Monkey Bars and Such

Well here is a picture of the much better looking garage. The front and right side now have a high shelf installed with the "monkey bars" below. These bars can be moved in 10 different increments for height and width. Then there are several different hooks that can be snapped on and slid back and forth to accommodate whatever you have to hang. It's very versatile. I consolidated and straightened stuff on the shelves on the left and hopefully we can keep this semblance of order for awhile. Ted straightened up his work room some so my "order gene" will be calm for awhile Ted hopes.

I finally won at cards. The big Shang Hai group meets at a restaurant on the first Tuesday and I was home so I could join them. Not only did I win some money (I came in second), I also had a Shang Hai which is the ultimate in this game. It is sort of like Gin in that you have to be able to lay your whole hand down in the configuration called for in that round using all 12 cards. I probably won't be available to play with them again until March.

Wednesday we were up early to take the trailer to have the stud and lug nut put on the wheel. It was broke off by the fellows up in Kentucky and they couldn't find one the right size so we've had 7 instead of 8 on one wheel. That would normally only take 5 minutes at the shop but Ted noticed a busted shock. One was found in Houston and we had to wait for it to be delivered. We were able to get the trailer fixed, put it away and get to the doctor for our annual check up by 1 pm. Everything checked out with me and I had my blood drawn. Same with Ted except he had to give a urine sample too for some reason. We'll hear from our doctor in a day or two about all the results.

I was asked to work at Change Over for the thrift shop where I work for Junior Forum. I had no idea of the number of boxes of Christmas stuff acquired through the year and set aside for this pre-Thanksgiving sale. Lauren, Jill and I did nothing all night but break down boxes. We filled an entire dumpster with ones not good enough to save and a shed with good ones. They started their big sale the next day and I was assured all the Christmas items would be gone long before Thanksgiving. We were served sandwiches and salad while we worked and it was a fun atmosphere though everyone was working very hard. I bought two gold stars to match one I have at home for my mantel this Christmas.

I'm not sure how Ted does it but he can wake himself up when he needs to without an alarm clock. At 7:15 he came out of the bedroom and was ready to get things together for our camping trip with the Boomers this weekend. We had to make soup for Friday night, pastries and juice for Saturday breakfast and Ted's pulled pork was all done for Saturday night. So we didn't need to take much beyond that in the way of food. Coffee and such stay in the trailer. We gathered a few clothes, left a note for Chris, hitched up and were on our way around 10 o'clock.

We received a call from our doctor on my cell (he always calls himself, not his staff) to tell me our tests were all good. He said to tell Ted his bloodwork was beautiful. He is always amazed at Ted's numbers. Dr. C told us to keep on doing whatever it is we're doing but officially he is required to tell us to exercise and lose weight. Point taken!

It took about four hours to arrive at the campground. We were the second to arrive and got set up. This is a beautifully wooded campground and we will enjoy being with the Boomers again. Soon others started arriving and we visited awhile and made arrangements to go to Bodacious BBQ for dinner. Then I took a nap, probably due to the muscle relaxant the doctor gave me for a kink in my neck.

After a good dinner we sat around a propane fire, the only kind allowed due to the burn ban in effect. It got pretty chilly so we didn't stay out too long. Ted didn't get a nap so we were in bed by 10.

We drove to Canton Trade Days on Friday and followed the traffic to a sea of cars parked in a field. Then we ventured into the mix. OMG this place is bigger than huge and it's hard to figure out where you are, where you've been and how to get where you want to go. We spent about five hours there and were both whipped. I bought very little but it wasn't due to lack of availability. We simply don't need anything. But it was fun looking.

Dinner that night was soup and sandwich night. We made Tortellini Soup which was a big hit since the whole pot was gone. I tried three different kinds and they were all excellent. The fellows headed to the firepit and the gals sat inside talking. Before we had come to dinner, one of the ladies caught her thumb in the awning support and ended up being taken to the hospital. They were not back yet when we went in. The next morning she came to breakfast all bandaged up with a broken thumb and was told to see an orthopedic doctor on Monday.

Everyone took off for Canton but we decided one day was enough. We went to the state park to check out the campground, rode into town to check on church for tomorrow, filled up with fuel and drove around the town a bit.

Eventually the shoppers started trickling back in and groups gathered around the campfire and at other RVs. Mudslides were served, the fire became known as "Don's Hot Rocks" and things just got funnier and funnier from there on in. If laughing is good for the soul, we're all in much better shape this week! What a great time.

Dinner was potluck and there was a great variety of all different foods. Afterwards I played Skipbo with the ladies and Ted headed to the fire pit. When I went looking for him he was already inside watching the LSU/Alabama game.

We went to the cathedral for Mass early Sunday morning, then prepared to leave. We got on the road about 10:30 and everyone else was already gone except the few staying over until Monday. We had the RV put away and were home by 2:30. We are signed up for the Christmas rally so we'll see these folks again shortly!

Laughter is an instant vacation. ~ Milton Berle