A Visit

Yesterday was a GREAT day! My sister and brother-in-law came for a visit and spent the day with us. We had a lot of fun. We pulled out the dominoes and played Mexican Train. Debbie and Rusty had never played before but caught on quickly and Debbie ended up being the winner, by a long shot I might add. We went out to dinner and decided to try a Mexican restaurant in Seneca. David and I had never eaten there but every time we pass by the parking lot is full of cars. That is usually a good indication of good food. It was beautiful inside and the food was good too. I must admit after living in Texas Mexican food is just not up to par to what we grew accustomed to there. My sister brought some books to share with me on our ancestry and after they left last night I opened one and started reading and found it difficult to put down. This morning right after breakfast I picked it up once again and started reading. This particular book has some great info on our Boone ancestors as well as some of our other ancestors. All in all it was a terrific day yesterday. We thoroughly enjoyed Debbie and Rusty's visit and look forward to the next time they come.

getting ready for another hand of Mexican Train

Look at those trains we are building

the food servers brought the food out stacked on their outstretched arm

Jumping Fish Video

This morning the fish were jumping like popcorn being popped. I took a little video to show you just what I am talking about. There was a heron on the shore enjoying all those fish.

Silk Worm Nests

I went up to North Carolina last week to visit my mother and I noticed so many of the trees up there had these webs in them. Mom told me they are silk worm nests and they are all over the place this year. The photo below is of a tree on her street that has more than its share of these nests. Apparently they spin a web around a large group of leaves and as they live inside the web they eat the leaves. You can see the damage in the photo below, they have consumed all the leaves on some of the branches. Although it is sad to see damage being done it is always rather awesome to see nature at work.

Jumping Fish

David has been reporting a rather interesting phenomenon each morning before he leaves for work. It occurs every morning just before sunrise. The fish start jumping in the lake. I tried to look this up online to see if I could find out why they do it but didn't have any luck. I did discover quite a few enteries on fish jumping in the early morning but nothing I read told why they do it. Anyway, it is interesting and thought I would pass that along as my blog for today. If anyone reading this knows why they jump please enlighten us.

Peach Trees

Our current location is very near Clemson University in South Carolina. Some of the agricultural sites run by the university are tracts of land bordering the campground. Right near our campsite are some peach trees. These are experimental orchards. We’ve stayed at this particular campground several times over the summer and I pass by these orchards every day and never gave them much thought until recently when I was trying to think of new things to blog about. I am not sure what all the university tests with the experiments with at these locations, perhaps growing techniques, pest control, fruit production, who knows, but it is interesting to drive by and see the orchards.

Beauty and the Beast and Hannah Too

The company David works for provided complimentary tickets to the theatre in Greenville last night for their families to attend the Diseny play, Beauty and the Beast. We took Hannah and had a grand time. We got all dressed up and went out to dinner then to the performing arts center for the play. Afterward we were treated to a special time with the cast in their costumes. Hannah loved getting her pictures taken with some of her favorites.

We spent the night in a hotel so we could enjoy the evening out and not have to drive back to campground. Hannah was all dressed up for a night at the theatre.

Hannah standing in front of the sign advertising the play.

our own BEAUTY with the beast

Hannah poses with Gaston

Hannah with Luminere the candlestick and the Clock

Hannah with the French feather duster

Hannah and Mrs. Pots, the tea kettle

And of course the beauties... Hannah and her favorite character, Belle

It was an excellent play, great acting, the costumes and sets were fantastic and spending the evening with our granddaughter was the best!

The Milky Way Galaxy

We absolutely love our current campsite. It has a more open view of the lake yet we still have some trees to the backside of us. It is a large site and plenty private. I had a surprise earlier this week when I took Millenni out to pee one night before heading to bed. I glanced up at the night sky and could see the Milky Way stretched out across the sky. WOW! I am always in awe whenever I see it. I didn’t realize the sky was particularly dark here and there was a moon setting in the western sky giving off some glow yet I cold still see the Milky Way. Since then each night I have gone out when the sky has been clear and there it is. Absolutely magnificent! Below are a couple of photos that I found on the web. These are not photos I took but I am giving credit to the people who did so I hope it is OK to use their pictures here.

This is very similar to the view of the milky way I saw.

photo by: James Duncan Davidson

A very nice photo of the milky way, I would love to see it this bright!
photo by: Akira Fujii/DMI

The Eagle Has Landed

OK, so I have seen a lot of really neat things this summer while we've been camping on the lake. I thought the sighting of the beaver may have been the most exciting but this afternoon I was sitting at the computer copying some ancestry stuff to share with my sister when I happened to look out the window and much to my surprise I saw what looked like a bald eagle. I couldn't believe my eyes! I saw it fly over the lake right in front of the RV and it appeared to fly to a group of trees nearby. I quickly grabbed my camera and out the door I went. It stood out like a neon sign and I quickly snapped a few photos before it flew away. I was so excited and shaking so hard I wasn't sure if any of the photos were going to come out. Below are the best ones. I think he had caught a fish in his talons and he flew to the tree to devour it before taking flight again. How cool is that??? The only other time I have seen bald eagles in the wild was in Texas when we had 3 that came every year to nest and raise their young in a big nest in a nearby town. I still can't believe I saw this one today. It was like I was meant to look up just as it flew by. What were the chances I would see it and it would land in a nearby tree long enough for me to take some photos. WOW!

he had a big white tail too!

Muscadines

I was in the grocery store the other day and while walking around in the produce section I got a whiff of a familiar scent. It took me back to my childhood days. I turned and there on display were muscadines. If you have ever smelled them you know what I am talking about. When I was young, my grandparents had muscadines growing wild next to their house and to this day whenever I smell the scent I am immediately taken back to the days long ago when I would help myself to their muscadines. They have a thick hull and the taste is absolutely mouthwatering. I eat the entire thing, only discarding the big seed inside. I did a little research after deciding to write this blog and discovered that muscadines are indigenous to the southeastern part of the country. I had no idea. I imagine they are readily available all over these days so if anyone reading has never had the good fortune to try muscadines then by all means if you ever see them in your produce section be sure to buy some and give them a try. You won't be sorry.

Autumn

It is not officially here just yet, however the past week has been typical Autumn like weather. I love this time of year when the air becomes crisp. After a particularly hot, humid summer with very little rain it is comforting to have this cooler weather. The daytime temps are still climbing into the 80’s but the mornings and nights are cool, even brisk. This would be my favorite time of year if it were not for allergies. It seems to be the season that most affects me when it comes to things I am allergic to, especially ragweed. Sinus trouble, scratchy throat, watery eyes and vertigo are all part of the autumn season for me. For now I am fine so I am enjoying each day of this remarkable weather. Before long the leaves will be turning then falling. Sometimes it is hard for me to fully enjoy the season because I am thinking about what is going to be following…. Winter, that cold, gray time of year that is my least favorite season of all. Ahhhh… but for right now the weather is perfect and I am thoroughly enjoying every minute of it.

Mailboxes

I thought I would talk about something a little strange today. As I have been out driving around lately I have noticed mailboxes. Most all of my life I have lived in places where the conventional way to receive your mail was via a mailbox either posted on the outside of your house next to the door or at the end of your driveway on a post or pole. Over the years we have occassionally lived in an apartment for short periods of time and our mail came to a mail kiosk centrally located somewhere within the complex. I never really gave it much thought. I remember when we moved to Pennsylvania it seemed everyone in our neighborhood had a similar mailbox. It wasn't mandatory but I guess people just liked the look and since it was a newly developed neighborhood and you had to provide your own mailbox people naturally wanted what their neighbor had. When we moved to Atlanta I spent a couple of weeks going out daily with our realtor to find that perfect house. In all the neighborhoods there that I saw the mailbox was provided by the builder of the neighborhood and they had to be matching. When we bought our house there everyone in our neighborhood had an identical box at the end of their drive way. It was only when we moved to Texas that I discovered my favorite type of mailbox. Again I spent a couple of weeks with a realtor trying to find a house and every single neighborhood we went to was the same when it came to mailboxes.... the traditional box was not seen and in its place was mailbox kiosks. In the neighborhood where our house was located there were just under one thousand homes. The mailbox kiosks were located all throughout the neighborhood, usually one or two on each street depending upon how long the street was. It was an easy walk to the kiosk where your box was located. In this day when identity theft is so prevailent it seems this type of mailbox is the best and safest. Each person has their own key and is assigned a box when they purchase their home. The box we had was large and could hold a lot of mail so anytime we were away for a week or two we didn't have to have the post office hold our mail as there was plenty of room in the box. Each box was like a long, deep drawer. When a package was delivered it was placed in one of the larger boxes along the bottom of the kiosk and the key to that box was placed in your box. When you inserted the key into the large package box it would lock in place and you could not remove it, only the mail carrier could do that. Safety! And speaking of the mail carrier... what an easy job! No more walking from house to house or driving all over, you simply drove to the kiosks on your route, parked, distributed the mail in all the boxes there then on to the next kiosk. The entire time we lived in Austin I don't recall ever seeing a neighborhood that didn't have this type of mailbox. I never saw one mailbox on a post at the end of a driveway. Since leaving Texas I have not seen any other neighborhoods with mailbox kiosks. They may exist here but for the most part all I see are mailboxes at the end of driveways. Lately I have been noticing really awful looking mailboxes. Oftentimes it is a whole slew of them all lined up together and they are bent, half knocked over, rusted, doors falling off, etc... Since we are full time RVers we use a mail forwarding service for our mail delivery. It is located in Texas, the state of our residency, and is forwarded once a week to us at a post office in South Carolina or wherever we happen to be at the time. So who knew one could write some much about something as mundane as a mailbox? HA HA HA.... leave it to me! Below are a few photos I found online of the type of mailbox kiosks I am talking about just to give you an idea.

The one we had in Austin was exactly like the bottom photo here. There is a slot for outgoing mail too. Personally I think all mailboxes should be of this type. They can be made to look pretty by building around them and incorporating the features of the neighborhood.

Gecko

Yesterday as we were preparing to leave the campground in Georgia and move to South Carolina, David told me there was a little green gecko on one of the chairs hanging on the back of the RV. I grabbed my camera and snapped a few photos of this cute little guy. We moved 35 miles away and I wondered if he would still be on the chair when we arrived at our new site, but alas he was gone. This is the type we had in Texas that I grew so fond of seeing. We used to love watching them when it was mating season. They blow out their necks like a balloon and it becomes bright red and they do what looks like push ups just prior to the neck turning red and blowing up. It was so amazing to see.

Pretty Houses

We left Georgia today and moved back into South Carolina. Before leaving I wanted to take a few pictures of some of the lovely homes located in Hartwell, Georgia. I just love this type of old home. Look at all the detail work and that wrap around porch. So pretty!

Shunned

We have one goose here who seems to have a damaged wing. Since we became full timers I have learned so much about the animal world. One thing I have learned about geese is that they shun one who is different. When we camped at this park back in April we had a lone goose that showed up every day. It acted crazy, stumbling around like it was drunk all the time. The other geese wouldn’t have anything to do with it. At another park we had a flock of about 30 or so geese and one had a damaged foot. It was slower than the rest but even when it would catch up the others would prohibit it from eating. It was really sad to watch. Now we have a goose with a damaged wing. Geese mate for life and this particular goose has a mate that stays by its side constantly. Both of them are shunned by all the other geese here. They spend their day alone, the other geese have nothing to do with them. This one has something wrong with its right wing. It is able to fly just fine, at least for short distances, and it seems to get along just fine otherwise. The only thing is the visible wing that hangs down and the fact the other geese “know” something is wrong with it. It is amazing to watch how animals treat their own kind. Geese are pretty mean to each other. They hiss and bite and pull the feathers right out of each other.

Little Ducks

You may recall that we stayed in this particular park back in April and we had a mother duck who laid eggs in a nest she had built on our campsite. I have thought about those eggs all summer and was anticipating our arrival back here to see if any of them hatched. It seems only two have survived. When I first noticed the nest there were eight eggs in it but a few days later only seven remained. I supposed some predator got hold of the eggs or the ducklings when they were small. I am assuming the two little ones that drop by our site everyday with their mother are from this nest. They are so cute. One is larger than the other and they have really grown quickly. The larger one is nearly as big as its mother. They drop by several times a day and know I will have some crackers or bread for them to eat.

when they were only eggs!

mama duck in the back with the two little ones eating bread

Click to watch the video. They are so cute, they eat then run like mad to the water to drink then run back just as quickly to eat more. The shrill sounds you hear in the background are some killdeer (birds) that are on the waters edge.

Feral Cats

Since arriving at this campground a week ago we have had daily visits from some feral kitties in the area. Yesterday I grabbed my camera and took a few pictures of them. They are completely wild so you can't get very close to them but they seemed to pose for their pictures. Millenni barks at them to establish her position. Oreo saw them yesterday for the first time. I am not sure she has even seen another cat before but she certainly is interested. She sits in the window looking out and her tail wags like mad. These little kitties are so skinny. I don't want my pets getting anywhere near them. I've started looking forward to the afternoon when they show up. I've not encouraged them visiting but they are showing up like clock-work.

look at those big ears! sooooo cute!

Leapin' Lizards

This summer I have seen a lot of lizards. I used to be so afraid of them but when we moved to Texas a few years ago we had so many of the cute little green geckos that I enjoyed seeing them around the yard. The ones here are not quite as cute but interesting none the less. I still would not pick one up and even sudden movement scares me but I do enjoy seeing them. I did see a little baby gecko one day. I was parked in a parking lot with trees and one limb was hanging over the windshield and there on the limb was the smallest one I had ever seen. It was about 2 inches long which included the tail. Even when grown they are only about 4-6 inches long so this one was tiny. While camping this summer I have seen several different kinds of lizards as you will see below.

Kudzu

Kudzu is a vine that when left uncontrolled will eventually grow over almost any fixed object in its proximity including other vegetation. Realizing that not everyone has seen kudzu or has even heard of it, I thought it would be an interesting subject to blog about. Kudzu was introduced from Japan into the US in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, where it was promoted as a forage crop and an ornamental plant. Little did they know then what a pest it would become. It overtakes everything in its pathway and I have heard it can grow a foot a day. The southeastern US has near-perfect conditions for kudzu to grow – hot, humid summers, frequent rainfall, temperate winters with few hard freezes, and no natural predators. Driving almost anywhere in the mountainous regions you will see kudzu everywhere you look. It reminds me of those ancient Mayan cities in Mexico and Central America that have been overgrown with vegetation. The purple flowers of Kudzu are also used to make a sweet jelly. This jelly is well known in the southern United States. I’ve never tried it myself but it is described as tasting like either a cross between apple jelly and peach jelly or bubblegum. Sounds pretty good to me, I may have to buy some and give it a try. I recall many years ago when David’s Aunt Nancy came to visit us. She lived in Houston, TX at the time and had never seen kudzu. She thought it was abolutely beautiful and wanted to take some back to Texas with her. We laughed and thought that was the funniest thing we had ever heard. I told her all Texans would hate her because within a year or two it would take over the entire state. Knowing what I do now I doubt it would have survived in Texas anyway as it has a much hotter and drier climate. Below are a few photos of kudzu I took just driving on I-85. None of these are really bad but will give you an idea of what I am talking about if you have never seen kudzu.

Chateau Elan

Just north of Atlanta, right off I-85 sits a French chateau, complete with vineyards, winery, golf coarse, and resort. We have been there many times over the years but yesterday we decided to stop there for lunch. Unfortunately the menu was quite pricey so we opted not to spend $15 for a hamburger and ate elsewhere. I did walk around and take a few photos before we left. It is a beautiful place.

More Hot Air...

Last night we drove over to where the hot air balloons were taking off but only saw 2 in the air. They had advertised balloon rides starting at 7:30 but I think what you see below is what they refer to as a "ride". The 9 balloons shown below were still tethered to the ground and I think they probably took you up and right back down, never really flying. We drove back over there this morning and the place was deserted. Some festival! It was supposed to last until September 3 but we didn't see any signs of any balloons. Oh well... there were supposed to be 75 hot air balloons and I saw a total of 5 on Saturday morning, 2 last night plus the 9 here on the ground for a grand total of 16, not sure where all the others were. We did enjoy the few we saw. Today is moving day so we are off to a park in Georgia for the next 2 weeks.

Up, Up and Away...

The Southeast Balloon Fest is going on in town this weekend and I caught a few of the hot air balloons flying over this morning. It is a very overcast day so none of them came in very colorful looking but here's what I saw. Always a treat to look up and see one.