On the road again...

Alas, our week with all the family in Sarasota was over, and now we have to do it all backwards: take the Fitzgeralds to Tampa to fly home, fold up the pop-up and return it to the Schusters, and head north. We took our RV to a campground in Gulf Shores, unloaded all the food, and checked in to our timeshare, Southern Shores Beach Resort. 

We'd made arrangements to meet my sister, Nikki Condra, and her husband Bill for a week in the sun. First stop, the airport in Pensacola to pick them up. Then we all drove to the condo. Spent a relaxing evening, enjoyed an adult beverage watching the sunset over the Gulf.

What are we all smiling about? See below:

One of our outings was to take a golf cart tour given my the Orange Beach parks department of the wilderness area in the Gulf Shores State Park. There is a nice little asphalt path for walks or jogging, and he narrated as we went, for two or three hours. Very nice. And, a little native wild life!

Do you see the gator lurking in the weeds? Also, nice wildflowers, and a couple of butterflies playing tag.

Bet you didn't know that Nikki was into body surfing!

Sport Fishing with the Fitzgeralds

Ryan Fitzgerald, our St Louis son-in-law, chartered a fishing boat out of Siesta Key, and all the Fitz's and Papa went out for a half day trip. 

We boarded the Rumrunner, and headed out with our captain and his lady crew. The water around Sarasota, we learned, is very shallow. Captain said he would need to go out over 30 miles to reach water 100 feet deep!

Jack lands a mackerel

So does Rieley

Brandon and Jennifer team up, and catch

a nice one!

Ryan hauls in a real beauty....

This fish almost made it to the deck, but a MUCH BIGGER fish decided to take him instead!

Everybody had a great time fishing, and we enjoyed the trip back to the slip as much as the fishing!

When we made it to shore, everyone posed with their catch before we turned them over to the Captain for filleting!

The leftovers after filleting went over the side, and the catfish were ready!

Fun and games with the Fitzgeralds and Schusters

Wow, a whole week at Turtle Beach on Siesta Key in Sarasota, Florida, with 6 grandkids and their moms and dads. What a kick. This campground is basically a little alley from the main road to the beach, lined on each side with campsites. 

They're very cozy, and will accommodate a 30' motorhome with room in front to park the car crossways. That's it. Showers, (inside and outside) BBQ's, picnic tables. Full hookups. Walk down the little center road to the beach 150 feet away. 

The beach itself is almost secluded. North of the campground, the beachfront is lined with million dollar houses and apartment/condo developments. To the south, a park. Only drawback? The no-see-ums and mosquitoes are vicious. Still, the beach makes it worth it. 

Emma, Brandon, and William check out the sunset.
The boys had a blast after dark chasing crabs along the beach and collecting them in buckets. Little ones made sandcastles, and collected shells. Everyone enjoyed the water, which is in the 80's in October, and watched the sunsets over the Gulf. We all had fun playing "redneck golf".

 Brandon eyes opponent Alex after a high point shot.

Jack takes this game very seriously!

The peanut gallery: Emma, Benjamin, and William

Setting up camp at Turtle Beach

After a LONG solo drive from Memphis to Sarasota, Bill was ready for some down time. Not yet, though, as we still had to set up camp. We parked the rig overnite at our full time wintering spot, Horseshoe Cove. 

Next morning, we headed for the Schusters, our daughter Nikki and son-in-law Alex in Bradenton. Both of them are at work, so we're on our own hooking up their pop-up trailer. Nikki reports they're having transmission trouble with the van, so we decide to tow the trailer with the motorhome. Ever tried backing up a motorhome to a trailer ball hitch? Not easy, but we got it done! We'd reserved two sites side-by-side at Turtle Beach, one for us and one for the pop-up. 

Nancy and I spend a couple of hours setting up the motorhome, camp, and pop-up. If you're ever looking for a fun short beach stay near Sarasota, this is it! Not for really big rigs, though, and make reservations. Since Nancy was still too dizzy to drive, we did lots of shuttling. Then, pick up a rental car (Honda Fit won't carry 6 people and luggage) and head for Tampa Airport to pick up the St Louis crowd: daughter Jennifer and son-in-law Ryan, and their three boys. Now, time for a Margarita!

Memphis Mayhem... the aftermath

So, thought I'd summarize what happened after Nancy's assault in Memphis. The following day, we got a phonecall from the detective who was assigned to the case. We went over the story, and added what we could to the description of the culprit: Afro-American, medium build, about 5'10", light complexion, closely trimmed hair, clean-shaven, driving a 4 or 5 year old Chevrolet Impala, black or dark grey, license beginning with digits 714. They asked if we could ID on a line-up, and we said doubtful, as it all happened so quickly. Nancy said if you catch a guy with a pea-green "Paddy's Market" bag from Sydney, AU, with the beginnings of an Afghan in it, he's your man! 

We had gone over the contents of the motorhome, and amazingly, we found nothing else missing. Our computer, Garmin, camera, lenses, phones, Nook, etc were in plain sight. All we can figure is that our sudden slamming of the door freaked him out, and he fled. He damaged the slide cover for the screen door handle on his way out, and we're hoping he cut himself on it! We told the detective we'd be glad to look at a photo lineup, but didn't have much hope, and signed off. On to Florida.

Mayhem in Memphis

So, here's the saga:

Nancy is giving Bill a break, and taking the wheel of the Montaj as we drive through Memphis, TN on our way to Florida. As she makes a right onto US 78, a fellow in a black Chevy Impala waves to her and points back towards the tow car like there is something wrong. 

She pulls over into an empty parking lot, and the car follows us in, stopping in front of the coach. He gets out and walks over to the door. I get up and open the door. A clean cut young black man says there's something wrong with our tow car, and we should come look. Nancy and I pile out of the RV, and walk towards the Honda. 

As we walk around the back, I notice that the "good samaritan" is not following us. I glance back, and see him disappear into the coach. OhOh. I holler at Nancy, and dash back to the coach door. I can't think of what to do exactly, so impulsively I slam the door shut, thinking maybe I can contain him inside while Nancy calls 911. 

That must have spooked him, because in a moment he came crashing into the door, opening it and shoving me out of the way. He has Nancy's green Paddy's Market bag from the front seat under one arm, and is holding his other arm next to his body like he has something under it. He dashes to his car, jumps in and tries to shut the door. I am in pursuit, and grab the door to try to prevent him from leaving. Nancy heads for the car's back door, and opens it to lean over and retrieve his stolen items. 

He is obviously not expecting two retirees to counter-attack! He jams the car into reverse, to back up and make his escape. Alas, Nancy is trapped behind the open rear door, and as he backs up, she is thrown to the ground, cracking the back of her head on the asphalt with a sickening thud. He continues backing, raking both doors over Nancy as she lays prostrate on the ground, then puts it in gear and drives away. 

I see Nancy laying on the ground, and shout "Don't move!" I turn to look at the disappearing car, and manage to get the first 3 digits of the license, then return to Nancy. She is dazed, but conscious. I repeat that she must not move, and dial 911 on my cell, to be greeted by "...all our operators are busy, please hold for the next available operator!"

I look down at Nancy. Blood is starting to pool from the wound on her head. This is not good. I have visions of her bleeding out as I am on hold...

Two REAL good samaritans stop to help. One also calls 911, the other asks what he can do. Mean time, the operator finally comes on. I tell her my wife has been assaulted, and is bleeding profusely from the head. She asks where I am, and I don't know! 

I tell her we just turned on 78, and we're next to a chicken restaurant. I ask one of the samaritans to go to the restaurant and please get the address! At the same time, I'm holding Nancy's hand, trying to reassure her, and talking to the 911 operator. The operator tells me to get a clean cloth and apply pressure. 

I ask the other samaritan to please ask the chicken place for some clean kitchen towels, and he does. I apply them to the back of Nancy's head. They almost immediately become saturated, and the puddle under her head continues to spread and starts to coagulate like jello. I tell the operator to hurry the EMTs and the police! Please!

 In a couple of minutes I hear sirens. The EMTs arrive first. Soon the cops. I am relieved to have the pros take over. They prepare Nancy for transport, neck brace and backboard and all, and tell me they're taking her to the emergency room. I am concerned that she may pass out, and nobody will know who she is or how to get in touch with me, so I give my name and cell to the EMT. A policeman offers to lead me in the coach over to the hospital. 

When we arrive, Nancy is already in the ER, and a Physician's Assistance is checking her out. She is lucid, though woosy, and they clean up her head a bit and send her for a CT scan of her head, face, and neck. Fortunately, she didn't suffer a skull fracture. However, the head wound continues to bleed through their gauze pads and wrap. 

The PA attempts to close with staples, but it's too swollen. He decides to stitch up with interior dissolving stitches, then laces her up outside with black thread like the laces on a football! 

By the time all is done and the radiologist says she doesn't have a fracture or a brain bleed, it's been 6 hours. Amazingly, they sign her out without keeping her for observation overnite, and even let her walk out of the hospital on her own 2 feet! That would never have happened in St Louis or California... they give you a ride to the car in a wheel chair if you have a hang nail. 

So, we get the wound care instructions, load Nancy into the RV, and resume. Now we're half a day behind, 'cause we have to be in Sarasota in time to meet the St Louis kids' airplane, and we're down one driver. Wow. 

Motorhome Americana, the 39th Six-State Rally

Here we are at another rally, and Charlie Adcock, the head honcho of Six-State, is smiling and glad-handing all of us with campaign buttons... seems he is running for President of FMCA. Nancy is the Craft Captain, in charge of all the craft classes, 10 different projects. She was busy as a one-armed paper hanger. Jewelry was the biggest draw, with Swarovski crystal necklaces, bracelets, and rings to choose from. 
Half a dozen rigs from our own club, the Gateway Getaways from St Louis, were there. We enjoyed some fellowship at one of the coaches for happy hour.

From here, Nancy and I head south. We have four days to cover the 1300 miles from here to Sarasota, Florida, where we've booked two campsites on the beach to spend a week with both our daughters and their families! Fun! We head east, towards Memphis. 

on to Six-State Area Rally, AKA South Central FMCA

We had only two days between the Escapade and the SRA in Shawnee, OK, so we had to boogie. Traveled the first day thru Joplin, MO. Nancy and I, along with two other Gateway Getaways couples, volunteered there for a week after the tornado last year. We worked with a wonderful person named Ben Tarpley, who is STILL there, working to help people recover. He runs a non-profit called Hammers and Hearts. 
If ever there was a selfless person, Ben is it. Check out his organization!

Next, a visit to the Downstream Casino, just across the border in OK. They have a brand new RV campground, full hookups, and if u sign up for a "frequent gambler" card, the first night of camping is FREE! That, I like! 

Tomorrow, Shawnee, Olahoma!

Escapade at Sedalia

Time to bring things up to date!

Nancy and I went to our first Escapee Rally, the Escapade in Sedalia MO, September 16th to 20th. We are new members, courtesy of Travelin' Fran, our new bud from the Fantasy Tour! Thank you, Fran! Had a great experience. Escapees differ from FMCA members in a couple of ways...

1. Escapees can be towables as well as motorhomes.
2. Escapees are more geared toward full-timers.
3. Escapees have a major emphasis on education.
4. Escapee events start on time. On the dot!
5. Escapee entertainment, in my opinion, was tops.

The 3rd item was the highlight for us, with excellent seminars on volunteering, work-camping, and ways to improve the full-timing experience. There were around 560 rigs participating, so it was roughly equivalent to the 6-state FMCA area rally. EntertainmLent featured Yakov Smirnoff, of Branson fame, who had a funny and inspiring act. 

We also bumped into four couples from our Maritimes tour, who were also attending. How fun is that!

Ozark Outdoors with the Fitzgeralds

We had rescheduled our rained out Labor Day float trip to the weekend of Sept 14 and 15. We took the Montaj, Chad Fitzgerald brought his daughter Kennedy and his trailer. Ryan and Jennifer drove down in their Durango, which was also the bedroom for Brandon and Rieley. Weather was cool and drizzly, and we ended up not going on a float...bummer. But we did have fun hanging around the campfire, and touring nearby Onondaga Cave. Brandon had spent Thursday making a bow out of PVC, which worked amazingly well. Brandon melted 22 bullets over the fire, and hammered out an arrowhead. Jen brought some peel and stick tattoos for the little ones.  Had a great time. Don't you love the redneck couch?