Home again.....Home again!!!!!

Yes, home again and it feels WONDERFUL. It's hot. It's humid, but there is SUN everyday. JOY!!!

The Friday we were in Hingham we had a day of rest as the weather didn't permit us to do much else. Rain like you wouldn't believe! There was a pond between the camper and the street and everything was mushy. Even when it wasn't raining, the dogs came back from their walks soaking wet and again the motorhome started to get that smell assocviated with constant dampness.

Saturday was a much better day and Helen and I took the Quincy ferry into Boston and the Aquarium. It was a good day; the weather was very nice, the water calm. The aquarium was very interesting but we were a bit amused that the focal point of the whole aquarium, the huge, multi-level central tank, was a typical Florida reef. There were no cod, stripers, or bluefish. Instead, there were jacks, tarpon, snappers and other reef fish as well as several large turtles. Homesick anyone? On the way back we stopped at The Lobster Pound where we had our last meal of real fried clams.

Sunday was moving day as we spent our allotted time at Wompatuck. Each family is allowed 14 days of camping a year and our 14 days were up. I asked if we could extend as the park was only 1/3 full, but the management refuses to consider such a thing. Better to have much of the camp empty then have someone pay for extra days. Thus, we moved back to Ricky's. I was able to fix a few minor things on the camper.

Monday was a trying day. When we got back to MA, we found that an old family friend had passed away on July 21st. The service and funeral were planned for this Monday. We made arrangements to pick up Aunt Marie in Brewster and take her with us. To this end, I left just before 7:00 AM bound for Cape Cod while Helen took care of the dogs and got herself ready. I stopped back to pick her up and we headed for the service in Braintree. Charlie Harrington lived a long and fruitful life and he was surroinded with a large, caring family. Besides his three daughters, his sister-in-law and a number of her children came down from New Hampshire. It was a bitter-sweet reunion for us with Debbie Harrington Fisher who was out Junior Bridesmaid at our wedding. The whole Harrington clan was very friendly and thoughtful, After the funeral we all swarmed back to Charlie's house where a caterer had set up enough food for a lot more people than were there. It was not a sad occasion because Charlie would not have wanted that. He was held in great esteem by all and it was comforting to know that he did so well for his 95 years. Recently he has deteriorated because he lost his beloved Ellen several years ago. Helen and I were very fortunate to arrange a meeting between him and Aunt Marie just a few weeks before. We hate to lose Charlie, but are thankful that our travels brought us back in time to celebrate his life. Helen drove Aunt Marie back to Brewster, making a side trip to spend more time with her aunt.

Tuesday was another nice day and we chose to take a Cape Cod Canal cruise out of Onset. I haven't been to Onset in years, but it used to be a favorite spot of the family for the July 4th fireworks. We boarded the Viking for a three hour cruise, with thoughts of the Minnow in the back of my mind. The day was warm and the cruise delightful. The comentary was most interesting and although I spent a number of summers in that area, I learned a great deal about the canal and the area. On the way home we passed through Carver and Plympton and tried to visit an old friend, Bob Jacobson. He was not at home, but we talked with his daughter, Jennifer. She told us that she now runs the house with her husband and kids and that they built a new addition with a father-in-law appartment upstairs. Jennifer claims her dad is doing very well.

Wednesday was another off day. Helen attended to matters on her own, including another visit to her father's grave while tende to the dogs and the motorhome. We had nothing more that we wanted to do and were biding our time until Wednesday night, when we were finally able to get together with Rick and Linda for supper. Oh Boy!!! Chinese food at the restaurant in Norwell. It was great.

Thursday we were off to Florida. Fittingly, I woke up to rain on the roof and we had some rain as we departed. In Connecticut we encountered a downpour. We settled for the night in White Haven, PA. Heading south Friday Helen did soome of the driving. As luck would have it, she was driving when we caught a really bad storm. Heavy rain and gusty winds had Helen wondering if the motorhome could tip over. It was wild and wooly for quite a while, but she finally passed through. Friday night we spent at the Mayberry Campground in Mount Airy, North Carolina. This is the home of Andy Griffith and everything around here is based on the Mayberry RFD theme. LLoyd's Barber shop, Aunt Bea's Cafe, and Opie's Candy Store are examples. It was an interesting area and we may pass this way again.

Saturday we headed out later than normal and tried to get as far as we could. Again the rain dogged us mercilessly. As we got closer and closer to home, it was decided that we'd run all the way no matter how late we got home. We hit heavy rain from South Carolina all the way home. In Georgia the rain was so hard that many cars and trucks were pulling over to the side of the road. While I was driving, the diesel engine developed the same problem as we had last November, so I'll have to change the oil ahead of schedule. In fact, we got 5 gallons at Walmart in case I have to do an emergency oil change on the road.

We got home close to 12:30 AM Sunday and took in only the bare essentials, milk and coffee for the morning. Now that I'm home, I'm in worker bee mode as there is so much to be done. First I had to change the oil and filter on the motorhome. Empty much of the motorhome. Take the cover off the pool and get that working. I took the Lincoln to Brooksville to get oil sample bottles at CAT and when I came out, the car wouldn't start. I got a jump and dashed home. The A/C wouldn't work and it didn't have enough power to lower the windows. Near the house, I tried to use the wipers and the car almost died. As I pulled into the driveway, it did die, but I was able to coast into the garage. I forgot that on out last day here, Helen went to Walmart for some last-minute items and the car failed then. I drove up and jumped the car to get it home. AT the time, I just put the charger on it because I didn't have the time to fix it before vacation.

A new alternator fixed that problem. As long as the pool level was down, I decided to drop the level some more t0 do some pool maintenance. The pool is now filling and the dogs should be in it this afternoon. Tomorrow I'll be heading to Palm Bay with patio stuff for Rick. It's a set that Linda bought but it would be hard for them to get down in the car. It fit in the back of the Jeep with room so spare. That's about all for now.