January 25 - February 1, 2002

Friday morning January 25 Doris rejoined us at the Costco lot much earlier than expected;  The computers were down at her school, so she received permission to do her work at home.  Sometimes things just work out.  I moved the RV to the gas station next to Doris' apartment while Claire & Doris shopped.  One task I failed at; more goodies from Costco.  I do not have a Costco card, but forgot that l'il detail......   The gas station owner was very hospitible, and assured us that the police could not give us trouble if we parked on his grass strip at the edge of his paved area days, and moved onto his paved area nights.  Claire held the tree branches while I tucked the RV into the grass strip.  There was no room to spare, but the driveway was clear and we had 5 feet clearance from the white line at the edge of the road.  We were level enough to allow the refrigerator to work too.  This should be OK!  

After turning on the fan full speed for the cats, we were soon in the air conditioned comfort of Doris' apartment.  

After cooling off a bit and enjoying lunch, we checked the RV. It was not as hot as expected considering the almost record 82 degree midday temperatures and bright sun; the fan did a good job.  The cats were warm but comfortable.  

We moved out to stroll the "boardwalk" at Hollywood beach.  Though this is an asphalt paved 'board'walk on the sand beach, it was blessed with a cool breeze and teemed with activity;  ships tucked in close to shore moving South against the gulf stream, restaurants with open air dining, a town music stage with band and dancing, pleasant bars with live bands, and loads of interesting people to watch.

We walked until well after dark, then drove South to a delightful Mexican restaurant for dinner.  It became clear that with the RV alone, we could not effectively tour Miami.  The highrise developments have increased the population density such that parking near points of interest is difficult for a car, and almost impossible for a vehicle of our size.  The distances are too large for a bicycle.  A car is the only way to go, and familiarity with the city helps immensely.  

 Early on Saturday January 26 I tried to connect to my ISP but was again unsuccessful.  I was able to use Verizon's direct to net.  This allowed browsing, chat, update to the website and RECEIVING email, but no sending of email or Usenet newsgroups, as these servers are available only through a direct connection to the ISP. We joined Doris and her daughter Tiffany's family for brunch. It was delicious, and it was fun meeting Tiffany as an adult.

We had last seen her as an infant much younger than her own son Austin is now, when we sailed in Miami.  What an ACTIVE 3 year old he is!

 His dad Sam went to the pool with him, the gals went shopping, and I borrowed the phone line to send email and download newsgroups.  The connection to my ISP 0ver the landline was flawless and fast.  I called their tech support, but reached an answering service, then sent an email asking what might have changed on the network to cause failure of connections thru Verizon cellphones. We will eagerly await the answer next weekend.....  We had plans to join Mate for dinner at her condo nearby on Saturday evening.  We found easy parking for the RV in a nearby bank's now empty lot, and were quickly escorted 12 floors up in the elevator by security.  Mate greeted us warmly and showed us around her apartment; the view looking over the bay and Miami skyline was spectacular.  

The furnishings  were quite striking and artistic. The breeze was cool and continuous through the open windows and balcony doors, and at 12 floors up, NO BUGS either; we even saw (reflected in the windows of another highrise building) a fireworks display, although nobody could think of a reason for the celebration.  Mate prepared a spectacular dinner with all the trimmings,  highlighted by seafood delicacies on a bed of tasty pasta; tender squid, shrimp and other delights were irresistable, so once again we stuffed ourselves shamelessly....  :-)  

We ended the evening with a tour of the RV, and returned to the gas station for the night.

Sunday morning January 27 we fueled the RV as we moved from the paved area to the grass strip.  After we completed that operation, a "busybody" woman told us we could not park where we were, that it was illegal, and that the ground would not support the weight of our vehicle....hmmmmm??  After careful inspection, the ground appeared to support it without even a TRACE of sag or yield, thank you!  We planned brunch with Doris at a hotel in Bal Harbor, followed by an auto tour around Miami.

After again STUFFING our faces to the point we could barely walk at the delicious all you could eat brunch, we stopped at the Holocaust Memorial.  It was STRIKING, and effectively captured the gruesome horror experienced at that time, while simultaneously honoring the victims of the Nazi atrocities.

Later we strolled through the Lincoln Road Mall, which featured interesting shops and restaurants, many out in the open, but also storefronts.  It has been so dry since we have been on the road (we do not even know yet what a rainy day on trhe RV is like) that rain seems unlikely, but I cannot help wondering what mad scramble would start if a South Florida rain shower like I remember from years ago came along.

We then drove past the old and new hotels on Miami Beach, and visited the "new" (since we had been there) Coconut Grove Sailing Club.  It was nice to see it again, but seemed so VERY long ago that we had spent a winter on the boat, anchored out beyond the spoil islands here, while I worked in Miami.  The number of boats and people seemed many more than I remembered, and the nearby parks were much more developed.  The flavor of Coconut Grove remained still, with the artsy boutiques and pleasant tree and grass filled spaces.  We returned to Doris' place for supper, though our stomachs were not up to the task.....the delicious treats tempted, but we could not do justice to them.  :-(     We were happy to hear that the New England Patriots would be playing in the Super Bowl in New Orleans the weekend before we arrive for Mardi Gras, and watched the Rams win the right to challenge them.  We said goodby to Doris and moved the RV onto the gas station pavement for the last time.  Claire walked the cats, and noticed a small tow truck enter the gas station, then depart hurriedly when he saw her; perhaps we have stayed as long as possible unhassled in this metropolitan area?  Perhaps our busybody "benefactor" of the morning complained to the police?  Anyway, we are securely on the gas station property for the night (with permission) and are off tomorrow for the North....more northern Florida, anyway.  :-)  I burned a CD of pictures for Doris, and turned in.  

 Monday morning January 28 we said a last good bye to Doris as she was off to work in the early morning dawn.  We made a pot of coffee, then departed before 8 AM activity started at the gas station.  We had no problems from rush hour traffic, as we seemed to be headed in the opposite direction than most of the traffic.  In 1.5 hours we were back at John Stretch State park, where we intended to take on water and dump waste.  We decided to also change the generator oil and filter here, and rest and shower before doing the water chores. I found a leaky oil pressure sending switch on the generator, explaining the oil film on the filter that I had blamed on a faulty oil filter installation, and the oil residue on the drip pan.  The leak is slow, but the switch will require replacement; one more reason to visit Camping World when we get to Orlando.  After a pleasant interlude in this apparently underutilized park, we continued on to the Sebring Walmart for the night.  Here we found a number of RVs on display for sale, so parked at the edge of the lot along the grass, where we expected the cats might enjoy a walk.  We ate lightly, then shopped for a few necessities.  The cats tried the outdoors, but trucks along the highway seemed to disturb them, so they soon returned inside.  We were in bed early, and slept well. We restocked as usual in Walmarts; we never seem to need NOTHING.  :-)

Tuesday January 29 we relaxed early, and took the cats for a walk; Purry was so at home that he tried to enter two RVs that were on display for sale.  It seems all the effort we went through to acclimate him to OURS worked a bit too well...  :-)  We contined on our way up 27 to Clermont to see Mark and Karen's new home.  It was unusual to feel the RV laboring up HILLS again.  Their directions were clear, even on those roads that were too new to be on the map or in the GPS. Early afternoon we arrived, and Mark guided us into his lovely clean new concrete driveway.  WOW, we fit easily but must level with our blocks; we are in hill country again!  What a beautiful home they have!

 I put out our long cord, and plugged it into the outside outlet; POOF, a big spark.  The screw on the plug shorted to the box.  I had been intending to change both ends of this cord, and had bought the parts when we started the trip.  Now was the time!  Soon the cord had new end connectors, and we were seeking the fuse or GFI that had tripped.  We found a GFI in the garage that was tripped, and resetting it produced power in the RV.  A bit of work with alcohol removed the carbon from the socket, and we were back in business.  Purry felt quite comfortable here, and walked around easily, but could not resist teasing Duchess, the resident Border Collie tied in the back yard...  :-(  We enjoyed Mark's hospitality and did a bit of laundry.  Karen returned from work, so we went to dinner. This area of Florida is one we have never visited; wide hilltop vistas are not something we expect in Florida, but in this lake country in central Florida they definitely exist, as Mark & Karen showed us!  

The seafood we chose for dinner was delicious, and there was enough left over in the "doggie" box for lunch as well...  :-)  We returned to watch "Space Cowboys" on the new DVD player, as Karen graded her homework papers.  

Some of us are favored with the ability to multiplex; I sure envy them!  I am not so gifted....  Karen enjoyed the movie with us, and had most of her papers graded when it was finished.  We said goodby to Karen who would be off to work at dawn, & turned in after walking the cats.

Wednesday January 30 we awoke slowly.  I felt for Karen going off to work so early in the light morning fog.  Mark offered his specialty vegetable cheese omlet for breakfast, and I eagerly accepted; we were fortunate to pick his days off to visit!  

 We had needs at Camping World, so could not delay our departure too long.  We made an extra pot of coffee on the "house" electricity, walked the cats, said our goodbyes and went on our way.  Camping world did not have ALL the generator parts I had hoped to find.  While checking out, I found that they were not intending to handle Generac any longer.  We'll have to find another source for our parts.......but we did find enough for another 100 hours of operation, which should take us through the spring at least.  We stopped for the night at a Super Walmart, and replenished supplies after Claire cooked black beans & rice for dinner.  Mmmmm  Mmmm good!  While storing supplies in the lockers below, I noticed water dripping from the dump valves...  YIKES!  Not a waste leak?  I quickly determined the water source originated above the waste tanks, and was fresh.  Claire was washing dishes in the sink nearby.  Do we have a water leak? A sink leak? I got my trouble flashlight and peered into the dark crevices for the source of the drip; what should I find but a dripping tube with a screen on the end to prevent insect entrance leading down from the back of the refrigerator;   is this the first time I had noticed a defrost cycle perhaps?  :-)  Whew!  That is a big relief!

Thursday January 31 we awoke to another sunny and busy day.  We found a gas station across the street at 98.9, so decided to start the day with a fuel stop, proceed to Costco for a few things as it was on our way to join Aunt Mary & Uncle Maynard and  for lunch at their assisted living facility; Harry was joining us there too, so we also looked forward to seeing him again.  As we pulled the curtain out, we noticed a paper stuck under the windshield wiper...  Circular?  No, it turned out to be a warning that we would be towed if we were not gone in 24 hours, as overnight parking was prohibited per a sign at a specific entrance (different than the one we had used, of course).  We thought Walmart had been quite considerate to place the warning so quietly that they did not disturb us;  we moved out smartly.  :-)  We kept pretty much to schedule until we arrived where the computer map placed aunt Mary's place;  seemed wrong to us as we had been here before, but had not paid much attention, being passengers in someone else's car.  Cellphone to the rescue, we were soon back on track with Harry's excellent landmarks. Parking was looking like a problem until maintenance offered us a large "no parking" zone near their equipment shed; whew, another problem bites the dust!  We arrived just in time for lunch, which turned out to be quite a complete and delicious dinner.  My black bean soup was excellent, waldorf salad very good, and the baked tuna  steak with baked sweet potato was DELICIOUS.  THANKS Aunt Mary & Uncle Maynard!  We pulled the RV out front for a quick tour.

  We had to be on our way to stock up for the New Orleans trip, so said our goodbyes and moved on towards nearby Apopka where we were planned to shop in a Super Walmart.  We arrived in good time, but milled around among road construction looking for the Walmart.  We finally decided to pull into a shopping center to look over our data; Claire noticed the address on the Beals store in the center was the one we had been looking for.  Another Walmart has bitten the dust, it appears.  Claire noticed a laundromat here, it was clean, so we decided to do laundry while we decided where to go next.  We decided the Mt Dora Super Walmart 16 miles away looked like the best bet, so went there, arriving just at dusk.  We were dissapointed at the large red "No overnight truck or RV parking" sign that greeted us on the way in, but since dinner had been taken care of by Aunt Mary & Uncle Maynard, we went right ahead with our shopping.  This was the closest we would get to a Super Walmart before leaving for New Orleans.  After stowing our purchases, we decided to sleep for a while at least;  if we were chased, at least we would be refreshed to drive.  Claire walked the cats first, and noticed a man & his son taking clothing from a goodwill donations box.  :-(  I do hope they needed it!  No one bothered us until 4:30 AM, when I awoke. I looked out to see a police car parked nearby, so decided perhaps it was a good idea to leave before dawn;  at least we could argue we had not been there overnight.  :-) I went into the Walmart for a forgotten item, and when I returned the police car was gone;  we were awake, so drove into the dark early morning haze, fog and smoke toward Sanford.  There was a Walmart listed there, and we thought we could finish our sleep there; after all, it was no longer night.  :-)  Traffic is light at this time, and the drive was uneventful!  We found the Walmart; no restrictive signs, but construction in progress to convert to a Super Walmart.  After 3 hours more sleep, we decided on a bike tour of Sanford before visiting Cousin Monarcha in the evening.  Sanford has a lot of history behind it, and lakefront drives, and LOADS of interesting overwintering birds.  We printed a Sanford street map from the computer, moved the RV to a shopping center closer to the lake, and rode off to see what Sanford was like.  

We returned to the RV, after logging nearly 10 miles (thanks Bruce for the tip on resetting the GPS trip odometer; now we actually KNOW how far we ride).  Claire cooked macaroni and cheese, while I tried to locate Monarcha's house on the computer;  YIKES, I did not have her address.  DUMMMY!!  It seems there is always some detail that remains forgotten.  The cellphone soon fixed that omission.  We drove the few blocks to her house, pulled close to the curb, and placed the blocks to level.  There was plenty of clearance for the traffic lane.  We exchanged "house" tours, and enjoyed Monarcha's classic home in Sanford's historic district.  We had lots of family doings to catch up on, and chatted late in the friendly kitchen.

It's time to get this uploaded;  More on Sanford NEXT week!  Enjoy folks;  we are!