Monday, April 02, 2012

WE ARE OVER HALF WAY HOME & LOOKING FORWARD TO COOLER TEMPS

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THIS KIND OF SUMS UP OUR UNCOMFORTABLE HOT HUMID DAY
It’s 3:21 in the afternoon on a hot humid Missouri day somewhere about 38 miles west of St. Louis.  We are all set up in a Walmart parking lot & I’m watching, ‘Leave It To Beaver’ on television.  Another long day on the road but we are over half way home.
Knew we had to be on our way early this morning so we were up & at em about 3 a.m.  Rolled out of of the Weatherford Walmart parking lot about 3:55 a.m. & with a big cheesy half moon in my driver’s side rear view mirror we headed east to do battle with the morning rush in Oklahoma City.
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HEADING INTO TULSA OKLAHOMA THIS MORNING…BY THE WAY I TAKE ALL THE PICS FROM THE DRIVERS SEAT WITH MY NIKON D-90
The advice the lady at the info center had given us Sunday was spot on.  In a darkened construction zone we found the ramp leading to the Kilpatrick Turnpike & quickly realized we were just about the only one’s on it…..just like the lady said.  By using the Kilpatrick, Turner, & Will Rogers Parkways, & another one in between I think, we were carried right round the north end of Oklahoma City to Tulsa.  Aside from a distant glow in the sky & a bunch of distant lights we never really did see Oklahoma City.  But, we did see something else.  Toll booths!!  Those Turnpikes cost us a total of $22 but I consider it money well spent for peace of mind from morning rush traffic woes.
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We blew into Tulsa just about morning rush hour but Garmin Gertie (our GPS) was up to the challenge & took us right through Tulsa without any problems
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<<< JUST NEVER KNOW WHO YOU MIGHT SEE IN A SHOE STORE
Our day was basically uneventful with the exception of having to unhook the Jeep to back ourselves out of a McDonald’s in Joplin Missouri.  We settled for egg salad sandwich's in the rig & promptly blew right out of town.
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We sure are not used to this humidity & it is true what they say about Arizona’s dryer climate being more comfortable.  Temp outside our rig right now is 87F.  Have had our dash air on for 3 afternoons in a row now while driving.  We expect to be in much cooler temps within a couple days.  Yaaaay.
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OK, it is now 8:30 at night & things have changed since I wrote the above paragraphs.  We are no longer at the sweltering Walmart location west of St. Louis.  We are now east of St. Louis in a Crackle Barrel lot.  We just couldn’t take the heat & humidity any longer so decided to bring in the slides, pull up the anchor, stow the gear, fire up the engine, put the dash Air on Max & hit the road.
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Headed out the parking lot & swung up onto I-44 heading East again.  It was 7 o’clock & I knew the 5 o’clock rush would be over & we could probably make it through St. Louis relatively unscathed.  The cold air coming out of the dash air vents felt so great I could have drove all night.
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FUEL STOP IN JOPLIN MISSOURI
Cities always look much nicer by night & I did enjoy seeing all the city lights as Garmin Gertie ripped us right through downtown St. Louis & spit us out the other side heading East.  Sun was down, temperatures were down & Kelly spotted a Cracker Barrel.  Compared to that noisy Walmart with all it’s traffic & 40 minute freight trains roaring by half a mile away we felt like we were parked in a quiet outdoor Library setting.  Now, how nice is that:))   
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HUMIDITY CONKS KELLY OUT & FRAZZLES MY HAIR!!
I have been sooooo enjoying the look of Spring as we travel through these emerald green April States of Oklahoma & Missouri.  The scenery is identical to our May scenery back home in Bayfield.  Fruit trees are blossoming & I even saw my first dandelions at a Rest Area.  Heard my first lawn mower too.
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Glanced at our mileage stats today & it looks like we did 484 miles on our first day, 488 miles the second day & 586 miles today.  We’re getting there……………
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PHEEBS IS ALWAYS ECSTATIC AT EACH STOP TO GET OUT & RUN AROUND IN THE GREEN GRASS
Been wanting a better pair of shoes for awhile & as luck would have we parked right beside a shoe outlet store earlier this afternoon.  Got me a pair of  brown Columbian runners.
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To hot to cook so we walked over to a Steak & Shake place.  Last time I was in one of them was nearly15 years ago in Sarasota Florida with my Aunt Jean.
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KELLY TRIES OUT A SPAGHETTI & CHILE DISH….PLUS A CHOCOLATE MILKSHAKE
Had a question about why we didn’t have Motor cremated in Arizona before we left.  From experience we know this process can take nearly a week & we didn’t have a week to spare with me having to be back in Ontario for an important medical appointment.  The Wickenburg Vet handles the arrangements & the earliest we could get Motor in was Monday.  Just like people, there are facilities which specifically cremate animal remains so arrangements have to be made such as transporting the animals to & from the facility.  It all takes time & time is something we did not have a lot of.
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ROUTE 66 RUNS PARALLEL TO I-44 IN PLACES & THAT IS A STRETCH OF THE OLD HIGHWAY ON THE RIGHT
New Blog Follower HEMBREE joins the Bunch in the last few days of this winter’s travels. Hang in for the summer Hembree & we’ll have the big wheels rolling in October again.
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And again, thank you everyone for all your kind thoughts & words regarding our dear little Motormouse.  Even had comments from as far away as Australia & New Zealand.  We are missing our little Mouse so much & I think it is probably going to impact me more when we get home.
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GROANER’S CORNER:((   A vampire bat came flapping in from the night covered in fresh blood, and parked himself on the ceiling of the cave to get some sleep.
Pretty soon all the other bats smelled the blood and started hassling him about where he got it. He told them to leave him alone and let him get some sleep.
However, they persisted until he finally gave in. "Okay, follow me," he said as he flapped out of the cave with hundreds of bats behind him.
Down through a valley they went, across a river and into a forest of trees. Finally he slowed and all the other bats excitedly milled around him.
"Now, do you see that tree over there?" he asked. "YES, YES, YES!" all the other bats screamed in a frenzy.
"Good," shouted the blood soaked bat, "because I didn't!"
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- Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right  now...AL.
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

26 comments:

  1. Hi Al and Kelly
    What neat photos of your Fur Buddies especially Little Cora. And the grin on Pheebs is priceless. Aren't they all such treasures!
    Take care and best wishes for continued safe travels.
    Don in Okla.

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  2. The groaner today is a keeper! I can understand why you are willing to drive hi-mileage days to get out of the humidity and heat, and just get home to Ontario. I have done my share of that but now I prefer shorter driving days, although I will probably drive the big miles on my way to NY. Humidity is much more preferable to me than arid desert dryness. My skin shrivels up, and I'm still young enough to be vain about it!

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  3. 'conked and frazzled'..sounds like a great 'heat and humidity filled day'..hope tomorrow brings you cooler breezes and a 'good hair day'.

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  4. Wowzers, now THAT's a milkshake!!! I can understand you looking forward to cooler temperatures. That heat/humidity combination just drains a body. Kelly looks plum worn out.

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  5. I don't mind 500 mile days in the car, but to do it in a motor home while pulling a jeep would tire me out a lot. I know you want to get on home, but stay safe out there.....

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  6. Boy you are really flying, be careful, you both look worn right out.

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  7. I grew up in that midwest heat and humidity. No thanks. I like the AZ dry heat. And I cooked my brains in the Stockton WalMart, not good. Better to drive, and especially with the AC. You do put down a lot of miles. The end is in sight. Take care out there.

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  8. Hi Al an Kelly - I have a very weak signal here in Death Valley, CA - from CindyL (Moonfly13) -

    "The Lights of Albuquerque" is a hauntingly beautiful old country song by Jim Glaser on his album "Man in the Mirror" - you would love it - there is a very old grainy video on YouTube of him singing it - some of the lyrics are:


    Desert moon, lights the freeway up tonight,
    Chevy van, how I wish that you could fly.
    Gotta get to her and tell her I was wrong,
    But I'm still such a long, long way from home,
    And the road goes on, on and on, on and on.
    But the Lights of Albuquerque, will soon be shining bright,
    Like a diamond in the desert, like a beacon in the night.
    And I wonder if she'll take me back, will she understand?
    Will the Lights of Albuquerque, shine for me again?"

    Those lights and that song and the emotions you are experiencing as the road stretches long between your 2 homes on this sad journey will live with you forever

    My prayers and tears follow you -

    Travel Safe - CindyL (Moonfly13)

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  9. Wow, you guys are making some miles - do be careful, I agree with the others - you look exhausted.

    I'm sure you will miss Motor more when you get home, and also because you will have some time then to slow down and think. She was such a cutie, I already miss seeing her pictures.

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  10. You are making good time and soon you will be in cooler weather.

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  11. You were writing that you were heading back onto I-40 but it must have been I-44 west of St.Louis or I-70 or I-55 east of the city. We did go thru St.Louis a couple of times and it sure is a humid place. Must be all that water from the Mississippi evaporating.
    Be safe on the road!

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  12. When it's hot like that we find that the dash air just doesn't cut it so we turn on the genny and run the rigs A/C. Was wondering why you don't do that? Jackson doesn't handle the heat well either so we run it mainly for him, but we enjoy it. I did some research and you use the same amount of gas whether you're running the dash air or the genny. And the genny gets a good work out which they say is necessary to do now and then for it.

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  13. Should've stopped by our place for the night...this is the earliest we have ever had to turn on our air.....We are 40 miles west of st louis so you were in the neighborhood. and our driveway is free. And Riggs would have loved to play w/ pheebs
    Have a safe rest of your trip

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  14. So grateful that you are over half way home & staying safe. You both look worn out & with good reason. You could run into some rainy weather today, so take it easy. Playing golf today, will get an email off to you soon.Thoughts & prayers are with you every mile of the way. Miss seeing Cora. You did the right thing to bring her home. Pheebe appears to be missing her too. Love & hugs...Aunt Jean

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  15. Cool and windy here in Congress yesterday. Supposed to warm up a little today and tomorrow...But it is NOT humid :-)!!!
    I'm enjoying riding along with you,,,,we've been to every one of those places ........Your making good time...
    Stay safe,,,,were right there with you in spirit...

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  16. You should be cruising up into cooler weather today at our latitude... We are damp and wet this morning in the 40's and only due to get in the 50's today anyhow.

    Welcome back to the Great Lakes!!!!

    ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
    Karen and Steve
    (Our Blog) RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard
    http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com

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  17. Looks like you guys are about to drive out of the hot and humid temps very soon. That will be a relief!!

    I bet that milkshake hit the spot!!

    Yes, the Groaners Corner is a definite keeper...too funny!!
    Drive safe and take care!!

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  18. The horse is going to the barn just like my horse (aka Michael) did! You guys are making good time and doing well! That was such a scary photo of you Al--shame on you for putting it on the blog!!! And we are with you on the humidity issue. While in Florida this winter we both decided humidity wasn't for us, back to the southwest!

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  19. So glad you made it through Tulsa without problems. I swear they have every major road under construction somewhere in town. We get lost when we go shopping there. Sorry about the heat and humidity! I think we may have to "get out of dodge" early this year to beat the heat.

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  20. Hi Guys looking like your making great time do be carefull drive safe and I know your looking forward to cooler temp. not to worry here in Bayfield it's 45 today so there you go!!! You should like that haha anyway take care see you back in Bayfield soon!
    Jan

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  21. That's lots of miles under the wheels, but don't get too worn out..It can catch up with you..Safe travels..

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  22. glad to see your over 1/2 way there it won't be long now...as for motor-we would have done it exactly the way you have done it to get her home...and yes I'm sure it will hit you harder when you get home..:( hugs folks-nice shoe by the way

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  23. HO-ly cow. That's some mileage! We have to pull over if we discover we've made 200 miles.

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  24. You were right on with what you said regarding pet cremations. There is a fellow here at the Escapees Park in Pahrump that drives into Las Vegas 3 times a week to pick up animals that are then cremated at the facilities here.

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  25. Al and Kelly, as another commenter mentioned, we always ran with the generator and A/C running in hot weather. The miles you're putting on combined with the stress of the heat is wearing you out not to mention grief. Your plates are full, that's for sure. I don't know how much further you have to go mile wise, but please be careful. A lot of people care about the Bayfield Bunch. Glad you're keeping us posted.

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  26. Pet cremation tulsa oklahoma



    Wowzers, now THAT's a milkshake!!!

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