December 1, 2011

Can you believe it is already December…we will be saying good-bye to 2011 and hello to 2012 very shortly.   Hope you have all been making your Christmas lists and checking them twice for Santa…you gotta believe.  And what about black Friday and cyber Monday?  Did everyone get the bargains they were looking for?  We decided that until the retailers starting including diesel, food and insurance in their holiday sales there was not one thing we needed.  Flying J, Kroger, AARP…do you hear me???????

We have started the push at Amazon.com…we have started working 11 hour days, rather nights, and have also added one more day to the work week so we are putting in 60 hours a week…well, I am trying.  We are “scheduled” (this is Amazon.com speak for mandatory) to work 50 hours this week with another 10 hours optional.  Also Amazon.com won’t let us work more than 6 days in a row…isn’t that special.  I wish you could see the Amazon.com distribution center that we work at…they have one million square feet…the original building belonged to Golden Books.  I will certainly be glad when December 24 rolls around and we exit the building for the last time but there are things we will miss.  Our little group that sits together for breaks and lunch is so much fun…we do laugh a lot.  We are all pickers and love to find out what interesting items we have each picked for customer orders…believe me you can get ANYTHING at Amazon.com…ANYTHING.  So much for work.

We had a great Thanksgiving…we actually caught a break and did not have to go in to work until 10:30 pm.  That gave us enough time to have a lovely Thanksgiving dinner with friends Dan and Rita.  Rita brought the turkey and pumpkin pie and I provided the rest.  Everything was so good…especially being able to enjoy our time with good friends…we met Rita and Dan at Adventureland in 2005 and have seen each other at least once a year since then.  Last year we had Thanksgiving dinner at their place…I think it is a great tradition.

 

Weather has turned cold at night…Bob has had to scrape ice from our windshield when we got off of work at 4:30 am a couple of times…lowest has been 18 degrees one night but the days are just beautiful.

Moving on.

Not Much Going On…November 20, 2011

 

     Just checking in…not much happening in Coffeyville, Kansas…we are still hanging in there at Amazon.com.  Only 5 more weeks to go…they are starting to bring on more and more people…ramping up for “peak”.  Pretty soon we will be running over each other…especially as we are pickers.  If we are picking in an area where other people are stowing product, we pretty much have the right of way.  After all, you great people placing those orders with Amazon.com don’t receive your product until we can get it picked and on the way to shipping…we have the power!

When we got off of work at 3:30 am on Saturday a group of us made our weekly trek to the doughnut shop…can’t go to a club for happy hour so it’s doughnuts for us.  We probably had about 14 or so this week…as I said, there’s not much going on right now.  Anyway, we got home about 5:00 and hit the sack for a couple of hours…well, I was up by 7:00 am but Bob slept on until early afternoon.  There was a craft show starting at 8:30 and some friends and I wanted to go early so we could then go home and get some serious sleep.  Unfortunately, Jean had come down with a sinus infection and just was not up to making the show but Deb Gray and I followed through and met at the show.  It was pretty small but it was nice just to have something to do.  Here we are with other friends, Dan and Rita, who were also there.

 

Deb and I decided to go on to Chetopa, Ok to see what was going on at the annual Pecan Festival.  Did not take long to make our way through the arts and crafts and then we were on our way back to Coffeyville.  So after a short nap  Bob and I drove to the small…I mean really small…I mean tiny, tiny community of Liberty to have beer and burgers at a local…er, establishment called Jack’s.  The real highlight is that they have a pool tournament on Saturday nights.  I do have to say it was a nice time with Deb and Paul and Barb and Bubby and the burgers are wonderful.

Weather has been cold today so we have done nothing but sleep and watch TV.  Back to work tomorrow evening…remember, only 5 more weeks to go.

Moving on.

Sunday October 7, 2011

 

Things are going pretty well as we continue to work at Amazon.com here in Coffeyville, Kansas.  We have both had colds but Bob is back to normal and I am almost there…quite a few of us have been sick.

Weather continues to be nice…we had a couple of nights below freezing but mostly good weather.  I do have to say that yesterday we felt the effects of the earthquake that struck north/central Oklahoma.  There was a quake in the early morning hours and then last night we were watching the local news out of Tulsa when the motorhome started swaying…the newscaster announced that Tulsa had just experienced another earthquake and that it was stronger than the one they had early that morning.  It only lasted a few seconds and if we had not heard the news cast we probably would have thought it was a strong gust of wind.  Tulsa is about 70 miles south of Coffeyville…we are right on the Kansas/Oklahoma line.

We had to work Halloween night but Cissy got to go out and parade around the RV park in her Halloween costume that afternoon…she was so cute!

Friday night we were sent home at lunch time (10:00 pm) from Amazon…there was a problem with the water, or lack of, so they closed the entire building.  Several of us went to the Pizza Hut to eat and enjoy our unexpected time off.

I have to learn how to transfer pictures from my phone to my computer without them coming out so poorly…sorry guys. 

Today we drove to Pawhuska, OK…did not really start out to go there but that’s where we ended up.  Interesting…it is home to the Osage Nation.  The town is small…around 3,000 people and not very pretty.  I did think the Episcopal Church was attractive.

I think there was a church on almost every corner in town.

Pawhuska is supposedly the site of the first Boy Scout troop in America…1909.

On our way home we stopped in Bartlesville, OK and spent about an hour at the Osage Casino…not winners tonight.

Moving on.

October 2, 2011 Coffeyville, Kansas

 

Time flies when you are having fun…now if I was just having fun!!!   Awww, I can’t really say that.  Tomorrow night we start our third week of working at Amazon.com in Coffeyville, Kansas.  Bob and I are both picking this year and staying very busy and walking a bunch…I mean a bunch.  My feet have been killing me so we made a trip to Brown’s shoe store on Wednesday and bought new shoes, orthotics and socks…well, I now have happy feet!  I actually came home Thursday and Friday mornings and my feet were not throbbing…yippee. 

When we got off of work on Friday, several of us met at the local Daylight Donut shop…they open at 4:00 am.  My friend Carolyn says our meeting there is like most people that go to a bar for a drink on Friday afternoons…this is the closest we can get to that concept.  You take your kicks where you can get them in Coffeyville.

Saturday is always great because it is a day off…I didn’t get up until around 1:00 pm, got ready and headed off to Wal-Mart.  Home again and started preparing a hash brown casserole.  The owners of the RV park we are in, Buckeye RV Estates, were having a cookout for everyone with them furnishing the hamburgers and hotdogs and fixings and everyone contributing a covered dish…well some of the dishes weren’t covered.  There were about 70 or so people there, everyone had a good time and the food was awesome. 

Dueling grills.

By the time everyone arrived the tables were loaded with food.

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Our friend Rita was presenting an RVers flashlight to a couple that is leaving so they can find their way back to Buckeye…it was really cute…I believe it was a toilet paper cardboard roll with matches taped all around it.  Way to go Rita.

Some of the guys built a campfire when it started to cool down but Bob and I decided to make our exit as there were several college football games on TV that we wanted to watch.  Got home, we each claimed a sofa and got ready for some great football…ten minutes later we were both sound asleep.  Oh well, so much for time off. 

Sunday was pretty much a repeat as far as resting went.  I did manage to cook breakfast about 2:00 pm, did lots of laundry and then got in some fishing for about an hour or so while Bob sat outside and read with Miss Cissy sleeping by his chair.  She was very tired.  It was a good day for the Moores.  Back to work tomorrow night.

Moving on.

Friday September 2, 2011

 

Our time to leave Colorado is fast approaching…this is the last weekend that our campground will be open…we lock the gates on Monday at 1:00 pm.  We should be completely full for the next 4 days…this is good because it means we won’t be cleaning sites every morning…most people coming in will be here until Monday.

We have had a lot going on this summer with Bob’s situation and the passing of our sweet Little Buddy Moore but bottom line is that we have enjoyed our time here at Peak One Campground.  Our campers have been wonderful…there are always one or two stinkers but mostly good.  The area is just beautiful and Bob has really enjoyed the root beer floats from A&W. 

My sister and brother-in-law came in from Texas this past weekend to spend a few days with us…and to beat the 100+ degree temps that are having at home.  We drove over Loveland Pass and I got this picture of Tom and Bob.  It was quite chilly at that altitude…I hurried back to the car after snapping the picture.

Another day we headed south of Frisco to Buena Vista, CO…a nice little town with a cute historic district…luckily Bob was able to find some Blue Bell ice cream to keep up his strength.  While riding around, Tom spotted what he first thought was some yard statuary…but then it moved!

The gentleman that owned the house came out and shook more apples from the tree for the mule deer.  He told us that he had lived there for 2 years and the deer keeps coming back to eat…he actually touched the deer on the antlers and got him to eat out of his hand.  He said that as soon as the animal starts to shed the velvet on his rack, he would not get close to him as the deer would start to get aggressive because it would be rutting season for him.  It was so cool to be able to get this close to see this animal.

It was a tough day for Tom and Cissy…

We have had no reports of any bear in our area all summer but in the paper earlier this week there were reports of 2 bear sightings within just a few miles of the campground.  Unfortunately one of the bears was killed on I-70 at the Frisco exit which is only 2.5 miles from us.  The other report was of a sow and her 3 cubs…the sow was also killed on the highway and 2 of the cubs panicked and climbed a utility pole and were electrocuted…the third cub was captured and removed from the area.  We have hundreds of ground squirrels (look like chipmunks to us) and black crows but that has been about it for wildlife…we did see 2 rabbits late one night in the campground.

We have worked with some great people this summer…meet “the kids”  Jim and Betty…they are a part of our maintenance team.  They are our hippies…they live in a converted school bus named Rocket, use an outside shower and have been sleeping in a tent all summer.  Jim runs the bus on used grease that he collects from a couple of businesses.  They are so cool! 

Moving on.

Surprise, surprise! August 15, 2011

I can’t even remember when I last posted so if I repeat myself just be gracious and bear with me. 

We arrived in Frisco, CO and began our camp hosting job at Peak One Campground around the 20th of May.  We have had a good summer but have been very, very busy with everything that goes on in the campground…we oversee 28 sites which is just enough for me.  We take care of cleaning the sites when a camper leaves, the bathrooms and lots and lots of paperwork.

We have also had some personal things going on…at 11:00 am on June 28 we had to let our Little Buddy Moore go to sleep…he had gotten to where he had not eaten in several days and was not able to even keep a sip of water down.  We spent the entire day of the 27th at the vet’s office trying to make things better but by the next morning it was evident that this was not to be.  Our little guy will always be with us in spirit and in our hearts.

At the same time, Bob was going through a really weird situation.  He, as a pedestrian, was hit by a travel trailer that was coming into the campground.  Long story short…he was knocked unconscious…had a CT scan at the ER to confirm that he had a concussion…referred to an internist because the CT scan revealed that Bob had hydrocephalus and the ER doctor felt he had had it for a long time.  Internist ordered a spinal tap…then referred Bob to a neurosurgeon in Denver.  He ordered an MRI and final diagnosis is that yes, Bob does indeed have hydrocephalus and was probably born with it…his ventricles are “huge” per the neurosurgeon.  Final word is that they don’t want to put a shunt in as they feel Bob has compensated for this all through his life and they are afraid the shunt might do more harm than good.  This is good news as far as we are concerned…at least we now know to watch for certain things that might…key word is might…take place or may never happen.  They are betting that things probably won’t change for Bob…thank you God for a great report.

Now for the fun things…we actually took the time to have our first campfire last week and treat ourselves to s,mores!  I thought Bob was going to OD on them…Carolyn thinks she outdid him but I am not sure.  We had a great evening with our friends and co-hosts, Carolyn and Roy and friends Nelda and Jim who are hosting at another campground not far from us.

Cissy says “ Whatdyamean there aren’t any more?”

We had three gentlemen camping with us the other night from Arkansas…hope you can see the little brown bear that rode the whole way on the back of the motorcycle in the center…kind of hard to see.  The gentleman said the wind caused the bears arms to flap and all the kids in cars thought the bear was waving at them…they also travelled with a gnome that belonged to one of their uncles.

Today we had to come into Denver…getting new tires on the motorhome in the morning.  We are staying at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds which is located in Golden, CO…a suburb of Denver.  Nice camping area and easy to get to.  We will return to Frisco as soon as we are done tomorrow…the company we work for, Thousand Trails, is having an employee appreciation dinner tomorrow evening.

Moving on.

May 19, 2011 Frisco, Colorado

 

Good Thursday morning…it’s about 6:30 am Mountain Standard Time in Frisco, Colorado.  Frisco is 80 miles west of Denver just off of I-70.  We are in the White Mountains National Forest…our campground is Heaton Bay.  Frisco is where we will be spending the next 4 months working as campgrounds hosts but Heaton Bay campground is not going to be our location…we will be about 5 miles from here at Peak One.  Peak One is on the other side of Frisco on the road to Breckenridge, CO…Breckenridge is less than 7 miles from Frisco.  But I digress…

This is what we woke up to this morning.

We have had temps at or below freezing at night since we got here last Sunday.  We have predictions of snow/rain for the next few days and have had snow flurries off and on all day yesterday.

Today is our first actual day of work…at least being on the payroll.  We are not at our campground, Peak One, because they are having a problem with the water.  We have 3 loops at Peak One…Bob and I are hosting loops A & C and our friends Carolyn and Roy Trout are hosting loop B.  We drove out and checked out our loops on Tuesday and Carolyn & Roy are not even able to get into their host space due to snow.  Roy was able to drive through it because his truck has four wheel drive…there is only one bad area of snow but there is no way they could get their motorhome through it right now.  Not sure exactly when we will move…right now we have electricity but they have to bring us water and pump our tanks.  We will have full hookups once we they get Peak One up and running.

After spending last summer in the Black Hills National Forest in Hill City, South Dakota I have to say we were shocked when we saw this area.  We had heard that the forest here had been devastated due to pine beetles but we were not quite prepared for what we found.  Heaton Bay looks pretty good…Peak One looks worse…it is not a pretty campground at all.  I would be hard pressed to find a suitable area to pitch a tent at any of these campgrounds…they are filled with tree stumps where the Forest Service has had to cut down trees to try and stop the infestation and to clear dead trees. 

I guess I should tell you that these campgrounds are located on and around Dillon Reservoir which is very pretty.  The water is low right now but the folks in the area are worried about the run off once the snow melts in the surrounding mountains and reaches the “lake”. 

The towns of Frisco, Dillon and Silverthorne sort of all run together and are very pretty…I will have more pictures soon. 

This is a picture of the Dillon Lake (reservoir is too hard to keep typing) that I took the other day from one of the public areas.

A large portion of the lake is still iced over. 

 

When Bob came back in from taking the dogs out a few minutes ago, he commented that it did not feel like it was only 26 degrees…I am thinking it feels warmer because the air is so dry…but 26 is 26.

Moving on.

Kentucky April 2011 Part II

While in Kentucky drove to Columbus where a battle between the North and South took place.  The Confederates laid a chain across the Mississippi River with the idea that when the Yankee ships would be stopped by the chain…did not happen.  Here is James with the anchor and a part of the chain…the links were massive.  James said when he was younger, he and his friends would prove how strong they were by how many of the links they could lift off the ground…I think he said his record was thirteen.  This is a beautiful park and they also have a campground.

These young men were to be part of a battle re-enactment that was taking place later that day in the park.

 

We then went to Clinton, KY where we attended the first annual Chicken Festival.  They had several vendor booths and lots of food plus live music. Here are Bob, James and Sandra checking some of the wares.

And Bob makes friends wherever he goes.

James and Sandra used to sell funnel cakes at festivals such as this.  James thought this booth looked so much like the one he had built…and it was!  It looked much better when James built it but this is the second or third owner after he sold it.

And so it was time to say goodbye to the Chicken Festival…we hope to be back again.  Thanks to Sandra and James for all their hospitality, great food and friendship.  James even prepared homemade ice cream Sunday afternoon.  We left on Monday morning.  Goodbye Kentucky.

Moving on.

Kentucky, April 2011 Part I

 

I know I am going backward in time…such is my life.

After leaving Red Bay, AL we headed north to visit our friends Sandra and James at their home in Fulton, KY.  We met them at a Mardi Gras parade in Foley, AL 3 years ago…they spend the month of February on the beach in Gulf Shores, AL…actually the stay in a condo on the beach.

They live outside of town so we had room to park the rv next their house. 

Their place is just lovely…I forgot to take a picture of their pond that is stocked with catfish and crappie. 

Sandra had a great dinner prepared for us the night we got there and James even prepared homemade ice cream one day…what wonderful people and hosts they are. 

On Saturday we travelled north to Paducah, KY for their annual quilt show.  I have to say I was truly overwhelmed by the beautiful quilts I saw…we spent most of the day there and still did not begin to see all of it.  There were quilts from all over the world but a number of them that won ribbons were from Japan…this is truly an art form.

This was one of my favorites…

I had told Sandra that we have friends, Mary and Wayne Wolz from Caldwell, TX who have a business called Mary’s Patterns.  I knew they were involved with several really big quilt shows but wasn’t sure if they were still doing Paducah.  Well, golly…we turned a corner and guess who we found!

Mary is so creative and talented with all of her designs.