RVing Fulltime with Tom and Ella

2018 July 14 Saturday in Grimes Iowa

74° and it felt like 74° how’s that for starting the day? Reached a high of 89° that felt like 97°.

It looked like the edge of the world was on fire this morning.

There were a lot of high towering clouds today.

After all the heavy rain warnings from yesterday, we did get a dribble of rain overnight. Enough to leave first spots on Rudolf the red nose pickup. It wasn’t even enough to reach the first line on the rain-gauge.

There were some localized heavy rains to the north and west of us. I don’t know if any of it fell into the Des Moines River basin. As I reported yesterday, the large reservoir to our north on the Des Moines River is approaching capacity.

I’m not concerned for our safety. It would take a complete failure of the dam to be a threat to us here in Grimes. However, if Des Moines goes under water, like it did I’m 1993, it would have a large impact on our daily lives.

We had heard that this place has really good brisket. So we came to check it out. We measured it against Cooper’s BBQ in Llano Texas. And it stacked up pretty well. The brisket was a little deeper than Cooper’s. But then again, I slays ask for it dipped in Texas.

Kue’d had three sauces to add. I tried them and found them all too sweet for my taste. However, with brisket that good, it would have been a sin to cover it in sauce anyway. I believe BBQ sauce should be reserved for ribs and chicken.

There was a pirate themed puppet show this evening.

Considering the heat, it was well attended.

Goodnight y’all.

Visit my daily devotions blog. https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

2018 July 12 Thursday in Grimes Iowa

88°

Good group at the senior center today. We had turkey and gravy with mashed potatoes, peas, dinner roll, and an orange.

Then a trip to Walmart for a couple of household items.

Yep, it got warm today. Actually a bit warmer than than our other home in Liberty Hill Texas.

We got home and chilled … literally … all afternoon. We only went out long enough to go to Cutty’s Cafe for the meatloaf dinner.

Every Thursday, during the camping season, they serve a special meal. I try to not miss the meatloaf of spaghetti.

These sunset photos are becoming monotonous. No clouds to bring color and shape. Just this burning white ball in a burnt orange sky.

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________

2018 July 11 Wednesday in Grimes Iowa

80° to start with. Gonna be a hot one! And it was with 92° that felt like 115. Does to 85° at 9pm that feels like 94. And the heat advisory for tomorrow predicts it will be even hotter.

No pictures of the coffee group this morning but it was well attended.

We left a little early so that I could get into Des Moines and get the worship bulletins for this coming Sunday.

The weekend following this one will be our Christmas in July and Santa will be there. I need to get the red suit out and make sure that it’s ready.

The menu at the senior center was liver and onions, baby potatoes, and a roll. I declined the roll an potatoes. Then scraped the onions from the liver. I’m trying to limit my carbohydrates intake and I’m allergic to onions. Not a large meal for yours truly today.

We played several games if bingo before leaving the center. Ella won a small dream catcher / windchime.

We wore our special shirts today. Mine says I’m with shorty. Her says, I’m not short, I’m elf size.

We had time to stop at the post office,

We then went to the grocery store for grape juice for sunday’s communion. So I could find was grape punch it grape flavored drink. I didn’t buy any. I’ll try some other store later.

We arrived at Village Inn for pie Rush Wednesday.

We weren’t alone. All but one of the usual gang were there.

Another hot ending to a hot day.

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________

2018 July 10 Tuesday in Grimes Iowa

75° and hazy morning with 95% humidity. It was still 81° at midnight so not much cooling overnight. I think the air conditioner ran all-night. The predicted heat indices put us in the mid-to-upper 90s all day long.

It reached a high of 92° I don’t know what the Real Fall was when it was 92 but at 89 actual degrees it felt like 98.

We had coffee in the morning with friends. I have no idea how the topic of the day became interracial marriages, but I am glad to say no bigoted comments were made. There closest was when the oldest member of the group used the term colored. It is only an outdated archaic term that in its day wasn’t slanderest.

I guess the fact that we still mention that they are interracial marriages instead of just marriages means that we still have a ways to go to becoming color blind.

I made quick stop at Dollar General

To buy a thin, flexible, metal spatula. I dislike trying to turn eggs with the think and sturdy spatula that came with my cookware. At least one out of four eggs breaks in the process of flipping them.

So, for a buck and a half I now have a “Long Turner”.

The senior center served half empty … Or half full today.

We made a stop at Bomgaars for bird seed. The existing seed got wet even though it is in a tight fitting metal container with a “leak proof lid” (?) It is stored outside under the edge of the trailer. I guess it needs to go further under the trailer.

Then we stopped to too of the truck’s tank. I don’t drink much alcohol but Rudolf the red nose pickup seems to like it. At least at 35% blend.

Then it was home for a nap.

Around 4:30 we took our laundry to the clubhouse basement to wash them.

And play some Fast Track while we waited for the clothes to wash. As it turned out the middle machine malfunctioned. it filled with water and stopped. That meant taking wet clothes out of one machine and transferring to another.

It also means waiting that much longer for the last batch of clothes to dry. The good news was that the attendant returned the money and gave us a single Tide pod to replace the laundry detergent.

Ella said she kept seeing the Tide package out of the corner of her eye and getting hungry for Cheetos. I asked if she wanted to try the Tide pods challenge.

Being an intelligent person, she said no!

The last load of clothes was finally dry and the Fast Track games were done. I think we came out even on wins and losses.

I nearly missed the sunset.

2018 July 09 Monday in Grimes Iowa

68° with cloud cover in the morning. The sky cleared and it reached a steamy 91° just after noon. At 10 PM it was still 84° that felt like 91.

Sitting on the patio this morning I watched a young robin. As it hopped along the ground. It couldn’t fly or didn’t know it could fly. At one point, it was standing on the edge of a landscaping block. It was about 8″ of the ground. It would squat low then quickly stretch high on its legs. It reminded me of a child on the edge of a swimming pool, wanting to jump in yet afraid to jump.

As I watched, it jumped from one thing to a higher thing until it was atop my small wood pile. It sat there for quite a while.

When it tried to jump from the woodpile to the top of the outdoor fireplace, it slid off to the ground. As it hopped away into the neighbor’s site, an adult robin (which had been hidden behind a tree) followed it at a distance. Evidently there to keep watch over the youngster but at the same time not assisting it with it’s struggles. Not a bad parenting skill.

Ella and I have very different concepts of time. If I wake at six o’clock in the morning, I think, “Why didn’t I wake at five as usual? There is a whole hour I’ve wasted sleeping.” If Ella wakes at six, she thinks, “Why am I awake in the middle of the night?”

Nine of us were there for coffee this morning. We continue to call it “going for coffee” even though only a third to a fourth drink coffee. The majority of us drink tea, hot, iced, sweetened or unsweetened. But somehow “going for tea” just seems a bit too high class and too British for this group.

I tried calling for a doctor’s appointment, several times, and couldn’t get through. So we stopped at the office and talked to a live person. I set an appointment for 4:10.

We then went to the senior center for games fellowship and food. I ate very little of it because it was mostly carbs.

When I returned home, I opened a small can of chicken chunks and ate them.

At 4PM we arrived back at the doctor’s for a cortisone injection in my left knee.

From there it was across the street to Walmart for the last of Ella’s medications

Then it was time to return home. Ella filled her pills sorters for the next several weeks.

I began working on the bulletin and sermon for July 15th.

We watched a little TV and played some games and soon it was bedtime.

G’nite y’all.

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________

2018 July 08 Sunday in Grimes Iowa

62° to 85°

From morning to night a day of rest.

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________

2018 July 07 2018 Saturday in Grimes Iowa

62° and clear before sunrise. 77° by noon.

Coffee with the gang at the Cutty’s Fireside Cafe. Topics of the day: 4th of July, illness & injuries, Card Jackpot, Bingo, and dogs. No major world issues were settled. However, on the plus side, no new world issues were started by the group.

When a group like this (old people) you have the story tellers, the correcters, the listeners, and the distracted.

Ted, Stoney, and I are story tellers with Keith occasionally joining in. Sue, Nancy, Jean, and Ella are the correcters. They are the Frances ones who correct session session join the details of the stories and keep us honest (more or less). Sandy and Francis listen but seldom him in. If he does, Francis will likely start with, “I’ll grant you this …” We always manage to start the day with a laugh or two.

Ella had called some prescription refill to the Walmart pharmacy yesterday. This morning we went to pick them up. Only problem was that the refill order was sent to our Walmart pharmacy in Texas and we’re in Iowa. It took 1/2 to 3/4 hours to get straightened out. And one still needs a doctor’s approval. That will have to wait until Monday. And of course, it was the one that she is completely out of.

I burnt some steaks for supper.

I am nearly finished with the cover for the pickup.

A short story about writer’s block.

Japan

Gettysburg address scratched on the

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________

2018 July 06 Friday in Grimes Iowa

61° and hazy. I felt a little hazy myself this morning. I woke a little before four. I laud there for a long time trying to not be awake. Finally, I slept, only to wake again at six feeling more tired than I was at four.

I drove to Union Park UMC in Des Moines to retrieve the worship bulletins for this week.

From there we went straight to the Grimes Senior Center.

Then we returned to Cutty’s so that I could work 3-9..

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________

2018 July 05 Thursday in Grimes Iowa

71° to start. Topped out at 87° and still 82° at sundown. We had about a quarter inch of rain early early this morning.

I was outside early this morning working on a tonneau cover for the pickup. I got the first prep party done and came in to wash a small load of dishes. I do this (besides to have clean dishes) to make sure my hands are clean and warm before I draw blood for INR & glucose test.

Once Ella was up and ready, we met up with the usual coffee bunch at the cafe this morning.

We went to Walmart for a few things.

We came home and fixed lunch. Then I went out a worked on the truck some more.

Kara arrived around one and Karla about f an no hour later. We played many games of Fast Track with them.

They invited us to Texas Roadhouse for supper with them.

You would have thought that having spent hours with them, I would have thought to take photos. You would have been wrong.

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________

2018 July 04 Wednesday in Rhodes* Iowa

76° and clear made for a warm start to a hot day. It reached 93° that felt like 110°. And was still in the, 80s throughout the evening.

We drove to the giant metropolis of Rhodes Iowa,* to celebrate the Fourth with Ella’s first husband’s family. Does that sound complected too you? It isn’t. I’ve been extended family with them for nearly forty years.

1,000 water balloons, squirt guns, buckets of water, a wheelbarrow full of water, and a garden hose all made for a wet afternoon.

You would think that Santa Claus would be safe from being ballooned. Particularly since he was a noncombatant. But you would be wrong. Sweet little Izzy got me full in the chest with two water balloons.

We got home in time for a nap before going to the adult center for Mexican Train Dominoes. Unfortunately no one else showed up. No wait! That was a good thing because I really wanted to finish out the day in my recliner.

*Rhodes, Iowa with a population of 305 at the 2010 census.

Visit my daily devotions blog.

https://musingsdevotions.wordpress.com/

And my sermons blog

http://thomasewilliams.blogspot.com/?m=1

All content (except quotations) © 2018 Thomas E. Williams

_________