dodge dealership in Scranton if we need it in the morning, coffee while we waited, beer at 7 - no charge (didn't I say before that people are great???!!!).

So here we are in our "hotel" having had a great Italian dinner across the street, not very far along in our travels but feeling very lucky. Can't wait 'til tomorrow to see what happens next??? Can you?

Once again heading north (it DID occur to us that this was probably the wrong direction to be heading this time of year!) we stop for an early morning visit at the Wright Brothers memorial in Kitty Hawk. WINDY!!! It must have been the reason they chose this location. Lots of opportunities for historic poses of course.

The life size reproduction of the plane and participants is great (an addition since our visit over 30 years ago - yikes! time flies quickly). Notice the two unlikely traveling companions in the background - school bus yellow Tillie and energetic Red. It probably set a record for the slowest a Corvette has ever traveled over such a distance (we were almost to Philadelphia before we parted company).

Still heading north we stopped again briefly for a "heat adjustment" - John had turned it off the day before and it became apparent by the loss of feeling in our toes that perhaps we needed it again. Our next destination was the Chesapeake Bay bridge & tunnel, an awesome feat of engineering. (Tillie's German engineering also is awesome the way one is treated to sharp jerks on a windy day, and it was WINDY! Those engineers are probably now amusement park designers.) We managed to survive and Tillie picked up Maryland and Delaware on her state map.

Finding ourselves once again at water's edge, we took the Cape May ferry to... you guessed it, Cape May. If you've not been there, chances are you've seen an article at least once on this Victorian resort community. Always looking for a bit of history we stayed at the Inn of Cape May, built in 1894 & listed on the National Registry of Historic Places (luckily for us, the rooms have been updated somewhat since then with newly renovated private baths). The next morning and still on a history bent (actually we were just looking for anyplace that was open) we had breakfast at the Congress Hall hotel built in 1816 (and a much grander place than where we stayed). John Philip Sousa stayed & performed at the hotel & in 1882 wrote the "Congress Hall March" in its honor (can you hum it?). Anyway breakfast was good - their pastry chef won 2nd prize for his lima bean cake in the annual Lima Bean Festival the beginning of October. Fortunately or unfortunately it wasn't on the menu to sample (I wonder what the other entries were & what Miss Lima Bean looked like!). I've got that festival on my "to do" list for some year coming up.

Headed home at last we stopped only briefly at Perkiomanville in Pennsylvania, the home of old VW parts, to pick up some new heater cables. They told John one VW owner had motified an electric blanket so you could plug it in the cigarette holder and thus keep your shoulders warm (I wonder if you can get dual controls...)

Tillie arrived home none too soon with snow spitting in the air. She's ready to spend the winter inside but looking forward to more adventures next year. If you find yourself twiddling your thumbs this winter and want to follow our blog at home... www.musingsfromthecountry.blogspot.com is expected to resume the beginning of November.

Yesterday we were up bright & early - 5 a.m. If you think that’s early, one of our fellow campers had already left – of course, John DID have to crawl under Tillie with a flashlight to turn on the heat before we could leave. With “heat” it only took about an hour before we began to regain feeling in our cold toes. By that time it was warm enough outside so John could revisit the underside of Tillie to turn the heat off again. We gather Tillie is a fairly typical old VW.

By noon we made it to New Bern (the second oldest city in NC & the birthplace of Pepsi) in time for some eastern NC BBQ. For those of you not familiar with NC BBQ, the western version is tomato based and a tad sweet while eastern is vinegar based with absolutely NO tomatoes. And if you’re somewhere in between, well, you never know what you’ll get. Anyway we asked a local to recommend a place & Moore’s Bar-B-Que (in business for 61 years) was everything we wanted… DE-licious. It was interesting that they were located right across the street from the Pepsi bottling plant but featured Coke in the cooler. However, whatever their beef was with Pepsi, it probably didn’t matter because everyone was ordering “sweet tea” anyway.

Took the time before leaving New Bern to visit Tryon Palace built in the early 1700’s, destroyed by fire, then rebuilt in 1952 from the original plans (the project of 2 VERY rich ladies from Goldsboro). Also restored are 14 acres of beautiful formal gardens. Our guide in the palace told us one reason beds were so short back then was that everyone slept sitting up with bolsters behind them because they ate huge dinners. (Perhaps they should pass out bolsters to everyone who works on Habitat projects in NC!) The photo is of the pigeon house next to the palace.

Tillie met up with her cousin, the red Corvette, and John’s cousins John & Judy at the Driftwood Motel on Cedar Island. (Patty was VERY excited to be spending the night in a real BED, not that Tillie isn’t cozy.) Even though the Corvette is much younger and probably more energetic.

The Outer Banks and National Seashore in NC are truly beautiful. Long, long stretches of sand beaches unspoiled by development, seabirds in abundance, & a few off-season visitors enjoying the outdoors – fishing, kite-surfing, kayaks with sails (we’d never seen those before), bikers, beach walkers, bird watchers & lighthouse gawkers.

We’re spending the night at the Surfside Hotel (you’d never guess it was on the beach would you?). Had a GREAT dinner at Windmill Point Restaurant in Nags Head. It actually has 2 claims to fame other than the food. It has the last of the windmills built over 100 years ago to grind grain in this part of the country. And it has and uses the largest collection of memorabilia from the ship S.S. United States. The photo is us sitting at the bar that came out of the ship and we’re sitting on the same seats where John Wayne, Marilyn Monroe, Jackie Kennedy & John Kennedy sat. Other notables were at the bar at different times but these happened to be together & John just HAD to sit where Marilyn sat. (The toilets in the restaurant are also from the ship – 1952 vintage & still working – there are no brass plaques so who knows who sat on those...)

Not overnight rain or sore muscles or North Carolina mud or too much to eat could keep our team from the last day “on the job”. Although we did NOT get any of the four houses completed (they hope to have them done by Christmas), we did give them a big leap forward. The railing crew (Francis & Gordon from another part of NC) completed the last of the decks we’d built.

The vinyl crew, headed by Harry & assisted by Jean (both from SC) & Patty, finished the end of one house & made a good start on another side. The energy crew with W. Va. Janet & Gail (our supervisor’s wife) finished stapling & sealing all the seam & openings in the wall insulation in one of the houses. (Did I mention these owners will end up with houses that can be heated and cooled for $25 per month? Only Tillie is more efficient. Of course, she doesn’t believe in cooling & only in heating if the temperature is moderate.)

The next photo is of Marianna & Felipe in the house that will be theirs. They were there today working on painting the walls and woodwork. (All the new owners are responsible for painting the walls & woodwork.)

On the 4th house our construction crew completed framing the walls. The last photo shows our Care-A-Vanner team in front of that house. Unfortunately we didn’t have a 50 foot ladder so you can’t see that our construction crew also completed framing the inside walls as well as the sides. (In case you’re wondering, the windows are framed behind the sheathing and the holes will be cut out later.)

So that’s it for this 2 week Habitat build. Tomorrow (if we survive the night - they're having a demolition derby tonight at the fairgrounds where we're camping & we hope they won't think Tillie is entering!) we’re up before the crack of dawn heading east & therefore avoiding all the leaf peekers heading west to the Blue Ridge. Tillie wants to see some beach and sand before heading back to New York.

Remember that rain from yesterday? Know North Carolina's neckname? Answer - the "tarheel state". (It should be the red tarhell state.) The mud from all that rain was not to be believed around the job site. It's slick as in slippery! It clings to your shoes, boots, pants, anything it touches (Yuck! It's why I'm once again over at Marge's doing laundry!) Janet had her own way of cleaning off the mud - memories of her childhood I guess. I thought at first the man on the porch had another way of dealing with the mud, but he only turned out to be one of the plaster contractors.

Rosemary (from Conn.) & Amy (from here in Lenoir) still managed to put out enough food & coffee to keep us happy over break & mud free enough that the lady from the Lutheran Church could set up lunch for us. We were all happy to have VEGETABLE soup for lunch. Tonight, one of the Baptist churches fed us dinner - a salad, lasagne, baked potato, buttered bread, pumpkin dessert & sweet tea (in case you were wondering about the weight gain). If they don't stop feeding us so much, we're going to need TWO pant sizes bigger before we leave.



In spite of the mud, our crew did manage to finish the flooring on one deck and build another one; start the vinyl siding on another side of the house we'd put the roof on; put the subfloor on the newest house going up & start construction on the sidewalls. We're all hoping to get the sidewalls up tomorrow and, to be honest, sort of "dreading" the "really good country lunch" we're to go to tomorrow at another Baptist Church. They're saying it will be our best lunch yet (we all asked if they also provided beds so we could take a nap afterwards). And in case you're worried that they're not going to feed us enough tomorrow, someone is taking us all to dinner at a local Italian restaurant. Don't be surprised if I'm not able to left a finger to enter a blog at the end of tomorrow.

Work week two & our group returns with renewed energy. In photo one, Georgia Ed works on finishing siding aided/supervised by Harry (our team leader from S. Carolina) & Ed’s wife Carol. In the next photo Patty & W. Va. Janet dig footer holes for the deck posts (all we were missing were the orange & white striped pants we noticed some of the “road crew” wearing). And, in case you’re wondering, we finished those holes & set and perfectly leveled the footer blocks (You wouldn’t have expected anything less, would you?) At the end of the day the deck was up.

Meanwhile, part of our crew started building on a fourth house. In the morning there was a bare foundation. This photo was near the end of the day. On that crew were Conn. Bill, Garry (our local supervisor in Lenoir), W. Va. Bob, & Tenn. Jim. Even more impressive, they did it all the old-fashioned way with hammer and nails (no pneumatic nailer for this part of the project.)

Thought you might also like a photo of where we’re camping. As you can see, Tillie is rather “different” from the others. The restrooms/showers are way off to the left/west. They are much appreciated since Tillie is not thus equipped. Sleeping in Tillie is very “cozy”. We have a small electric heater that takes the chill off, an electric kettle to make a nice cup of tea & a small refrigerator for OJ, milk & beer (happy hour is under Harry’s awning).

Last night we had a BIT of rain move in which makes Tillie even cozier with the soft patter of raindrops on the top to put you asleep. Then suddenly it’s 3 in the morning and you are “regretting” that nice cup of tea you had before going to bed. Look closely at our campground. See all those bare spots? It turns out that when there is a BIT of rain those bare spots collect the water turning the route between Tillie & the restrooms into a moat. (We’re beginning to see a DECIDED benefit to the RV’s.) As rain is predicted to continue until this afternoon, daylight did NOT bring a dryer route west.

At the job project the dreaded N. Carolina clay is as slick as ice, and rain moved the work inside. As this was Tuesday (a day when the local “Grumpy Old Men” show up to help), there were actually more than enough bodies for the inside projects, so the 3 of us females who did show up (the others proving to be far wiser than us) were allowed to come back to the campsite. I guess that’s a plus for me although I AM refraining from having that second cup of tea.

What does one do on a weekend in Lenoir? Well, you could visit a couple of thrift shops to pick up a warmer jacket and some jeans. And you could stop at the farmer's market (turnips & turnip greens seem to be the vegetable of choice right now). And you could stop at the Bernhardt-Seagle Hardware established in 1829. It's the oldest single family owned hardware store in the world. If you don't mind multiple owners, it's the second oldest hardware store in the US (the oldest one is in Worchester, MA).

Then for lunch you could go to the Molasses Festival at Sims Country BBQ (unfortunately they had just run out of BBQ but they still had plenty of molasses). The person with Patty was Miss Molasses from 1985 - 2005. She finally gave it up when she became a diabetic and couldn't eat molasses. Apparently the festival also gave up crowning a Miss Molasses. Who is the man by the pickup? He makes the molasses. Other entertainment? - GREAT bluegrass music by the Dollar Brothers at the festival. For a little variety we went to hear Joseph Robinson (the principle oboeist with the NY Philharmonic for over 20 years) play with the Western Piedmont Symphony at the Civic Center. A nice way to end the day.

Today we went over to Malin & Charlie's place on Turkey Hen Mountain. So peaceful and they have all these NEAT things - gravity fed water from a spring/stream up the mountain, solar electricity, a REAL root cellar, a brick first floor for solar gain for warmth in the winter, an "almost" greenhouse for growing greens in the winter. AND Malin made waffles with an old-fashioned waffle iron on the wood/gas stove - they were delicious.

This afternoon we got together with some other Habitat volunteers who are working on a project about 45 minutes away. (We'd worked with four of them on the Oneonta build this past spring.) Tillie popped her top so she wouldn't look so small next to the RV we're parked next to. She's still the favorite as far as appearance on the campsite.

Friday!!! And we’re beginning to see big changes in the houses. John LOVED working with an all women crew on the back deck (which of course they finished). From the left, Maria (who’s working on getting enough hours to qualify for a Habitat house, Anna (who already has a Habitat house here in Lenoir), John (from New York), Francis (from a different part of North Carolina), & Mary (from New Hampshire).

And then there are our unrelated “twins” – Jim (from Tennessee) and Bob (from West Virginia). They seem to be like John & our friend Bruce who 99% of the time dress alike without ever conferring on what to wear. (They only confer to make sure they do NOT wear the same thing.) Jim & Bob may look like they’re supervising but actually they’re responsible for all the siding on the house behind them. You’ll be happy to know they finished that side before calling it a day. Gordon (husband of Francis & also from a different part of NC) is the other fellow in the photo.

Good eats again today for lunch… chopped BBQ from Hannah’s which, we’re told, USA Today rated as one of the top ten BBQ places in the US. It was GOOD!!!

Tillie, not to be outdone and always on the cutting edge of gourmet dining, took us to dinner at the Elk Creek Winery near Elkin, NC. The restaurant was written up that very day in the New York Times although we made reservations there last week, well before the article was published. The writer came down to do a feature on NC BBQ and ended up including a great review for this restaurant. She wasn’t wrong either. Everything was DELICIOUS! Photo from the right – the dog (who stayed outside), Patty, Jesse Williams (our chef who stayed in the kitchen manning the wood fired oven where he cooks much of the food – also from NY), John, Judy (John’s cousin-in-law from NJ), John (John’s cousin – husband of Judy), Joann (Judy’s cousin from NJ) & Jack (his real name is John but enough is enough – husband of Joann). They’re on their way to Hilton Head so we rendezvoused for dinner. Three of us had roasted rabbit as the main course which was great. (The owner lives in a teepee beside the rows of grapes which left me wondering on the way home just HOW those rabbits came to be on the menu. Who knows what you’ll find if you go there. John was just reading where over 100 boars were killed during last year’s hunting season.)

Another beautiful and productive and FUN (aching muscles included) day in Lenoir. The first photo shows the “front porch” crew. If you look closely you might suspect that someone was not especially competent with a tape measure when it came to determining the length of the posts. However, it turns out folks here don’t run them all the way to the roof, just cut them off at rail level.

Janet (who’s in the next photo and from West Virginia) and Patty (from New York and not in the photo) were the crew putting in anti-squeak bracing (there’s probably a more technical term but who cares?) It turns out Janet’s arm held out longer than Patty’s, so Mary (from New Hampshire) stepped in to help finish the job.

Of course the highlight of the week has been Carol (from Georgia) teaching all of us how to peel a banana. Demonstrating in the last the photo is Bert (from New Hampshire sitting next to his wife Mary also from New Hampshire and a member of the anti-squeak crew). Anyway, you do NOT start peeling a banana from the stem end – you start from the blossom end. The peel is much more tender on that end and, as it turns out, a much easier way to start peeling a banana. Supposedly monkeys do it that way and they have a LOT more experience than most humans. Can’t wait to try it, can you?!

Finally, PHOTOS!!! thanks to Jeff mailing the power cord & George delivering it on his fancy-dancy motorcycle to us after a (hopefully scenic) tour of Lenoir. (George managed this in spite of my directions where I failed to mention two major turns… I also failed to take his photo – where WAS my brain yesterday!)

Photo 1 – John delivering the dog food when we dropped off Red at Leigh & Bruce’s. Harpo (their dog) morphed quickly into a doggie vacuum. You would be surprised how many individual nuggets there are in a 20 pound bag of dog food.

Photo 2 – Octoberfest ladies – Pat (Vicki’s mother), Gail (Vicki’s best friend), Vicki, Frank (Vicki’s father) (Would you ever guess Vicki is happy to once again be living in North Carolina?)

Photo 3 – Octoberfest guys – Frank (remember him?), Harry (Gail’s husband), George & John (notice their drinks are in true German fashion – how on earth do those German waitresses carry four of those mugs in each hand during the Octoberfest? You do NOT want to mess with them!)

Photo 4 – Vicki & George in front of their new home in Hickory (although it doesn’t show in the photo, Vicki & George added North Carolina to Tillie’s “I’ve been there” map)

Photo 5 – Charlie, John, Malin, Marge in Marge’s kitchen. Charlie built the house for her and did an absolutely WONDERFUL job.




Photo 6 – John & Patty hosting Bonnie & Dave (Patty’s cousins) at the campsite. (John is standing off to one side because he’d been working in the hot sun all day on a roof – believe me, not even good wife Patty wanted him any closer at that point in time!)

Photo 7 – One of the Habitat houses we’re working on - the real purpose for the trip. They are doing a GREAT job here in Lenoir and feeding us VERY well. Lunches every day and this makes the third night in a row dinner has been provided. We’re all asking where the nearest thrift shop is so we can buy bigger pants!

We're still unable to post photos -- BORING!!! Sorry, perhaps in a couple of days.
Have arrived safely in Lenoir. GREAT lunch with Malin, Marge (Malin's mother who makes a mean BBQ even if she is from Michigan) & Charlie. We're VERY lucky to have Marge right in town with a shower at the ready since the bathrooms at the Fairgrounds where we're staying in Lenoir are marginal.
Today was our first day "on the job" at the Habitat project. They have 3 houses in various stages of construction. Today was a beautiful day so part of us worked on putting up soffit and part worked on putting roof decking on. Those of us who like to have 2 feet firmly on the ground did the cutting. Our group leader, Harry, is wonderful as is Pete the fulltime Habitat coordinator. In fact, Pete is having us over to his house for a cookout tonight so.... gotta run!

Ah.... the best laid plans. Jeff mailed our power supply for the computer overnight via the USPS. This morning we went out for a wonderful Elks club breakfast and while we were away the postman came but left a note that the package wouldn't be left without a signature. The post office is now closed until Tuesday. And so it goes....

Anyway it was a day of shopping in Hickory--- furniture outlets (Vicki found an end table), antique mall (Vicki found some crystal coasters), the farmers market (Vicki bought some squash but we bought apples & sorghum-a product we don't see much in the north), a couple of thrift stores (Vicki found Patty a shirt & a sweater), and the local BBQ place - came home with wonderful NC BBQ. Our friend Phyllis (who's on her way to Florida) joined us and had her second BBQ dinner in one day - she rated them both good. We also tried to find the zero energy Habitat house here in Hickory but it proved to be unfindable. As one lady said, it's hard to tell someone how to get anywhere in Hickory. Tillie enjoyed a day of rest.

Well folks, no photos today - you'll have to use your imagination (a certain member of our traveling group - male, so that let's out me & the mesquitos - forgot the power cord to our computer. Yesterday was the last we could use it to upload photos until the power cord arrives in the mail). Anyway... today was a beautiful drive as we continued south through Virginia and into the mountains of North Carolina. We decided to give Tillie a break and take back roads including going to Cripple Creek from a song out of Tillie's youth. The trees are turning color down here too and we were up and over the eastern Continental Divide before we knew what happened.

We knew we were in North Carolina as soon as we saw the sign stating it was a state law to "burn headlights" while wipers are on or riding a motorcycle. We think they drive the same vehicles in NC as those of us in the north, but perhaps their headlights are different. Anyway, Hickory was today's destination as our friends George & Vicki just "retired" here. Vicki is VERY happy to be back in her hometown with family & friends. This evening was spent with some of them at the local German restaurant for their Octoberfest. GREAT food, live music, Octoberfest beer in liter steins, even a man dressed in lederhosen at the next table, and, of course, the chicken dance - lots of fun. No wonder Tillie was so anxious to go south since she's almost all German with maybe a touch of Mexican (some of her replacement parts, we must admit, were NOT made in Germany).

Even after cooling her tires for a couple of months, Tillie started right up and we were off! (at 6:30 a.m. - talk about being anxious to get going!) The morning was cool but John had gotten the heat controls working on his side and the heat fastened open on my side - felt wonderful. Then we began to notice the mesquitoes. It seemed they had organized a tour group to travel south with us. As folks would pass us on the road they would think we were waving when all of a sudden our hand would go splat against the window. Then they probably just thought we were crazy. By the time we stopped for lunch in West Virginia there were more dead bugs on the inside of the windshield than on the outside but the tour group has mostly been eliminated.

Once we were on the road again with a clean windshield and minus the bug distraction, I began to notice my feet were getting warm, then downright hot. It's amazing how well Tillie's heater works when it's 70 degrees outside. Luckily the McCormick farm in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia was both beautiful and had a nice secluded parking lot so John could crawl under the VW and turn OFF that wonderful heater. In case you need to refresh your memory (I did), Cyrus McCormick invented the mechanical grain reaper in 1831 thus changing agriculture forever. According to the brochure it took 90% of the population in 1831 to provide food for our nation, now it takes 2%. Obviously they weren't and still aren't using my gardening techniques.

Then it was on to Foamhenge (someone has actually created a lifesize Stonehenge out of foam). There's nothing more I want to tell you about that. But we did add Virginia to Tillie's "I've been there" map.

Tonight we're camping at (trust me, the campground is much better than the name) Jellystone Park.