Whelan's Wheels (go round and round, round and round): Just another Sunday

Sunday, July 6, 2008

Just another Sunday

So last night, being Saturday and all, we decided to explore some more of Sioux Falls.

We have been in search of the local Elks Lodge - what a fiasco that has proven to be. We have three books listing Lodges addresses and phone numbers etc. Well this particular lodge has a different address listed in each book and only a recorder at the listed phone number. It really is insane and frustrating! So we ended up at the local VFW post, who had entertainment last night - a "country western" band. Well C&W isn't our favorite genre but it was really pretty good and the entertainment value was way up there!

What's up with "dancing" to C&W? It appeared to us that you just go around in a big huge circle over and over - it was "interesting" to watch to say the least. I am certainly no dancer of any kind but I found this odd. Rick said it reminded him of roller skating way back when - everyone just follows each other around and around! There was one guy (well a couple) that Rick was calling "Speed Racer" he was funny to watch - it was like he was in a race of some sort and was cutting through the middle and around other people - it reminded me of a kid cutting in line in first grade....... oh well enough of my critique of something I am not good at to begin with. It was apparently someones birthday there last night and this second picture today is their entertainment - in addition to the band! Hope you can enlarge that picture - it's a beauty. And I took a video for my friend "Moelicious" who is a huge C&W fan - just having trouble (of course!) loading it to be a video rather than a still shot!

After we left the VFW we stopped in the Downtown area - where there was an outside group - it was terrific but we only stayed for about 30 minutes. The band was great, the weather was perfect ~ what more could a person want!

So today I think the bikes will finally come out and we may head out on some back roads and maybe end up in Minnesota or Iowa ... we shall see. I think I'll get my bicycle out also. I rode it a bit in Spearfish and found out just how truly out of shape I am - I did persevere tho and will keep at it here. It is beyond my comprehension how my son Chad rode his bicycle from Boston to New York City, not once but twice! He was 16 and 17 when he did it and in far better shape than his 53 7/8 year old, out of shape Mom and he trained and trained and trained.

Also yesterday we found where we are moving to on Thursday when our week here is up. The traffic (highway) noise here is brutal so yours truly hasn't had a great nights sleep since we've been here - hopefully that will change. There is a county Fairgrounds here that has full hook up sites with 50 amp electric where we will be going. It was incredibly peaceful when we were there yesterday to check it out so we will go over again today and make our reservation and give them some $$. There were only about six other coaches there but I felt comfortable there and would be comfortable there alone while Rick is gone. The only downside is they are having a "Rock Fest" at the fairgrounds (not near the "campsites" we'll be at) on the 25, 26 and 27th - but interestingly enough that is when Sir Arlo and I will be in Iowa with my sister!!! Isn't it great how things just "work out"!

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This is our story ~ and we're sticking to it.

Our attempt at a blog - quite scary isn't it?

We left MA in early October, 2007 after I (Tracey) retired September 5 as an executive assistant for a software developer and Rick retired from his job on October 1. We passed papers on our house September 28th and off we went. We traveled down the east coast to the Florida Keys ~ where we planned to spend three nights but 17 nights later had to leave our site because someone had reserved it a year prior! We then stayed in northern FL for another month and headed off to meet our Marine returning to the San Diego area after his second tour "over there". We spent several wonderful weeks realizing why grandparents get tired easily! After the San Diego area we headed to the "low desert" (certainly a new phrase for us) of CA and into western AZ .. and decided it was finally time to start the blog we'd talked about since August or so!!

So many wonderful things we saw along the way. And the people, oh the people. I have said so many times to Rick the best part of this journey has been the people. So, so many people with so many interesting stories. Think about it - think about the stories YOU have and multiply that by the many many people we must have met along the way ~ particularly a social person like Rick .. we met a rattlesnake milker in Sweetwater, TX, we met the camp hosts in the Keys who summer back in NH ~ talk about the best of both worlds! We met the female police Sgt. at the Sweetwater Elks whose son was also in Iraq at the same base as my son. We met people in Slidell, LA who survived Katrina and had a great attitude and a smile on their faces and were proud to share their local cuisine with us. We saw the Blue Angels, purely by chance, in El Centro, CA. Or the "campground" where within an hour of arriving our house had been hit three times by golf balls! Or the Elks lodge in Indio ~ the sweetest, bike riding, bartender ~ I just wanted to pack her up and bring her along on our adventure. Not to mention the aerial tram while we were there, the warplane museum for Rick who does NOT do aerial trams! The Salton Sea ~ WOW just WOW. We stayed in the lovely little town of Wilcox, AZ - there was just something about that town. How about Pensacola, FL where the Elks Lodge on the beach is now built high, very high, off the ground! Or what about Huntington Beach State Park in Murrels Inlet, SC - talk about beautiful. What a great place that was to spend our first Thanksgiving on the road with good friends - that was something to be thankful for, for sure. Our first Christmas and New Years in the Keys!! WOW. The love and support of a dear friend in FL while Rick had to fly back to Boston and we dealt with all that entailed with unexpected follow ups back in FL .. how fortunate were we through all of that. Not to mention having the new trailer outfitted in Myrtle Beach and staying at what a week or two a year is the Broken Spoke? Or the kind and soft spoken LA Police Detective who is on the gang unit? So many people, so many stories. And there is so much ahead. The people .. did I mention how wonderful the people have been - all different walks of life .. so many personalities, so many stories! I have said many times ~ I need to pinch myself every morning to be certain it REALLY is happening to US! We are so grateful.

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