Possible Interruption In The Blog Postings

For the past two years we have subscribed to an internet provider called Millenicom.  They buy service from Verizon in bulk and then sell it in smaller chunks to their own subscribers.  It has worked very well for us and we've been pleased with the service.  That all came to an end today when it was announced Verizon took over Millenicom customers and will be contacting us.

Well, I haven't heard anything from Verizon and don't know how long I will have service, but in any case we will go with someone to provide us internet while we are on the road.  Most likely the provider will be Verizon, but that isn't certain at this time. 

It is also about time we looked into a smartphone and a data plan with it.  Our main phone is an ATT cell phone and we use that for most of our service.  We also have a Verizon phone with limited minutes and maybe it is time to move forward.  We don't like to text, no instagram stuff, etc so some of the benefits of a smartphone don't really interest us.  Basically we use the phone as a phone, not as a camera, GPS, weather station and such.  

So, if I don't update the blog for a while most likely it will be because we are switching providers, upgrading phones, tweeting and all those good things.  It will be hard to switch over from the phone below to the new fangle ones.  What do you think?

 Give us a call sometime.  It's three longs, two shorts and one long.  For those under 60 and need an explanation, let me know.

Almost Ready To Hit The Road and a 4 Hour Lunch

We ordered a baseplate, switches, light kit and hitch for the new Honda CR-V from Amazon dot com and they all came in right on time.  Installing the hitch is about a 4 hour job for people with the right tools, lift and patience, none of which I have.  So, we scheduled an appointment to have Beckley RV in Thurmont install the difficult parts.  It wound up being a 6 hour job for them and a lot of $$$$ flying out of my plastic card.  At least it is done now and I don't have to actually do it myself.  Whew, dodged a bullet on that one.

Gerry & Cassie have been working on card making the past few days and finally finished up this session.  Now we can put all the craft stuff away and clean the motorhome in preparation to load it with food, clothes and all the necessities of full-time living in the unit.  We will start on this on Thursday and hopefully be ready to leave here by the middle of next week.  That is, assuming some great calamity doesn't come up and delay us.  Last year it was the tree grabbing the mirror on the motorhome and breaking it.  A couple years ago 14 inches of snow snuck up on us before we could hit the road.

It's been raining hard the last few days and I put a large tarp on the area I use to turn the motorhome around in preparation for our departure.  I hope it keeps the area dry enough that the motorhome doesn't get stuck.  That would be all we need to start the trip on a sour note.

We do have a few other chores to take care of before we leave but they should be manageable to finish in time.   Our mail will be sent out on Oct 20 and we will wait for it to come in before we leave.  

We have been exchanging emails with Barb & Henry's old neighbors from Chesterfield, VA the past few months as they begin their life as full time rvers.  They are camping in Gettysburg for a few days and we met them at the Ott House (yes, we do like the place) for lunch today.  Debbie and Dale are youngsters compared to us old fogies but we had a very nice 4 hour lunch with them today.  Yes, we talked non-stop for 4 hours about rv stuff and everything else under the sun.  It was great seeing them and we hope we can connect with them again down the road as they travel the USA.

Dale & Debbie at Ott House

 I hope we didn't talk their legs off and we can visit with them again.  Have fun out there you two and keep ahead of the snow.

The maple trees in the area are at their peak for color now and we found this one on our way back to the cabin.  The sun was going down and some of the color had faded, but it was still a beautiful tree.

 

If anybody has a favorite baseball team left in the playoffs, I am available for hire to put a jinx on the opposing team by rooting for them.  When the playoffs started there were 3 teams I was rooting for to be in the World Series final this year.  Pittsburgh Pirates, Washington Nationals and the Baltimore Orioles.  One by one they all lost their series and were eliminated.  Now it is down to Kansas City Royals representing the American league and the St Louis Cardinals playing the San Francisco Giants to see who represents the National League.  Not much interest here in the World Series now with the remaining teams.  Wait until next year!

Those were the highlights of our past week or so.  How have you all been doing out there in blogland?

Family Day on South Mountain

It was family picture time on the mountain today.  It's been a while since our three children and the grandkids were all together at one time with us.  They manage to visit each other while we aren't in the area and it was very enjoyable seeing the gang all here.  Barbara's children didn't make it up here but they were in our thoughts.  Especially Stephanie & her hubby Shawn had to endure a vacation at Sandals Resort in Jamacia as part of their anniversary present to each other. (10/10/10 married).  Henry said something about having to work and that we don't have a lake nearby, so he couldn't make it.

Larry Jr and Jane had to leave early for the long drive back to Mint Hill, NC and get ready for the school and work week ahead of them.  They only were here a short time but it was an intense and pleasurable visit.  We will see them again at Thanksgiving, if not sooner.

Grant,Jane,Larry, Elizabeth,Cassie,Bella  in back Jack & Barbara

Larry, Grant & Jane

Jack, Elizabeth, Bella & Cassie

Barbara, Larry & Cassie

Barbara, Larry Sr, Gerry, Cassie & Larry Jr.

Grant & Me

Bella, Grant & Elizabeth

We were sad to see them leave but they did have a beautiful day ahead of them for the drive.  They came up in a rainstorm and left in bright sunshine.

Cassie & Co stayed for the afternoon and we had a nice visit with them and enjoyed ham, cole slaw, continental potatoes, and green beans  for dinner.  We topped it off with carrot cake and peach cobbler with ice cream for dessert.  I think the girls may have eaten some Halloween candy also, just a hunch.

Why is it something you look forward to takes forever to arrive and then it's over in an instant?  That is what happens when you have a great time.

That was our Sunday, how was yours?

50th National Apple Harvest Festival - Arendtsville, PA

The Apple Harvest Festival was our destination on Saturday.  Tom & Darlene were driving up from Annapolis and Cassie & Family were coming from their home in Smithsburg.  Larry Jr & Family drove up Friday night arriving after midnight and Barbara has been here for a couple days.  The gang was almost all here

We all love to go to the Apple Harvest Festival and make it there every chance we get.  It's been a few years since the whole gang has been here and everyone was eager to see what new displays they had there.  Rather than explain what the Festival is all about I am including the link below that does a better job of describing it than I can.

50th National Apple Harvest Festival 

Larry Jr & Jane were all ready to hit the road to the Festival and waiting patiently on the couch for us.  The weather forecast wasn't that great and we all prepared for cold temps and wind.  Jr. thinks it has to be in the 20s before he wears long pants.  It's a carry over from his living in the tropics all those years.

Grant and Barbara weren't as patient and decided to start walking to the Festival.  They managed to get about 2 miles down the road before we caught up to them.  No, they aren't wearing matching outfits.  He has a North Carolina State shirt on (traitor) and she has a Carolina Hurricanes shirt.

This probably will be the last time Grant will pose for a picture with a measuring stick and an apple.  You can tell he is posing under duress.

Here is a family portrait of Jr, Jane and Grant with their family tree.  I managed to dodge getting my photo taken there.

Everyone was checking out this late 1800s washing machine.  It was turned by hand for the wash cycle and also the wringer.  The man demonstrating the machine restored the tub portion and also worked on the wringer.  Thankfully, most people didn't have a lot of clothes in those days, so maybe it wasn't so bad washing loads.

We came upon this Buttco Braiding Machine made in 1933 by the New England Buttco Braider Manufacturing Company.  These machines were originally hand turned, sometimes by women for 12 -14 Hours a Day!!  This machine came out of a factory in Philadelphia, PA.  They were used to make any kind of braided rope, belts, string, etc.  

This machine has 8 spools and by the even number of spools makes a round braid.  An odd number of carriers will ALWAYS produce a flat braid, whereas an even number of carries will ALWAYS produce a round braid.  This still holds true today, and the lower the number of carriers, the smaller the braid.  We still use these types of machines today for shoe laces, rope, cord, metal wire for bridges and much more.  Just on a much bigger machine and, of course, computerized.

This is another braider with even more spools.  They were making bracelets for sale by the foot.

This old Maytag washing machine had a gas powered engine beneath to provide the agitating action, which was a big improvement over the manual machine.  When I was much younger we used to use these gas engines to put onto bicycles and motor scooters.  

This is an early gas powered wood saw with a blade that went back and forth rather than with a chain.  The operator had to press down on the saw and work with it. 

No trip to the Festival would be complete without eating a roast beef sandwich.  The same company has been selling them in the same location for years and we always stop by for a sandwich loaded with horseradish and bbq sauce.  Yummy!

 

It seems that all fairs, festivals, etc, in Pennsylvania have an old car show running the full gamut.  Gerry's parents had a 56 Ford just like the one below and on one of our first outings she managed to get it up to 120 mph on a 2 land highway back home in Illinois.  That was a nail biter for me since she kept looking away from the road to talk to me and the other couple.  

 

Larry Jr. and Jack were checking out the Cobra and were about to jump in and work on the engine.  The owner of the car was very proud of his restoration and happy to show it off.

Meanwhile, I found these two pretty young redheads sitting on hay bales.  Oh, wait, these are my granddaughters Sarahbelle and Elizabeth.  They were enjoying the Festival and finally sat down across from me and listened to some music with me.

The Festival closed at 6:00PM and they ran Gerry, Cassie, Barbara and Jane out of the place.  Whew, I was ready to hit the road by then and it had turned much colder with a bone chilling wind.

When we got back to the cabin Cassie and Family had a surprise waiting for us.  She had stopped by earlier and dropped off some nice presents and a carrot cake plus a great peach cobbler.  

Our cabin isn't that large as you can tell by the seating arrangements around the living room. 

Darlene and Tom along with Jack were sitting around the table and everyone else was in the living room.  We had a great fire going in the fireplace and it was a little hot to be sitting near it, but everyone wanted by the fire.  Did I mention it was cold outside?

Larry Jr took a photo with his Android phone and made it into a panoramic photo.  It came out small since it was so large, but I've included it so you can get a better view of the cabin.  Everyone is in it except Jack's head was cut off.

We all had a great time at the Festival and the Italian beef dinner Gerry prepared for dinner was great.  She included sides of potato salad, cole slaw and pasta salad to go with the meal.  Nobody went away hungry from that great meal.  I was too busy eating to take a picture, but trust me, it was great.

That was our day, how was yours?

Cumberland, MD Trip

September 28, 2014

On our trip back from West Virginia we stopped by Cumberland, MD for a visit.  We came through here in 1957 traveling on US 40 heading for Washington, DC and a new job.  At that time US 40 was the main route from the St. Louis area to Baltimore, MD and it was two lane almost all the way.  If you got stuck behind a truck going up the mountain then you just sat back and relaxed.  Our old Plymouth barely made it up the mountain, let alone pass another vehicle.

Cumberland is known as the Queen City and also the City of Spires due to all the churches and old buildings.  Historically Cumberland was known as the "Queen City," as it was once the second largest in the state. Cumberland is often referred to as "Where the South Begins." Because of its strategic location, after the American Revolution at the time of heavy migration across the Appalachian Mountains by pioneers, it served as a historical outfitting and staging point for westward emigrant trail migrations throughout the first half of the 1800s. In this role, it supported the settlement of the Ohio Country and the lands of in that latitude of the Louisiana Purchase. It also became an industrial center, served by major roads, a canal connecting to Washington, DC, and railroads.

We wanted to see some of the old structures before they are destroyed by "progress" and we spent an hour or so driving around the downtown area.  Here are some of the photos.

Emmanuel Episcopal Church on Fort Hill

Allegany County Historical Society

Marker on Fort Hill

Neat Old 19th Century Duplex

The Gordon-Roberts House was built on lot #60 of the Town of Cumberland as laid out by Thomas Beall of Samuel, who was offered at public sale, February 1812. The highest bidder was Beal Howard who paid $16.62 for the lot, plus $1.00 per year for ground rent. Beal Howard sold this land to Daniel Carroll Brent of Stafford County, Virginia. William Brent was the next owner by inheritance. When William Brent died the property was sold through his estate to Josiah Gordon for $700, at public sale, held at the St. Nicholas Hotel, April 8, 1865. Final deed was March 2, 1866. The house was constructed in 1867 by John Walton, who also worked on Emmanuel Episcopal Church, 16 Washington Street and the Academy, 31 Washington Street. 
 
The house is one of a small group of Second Empire style homes located in the Washington Street Historical District. Second Empire architecture is characterized by the mansard roof. The house is constructed of handmade bricks laid in American Common Bond and is three stories high and five bays wide. The entrance is located on the North facade and features vertically paneled doors and a wide transom light. The front door opens into a square foyer closed by double glass doors etched in the same patterns as the sidelights. There is a central hall and a central transverse passage to the second and third floors. The entrance features an original gas lighting fixture. Another interesting feature of the entrance way is the paper on the walls below the chair rail. It typifies something that was called Lincrusta Walton, a very heavy paper almost like cardboard that is machine pressed. Sometimes the covering was made from leather.

Gordon-Roberts House

Ornate brick on 2nd floor

How would you like to climb those stairs twice a day?

Sideling Hill near Hancock, MD on I-68

Pretty fall color

Neat farm alongside  I-68

We enjoyed the ride, company and beautiful views of the Western Maryland countryside.  The leaves are just about in full color and most likely will be so this weekend.

That was our day, how was yours?