A Little Preparing and Moving

Sunday, May 31 – Saturday, June 20

We have absolutely no idea where the month of June has gone! So many developments on Our Little Lot have taken our time and our energy that by the end of the day we have fallen into bed too exhausted to even consider writing.

However, we did get the electrical conduit and water pipes put together, the conduit wired, and everything covered (thanks again to our neighbor, Gary Fox and his backhoe) on the 31st of May under the expert supervision of our new friend Bob Royar. Jim and I have learned so many new skills since we started this role of being East Texas landowners.
Just a brief explanation of the lovely yellow arm and ankle bracelets that I am sporting in the above photo…the mosquitoes and chiggers have taken a fancy to me. I found that by wearing these lovely items I can work more comfortably outside as they repel the insects! You may purchase your own set at any Wally World!

On Monday, June 1, we decided that we owed ourselves some down time and took off for a two day cycle trip around East Texas…mainly the Marshall, TX, area. It was absolute heaven to ride and enjoy the sights of nature with no briars to pull or dirt to rake!

Happy Birthday on June 2nd to Zeke in Knox City.

Excitement reigned when we arrived back at the RV Park in Holiday Villages as we received a call from Heather saying that she and her family were coming over on the 5th for a day’s visit! That news gave us the boost of energy we needed to return to the clearing of land and sprucing up the lot as we impatiently wait the three weeks before we can put Big V up on her new home.

Since we have been living in the RV Park, we also spend some of our time there mowing (they would mow, but not as often as we think it should be done). Also, we needed to give Big V a thorough cleaning and do some cooking.

Jim: Heather, Andy, Alexander, and Abby arrived shortly before noon on Friday, just in time to get the grand tour of the RV park and our lot.

Following a walkaround of the lot, we walked down to the clubhouse for lunch and then we all changed clothes and hit the swimming pool. It was the first time we’d been in the pool since we got here, and it didn’t take long before we were wondering why we had been spending the hot afternoons pulling weeds and briars instead of soaking in the cool pool. Oh well, live and learn!

When we were finished at the pool, we returned to Big V to dig out the fishing poles and walk down to the pier to try our luck. Of course, it was still the hottest part of the day and not a time for fishing, but the little ones didn’t know that and thoroughly enjoyed learning to cast their lines out into the lake.
Abby got tired of the fun before the others did, so we walked her back up the road to Big V and I got busy getting everything ready for a big family dinner. We had invited Mother, Ernie, and Billee (T.J. had a previous engagement with some of her friends) to join us for barbecue and all the trimmings and I needed to get the grills fired up.
It wasn’t long before the coals were glowing and the meat (country style ribs, pork chops, and chicken drumsticks) were sizzling on the grill. We sure do know how to make the neighborhood “stink purty!”

The family showed up just as the food was finishing on the grill and we all sat down outside to enjoy the fast and the multiple conversations that come with a large family gathering.

Saturday found us hard at work at the lot again, just attacking the piddly chores that we can do until we get the sewer and water connections tapped in.

Sunday morning we went to church with Mother and T.J. Ernie and Billee went to Dallas to visit their daughters, so we volunteered our services as chauffeurs.

Monday – Saturday, June 8 – 13

Happy Anniversary on June 8th to son John and daughter-in-law Carol in San Antonio, TX and to James and Susie in Hobbs, NM on June 12!

Unable to do anything (except pull weeds and vines) at the lot, we turned our attention this week to taking care of some chores around T.J.’s house. She had several things that needed to be done and offered to pay us to help. At first, we declined to talk about pay, but she insisted that since she would have to pay someone else to do those things, she might as well pay us.

Without going into much detail, we found that there really was quite a bit to be done. During the course of the week we fixed a set of wooden gates to the backyard area…had to remove all the hardware, do some minor trimming on the wood and some digging and cleaning out of the threshold, and then reinstall the gates.

The most time-consuming chore was to paint two bedrooms that haven’t been painted in the fourteen years that T.J. has been in the house. All of the elements for painting were involved…furniture moving, picture removal, wall preparation, etc. Once the walls were ready and we had paths around the rooms, we developed a system for doing the painting – I did the trimming around the ceilings and floors while Barbara started rolling out the walls. When the trim work was completed, I grabbed a roller and started helping to put on either first or second coats.

It took four days to complete all the painting and furniture moving, but along the way we also hung photographs and paintings in other rooms and did some other minor chores (including cleaning up our mess).

Saturday morning found us hard at work at the lot again. We decided that the slab had set up long enough and that we were tired of living temporarily in the RV park. So, our game plan for the day was to dress up the areas around the slab, burn off the giant pile of weeds and grasses that we had accumulated, and generally get ready to make the lot our new home. It was a long, hot, and dirty day, but we had a great sense of accomplishment when it was over.

Sunday, June 14

We awoke early this morning and reconfirmed our decision that this would be moving day for the Littles. We had intended to move after church and working at TJ’s, but with storm clouds looming, we decided that we’d better tackle the move before any rain hampered us. After multiple trips in the car to carry our outdoor furniture, grills, and other miscellaneous items that we didn’t want to repack in Big V. By 10:00 a.m everything but the car, the motorcycle and trailer, and Big V were in place on the lot.

After riding the cycle up and parking it and the trailer on the back corner of the slab, Barbara took me back down to the RV park where we fired up Big V and slowly made our way through the twisty roads to 394 Geronimo, our new residence.

Just as I started backing Big V up the long driveway, Bob and Mary Royar came by and assisted Barbara in giving directions. The sun was hitting just wrong to be able to use the backup camera, so the others gave me verbal directions until Big V was settled firmly in place on the concrete.

Before long, we had attracted all the neighbors and everyone admitted that Big V certainly looked like she belonged in her new surroundings!

Time had flown by and since we were responsible for the lunch, we loaded the food in the car and headed to TJ’s where she, Joseph, and Mother were awaiting their meal.

Once everyone’s appetite was appeased, Barbara and I began hanging blinds in one of the newly painted bedrooms. Finally around 4 it was time to head out to our new home at 394 Geronimo St! (We have a 911 address, but will not have mail delivery there)

Monday, June 15

We were up before daylight and Barbara decided that this would be an excellent time to hit the laundry while I piddled around on our estate. We both took time though to sit out on the patio and admire our new home.

Our chores this day included not only the laundry, but mowing, filling in holes, and the clearing of another part of the land that leads down to the creek.

Tuesday, June 16

This morning found our new neighbors, Linda and Wes, from Texarkansas putting in their drive and clearing the land to the south of us. Since they were using Gert, the same guy who put in our drive, we asked him about putting gravel on the rest of our drive. We were delighted with the quote he gave us and made plans for that to be done before we once again returned to TJ’s to finish up our projects there.

After completing another set of blinds and hanging a new chandelier in the dining room, Barbara and I found ourselves once again among the unemployed and headed back to our little lot.

Imagine our surprise when we returned home to find a pile of gravel in the driveway waiting to be spread out. And, by evening’s end, Josh, who works for Gert, had done just that! What a beautiful sight!

Wednesday, June 17

Happy Birthday to Amanda in Knox City!

Today was to be another red letter day for us and for Mother. Josh and John, the village representatives for Monarch Utilities, arrived to tap in our sewer system and complete all of our utility hookups. We were hoping they would be finished before I had to go to Mineola to take Mother to Tyler, but that didn’t happen, so Barbara stayed behind to watch what turned out to be a very educational procedure. While I hopped on the cycle and motored off to town.

While Barbara stayed at the lot, Ernie and I took Mother to Tyler to have an injection in her back to alleviate the pain she has been suffering there for several years. The procedure, done at East Texas Medical Center, didn’t take long, but there was a lot of waiting time before and after, so Ernie and I had an opportunity to just sit and visit for several hours.

Around 3:00, we got a call in the waiting room letting us know that they were preparing to wheel Mother down to the front doors, so I went out to get the car while Ernie stayed to help get Mother outside.

By 3:30 or so we were back on the road to Mineola to get Mother back into her own room to rest up from the day’s experiences. The doctor said she should rest and take it easy tonight, but that by tomorrow she could do anything she wanted.

Thursday, June 18

After a slow start around Big V this morning, it was back to Tyler today for Barbara and me to do some serious shopping. There were several items we needed that just weren’t available in our area, so we pretty much made a day of the trip, with stops at Southern RV, a motorcycle shop to get a new cover for the Voyager, Dollar General, Cato’s, and, of course, Walmart.

On the way back to Holiday Village we stopped by Mother’s house to check on her (she was feeling just great…no back pain for the first time in years). We returned to Big V where we unloaded the Vibe and settled in for the evening, just trying to stay cool on one of the hottest days of the year so far.

Friday, June 19

Today was just another workday around the place, but did involve an afternoon trip up to Quitman to get a new license tag for one of the trailers and then to Sulphur Springs to return several pieces of PVC to Lowe’s and purchase some more sections and couplers to finish an electrical project. While we were there, we found some material to help insulate the front windows from the burning afternoon sun…maybe we can finally get some relief from the summer heat!

Saturday, June 20

Happy Birthday to cousin Ladd in Mineola.

Since we were planning to leave for a week and a half to go to Artesia tomorrow, we decided we’d better get caught up on some serious housecleaning chores around Big V. While Barbara went off to start several loads of laundry, I started the indoor cleaning – vacuuming, dusting, sweeping, mopping, etc. It was a chore that we had put off for way too long, and took up a huge chunk of the day.

When Big V was clean and shiny (inside, at least), we turned our attention to cleaning up the Vibe for travel. Since we had been using it almost like a pickup truck to haul everything from groceries to rocks, it was a real mess, but we soon got it under control and had all but the last minute things packed away.

Tonight we just rested and reflected on how busy we had been for the past three weeks; it was almost as if we’d lost all concept of time, with the days running together as we got the lot, Big V, and the vehicles ready. Finally, we are beginning to feel “at home” here at Holiday Village.

"The miracle is not that we do this work, but that we are happy to do it." Mother Teresa

From the shores of Lake Fork,

Jim & Barbara

Getting a Little Lot of Land Ready

Sunday, May 17 – Saturday, May 30, 2009

Sunday, May 17

Happy Birthday to niece Keylin Roberts in Cleburne, Texas!!!

It was great to get back to the Sunday morning worship service at the Rim Rock Cowboy Church this morning. We always enjoy the service and the fellowship there. Ladd and Angela were back in church after being gone last week, so we sat with them and got caught up on what was happening with each other (after the service, of course).

We came back to Big V for lunch and an afternoon nap and then drove to Mineola to visit the family. When we got there, we found that Mother had gone with T.J. to pick up Alathea, one of Rob’s daughters and one of T.J.’s granddaughters. Alathea was going to spend a week or so with her grandmother while Rob was recovering from his motorcycle accident.

In addition to Mother being gone from the house, Ernie was over at T.J.’s taking care of the dogs and Billee was on the phone with one of their daughters, so we quickly told her we’d be back another time and let ourselves out of the house.

After a quick shopping trip at Wal-Mart, we hurried back to Holiday Village to put away our purchases and settle in for a quiet evening.

Monday – Saturday, May 18 – 23

Except for the odd trip to Mineola and time off due to occasional thunderstorms, this was a week of 10-hour work days on the lot.

We pulled vines and branches until our arms felt like they were going to fall off (or be cut off by the briar thorns) and built a couple of mountains for the burn piles. We discovered more old branches to be burned and I took the chain saw to some dead branches on one of the large cedar trees in the creek bed.

While cutting through the dense foliage that grows in our little ravine, Barbara discovered several large and very productive blackberry bushes. We don’t know how long the berries will last, what with all the birds that fly around our place, but we’re hoping for a good harvest off our own land.

We also received three more loads of fill dirt to build up the slab area…much of what had been delivered before was washed away by the heavy rains while we were on our trip to Tennessee and Georgia. And, we found that we had all miscalculated the slope of the land from the rear to the front of the projected pad…nearly a three-foot difference on one corner.

Glenn’s father-in-law, Larry, came out to visit with us about what we wanted to do, and in the course of the conversation, we decided that we needed to extend the front ramp by five feet and cut down the level surface (the parking area for Big V) to 20’ X 35’. Those changes, along with the inclusion of footers all around the edge of the slab, should give us a solid and stable parking and living area for many years to come.

One of the highlights of the week was when the family came out for a hotdog cookout on Tuesday. Ernie, Billee, Mother, T.J., and Alathea joined us for the evening. One of the first things Alathea saw when she entered Big V was my trumpet. It became evident to all of us that there would be a trumpet lesson before the evening was over. Alathea took to the instrument like a natural…had little, if any, trouble puckering her lips and getting them to buzz so she could make the horn sound.
The end of the week found us battered, bruised, and pretty well shredded by thorns, but the dream was coming alive…now if we could just shut off the rain for a while (who would ever think that we, from southwest Kansas, West Texas, and southeastern New Mexico would ever say anything like that!)..

Larry’s able-bodied assistant, Juan, began preparing the slab area on Friday after all the strings were in place to mark the edges and set the height for the dirt. Juan promised to return on Sunday (God and weather willing) to finish spreading the dirt and packing it in place so the concrete people can do their thing…life is good and getting better by the day!

Also, while we were in town on Friday, Alathea decided that she’d like to stay the night with us. We weren’t sure how she would take to staying with virtual strangers, but she was an absolute delight to have as a house guest.

Saturday the Mineola clan came back out to check out the progress of the land and to have another Little meal with some homemade ice cream that Alathea and Barbara whipped up.

Sunday, May 24

After last night’s downpour, and anticipating more rain today, we decided we’d better get over to the new lot, assess the damages, and began any repairs we might be able to make. So, by 7:30 we were hard at work trying to fill in all the low places around the pad area and building little dams to divert water away from our dirt. While there wasn’t any serious damage to Juan’s work within the area of the forms, it was obvious that when he is able to come out and work again, he will have some smoothing out to do.

We worked until after 10:30 moving mud and dirt around and then decided we’d done all we could for the day. If it was going to rain, it was going to rain and there was nothing else we could do about it except pray that our efforts would help prevent any further problems. It was obvious that Juan would not be able to start digging the footers in such a soggy mess, so we locked the tools in the shed and went back to Big B to clean up.

Because we needed to get to the nearest Wells Fargo Bank (in Terrell, about 65 miles east of here), we got dressed and started out in the Vibe, looking along the way for a Sonic so we could have breakfast (didn’t take time this morning…too much to do on the lot).

We finally found a place to eat at Wills Point, so we stopped long enough to order some breakfast burritos and then headed out again, reaching Terrell in about 20 minutes. We took care of our banking (thank goodness for 24-hour ATM service) and then went to Home Depot to see what we couldn’t live without.

From Home Depot we drove to Wal-Mart to get some things we would need for tomorrow’s family dinner in Mineola and then drove as fast as the law allowed to get back to the park and get things in the refrigerator.

The evening was spent in preparing our contributions for the Memorial Day dinner at T.J.’s house. T.J. had requested our Puerto Rican potato salad and Barbara whipped up a new dessert she had learned while we were at Toccoa-Heidi’s Peanut Butter Pie, made with peanut butter, chocolate pudding, Cool Whip, and topped with halves of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

The work, driving, and cooking took its toll on us and we were in bed and asleep before 10:00 pm…weary with well-doing.

Monday, May 25

Lest we forget…this is Memorial Day, a day of remembrance of all veterans who paid the ultimate sacrifice so that we can enjoy the freedoms in this wonderful nation.

Happy Anniversary to Cousins Ladd and Angela Thompson in Mineola, Texas!!!

There was still plenty of dirt to move around and briars to fight, so as soon as we woke up (which was earlier than we wanted), we went over to the lot and started to work. The morning was spent in clearing out vines, weeds, briars, and broken branches from the little ravine that runs west from our lot to the creek just before it passes under the road. We don’t know that we ever intended to do all this, but as with many projects, there just isn’t a stopping point.

Meanwhile, Juan showed up, giving up his holiday morning to work on the pad area and repair the small amount of damage that had been caused by yesterday’s rain. Juan is perhaps one of the most conscientious workers we’ve ever met. Everything has to be done as close to perfection as possible, and in the end, his work is almost art.

By working the way he does, Juan has put two children through school…his son is an engineer in Canada, his daughter is a lawyer in France, and Juan is taking classes (in between jobs) to earn an engineering degree…true American success stories.

Sometime after noon we finally called it quits at the lot and returned to Big V to get cleaned up for the “big do” at T.J.’s house.

Later in the afternoon we drove in to Mineola where we joined T.J., her son, Rob, his wife, Michelle, and their children, Joseph, Alathea, and Arriana. Cousin Madeline was also there, but her parents, Ladd and Angela, passed on this occasion since it was their anniversary and they had other plans for the evening.

We were soon joined by Mother, Ernie, and Billee, and soon the house was full of conversation and the smells of a wonderful family dinner – brisket with all the conceivable trimmings.

When we had eaten all we could hold and said all there was to say, we got the place somewhat back in order and started saying our goodbyes…Rob and his family had a long drive ahead of them and we needed to get to the store for a few things before heading back to the lake, checking out the new lot one last time for the day, and then going back to Big V to collapse.

Tuesday, May 26

The big day finally arrived!

We got out early and headed to the lot at 7:00, just in time to see a large cement truck backing into the lot. Juan and Larry were already in place, and soon the first of two loads of concrete were pouring into the forms…what a beautiful sight for us!
As Juan and Larry were moving the heavy wet concrete into place, we heard thunder rumbling in the distance and the sky started clouding up…not at all what the weatherman promised for the day. It appeared that the approaching storm was going to break to the north of us, but just to be on the safe side, Larry asked us if we would mind going to town to get a roll of plastic sheeting to cover the newly-poured concrete.

After a few phone calls, Larry located what he needed in Winnsboro, about 23 miles away. We hopped in the Vibe and took off, hoping against hope that 1) this trip would be unnecessary and we would be able to return the plastic for a refund, and 2) if this trip was necessary, we would make it back to the lot in time for the plastic to do any good.

As soon as we got into Winnsboro, I dropped Barbara off at Sonic to order us some breakfast while I went to the lumber yard and got the plastic sheeting…a roll 50 feet by 100 feet, and plenty heavy…we may have to think about getting some heavier shocks for the Vibe…or, get that Jeep I’ve been dreaming about.

We rushed back to the lot and arrived just as the cement truck was pouring out the second load of concrete. So far, so good…the clouds were breaking away from us and it looked as if everything was going to be on schedule. But, just as Juan and Larry finished spreading the concrete and getting it set just right in the forms, the sky darkened, the thunder rumbled, and it started raining. We quickly unrolled the plastic sheeting and got it spread over the slab just in time for a real downpour.

For the next hour or so there was nothing to do but take a break, so we returned to Big V to ride out the storm and hope and pray that it would end soon so they could finish the work.

When the rain stopped and the sky started clearing, we returned to the lot to find Larry and Juan peeling the plastic sheeting off the slab and moving the finisher into place. They spent the rest of the day doing all the finish work while we alternately watched their artistry and worked at gathering weeds, vines, etc. for the burn pile.

By 5:00, the work was done, and we were the proud owners of a 20’ X 45’ foot slab of concrete…maybe not much to look at for some folks, but it was a thing of beauty for us…the foundation for what will one day be our East Texas home site.

Wednesday, May 27

It was with more than a little excitement that we returned to the lot this morning to begin moving dirt around to shore up the slab and begin the landscaping for the lot. But, the excitement soon wore off as we discovered the enormity of the job of moving dirt a shovelful at a time and raking it into place; especially on the north side of the slab, which has a tremendous amount of slope.

Bob Royar had recommended a friend of his as a good source to bring in some dirt to help shape the sides of the slab and some caliche and gravel to build up the driveway, so we gave Gert a call and asked him if he would mind coming out to give us estimates on what it would take to get the job done.

Unfortunately, Gert was tied up on another job today, but he promised to come out tomorrow morning to look at the place and let us know what he could do.

Since the ground was still wet from yesterday’s storms and we couldn’t get to the vines that needed to be cut out or even get the burn pile started, we decided we’d just go to Mineola to visit, pick up the mail, and do some shopping.

By the time we were finished in town, we looked like the backside of hard times as we drove away with both a wheelbarrow AND a 55-gallon steel drum (we decided that we needed a burn barrel on the place) packed into the back of the Vibe…it’s amazing how much will fit in that little car!

On the way back to the lake we stopped at Peralta’s, a Mexican restaurant in Quitman that we had heard good things about, and enjoyed a wonderful meal…definitely a place to keep in mind for great food and outstanding service and a very moderate price.

Back at the lot we unloaded our new purchases, tried once again to burn off some of the trash in the burn pile (still too wet), and tried out the wheelbarrow by moving a few loads of dirt around. Then, it was time to just take it easy for the evening since we had what we hoped would be a hard, but productive day ahead of us tomorrow.

Thursday, May 28

As promised, Gert and one of his helpers, Josh, showed up at the lot this morning to give us some advice and estimates on what it would take to do the necessary dirt work to dress up the slap and shore up the driveway.
After visiting for about a half hour, we agreed to let them get to work on it. Gert said they could begin this morning and that he would have Josh come over with a tractor to move the dirt around the way we wanted it. Since we’d already tried to do the job with a small wheelbarrow, shovel, and rake, we voted that it would be well worth the price to let them take care of the job.

We continued pulling vines and gathering debris for the burn pile and soon we had a dump truck load of topsoil pulling into the lot.

We watched in amazement as Josh demonstrated his artistry in moving large scoops of dirt into place and then gently smoothing them out. It didn’t take very many minutes to figure out that what we were paying him to do the work beat the hound out of what it would cost us in blood, sweat, and tears (not to mention time) that it would take us to do the same job.

We finally got the burn pile burning down in the gully and just stayed out of the way as we received a truckload of caliche and a load of rock and then watched as Josh moved everything into place and smoothed it out. By the middle of the afternoon, the place was really looking good (at least in our eyes), and we were feeling much better about our decision to make this move. Now, if we only had water, electricity, and a sewer hookup.

Friday, May 29

While Barbara stayed at the RV park to do laundry and take care of some chores around Big V, I rode the motorcycle to Mineola and then drove with T.J. and Alathea to take Mother to a doctor appointment in Tyler.

As usual, we had a lengthy wait before seeing the doctor, but we did get some good news from him. What we thought was a serious back problem can be alleviated by injections rather than surgery.

In the course of the examination, the doctor found that a tendon has become detached from one of Mother’s fingers. She thought that the finger was popping out of place, but the doctor showed us exactly what was happening and suggested a surgical procedure to take care of the problem…yet another doctor to face, but at least there is a solution to a pesky problem.

When we were finally finished in Tyler, we headed back toward Mineola. Mother had a rehab session scheduled for 1:30, so she decided to go on home and rest a bit before going there.

I got the cycle at Mother’s house and then followed T.J. to Quitman, where Barbara joined us for lunch at the Texas Tea Room, a nice little restaurant/Texas gift shop that we’d heard a lot about, but hadn’t visited yet.

We spent the rest of the afternoon just piddling around Big V and the lot, not doing anything of great importance.

Saturday, May 30

This was another big day in my continuing education. Bob came by around d 8:00 and picked me up so we could ride up to Lowe’s in Sulphur Springs to buy the supplies necessary to run the water and electric lines to the new slab. Bob is a retired electrician and all-around handyman, so he was the perfect person to guide me through this experience.

By noon we had returned to the lake with a trailer full of PVC pipe, one size for electrical conduit and another for the water line, as well as assorted fittings and other hardware to accomplish the jobs.

Since we were going to park the trailer at Bob and Mary’s place for safekeeping until tomorrow, I called Barbara to come pick me up there. Once the trailer was unhooked and put away, We decided to ride down to the lot and check with our neighbor, Gary, who had agreed to dig a trench for us, to see whether he would be able to start digging tomorrow or Monday.

Imagine our surprise when we pulled up to the lot to find Gary sitting on his tractor, operating the backhoe, and already halfway through the job! He was digging a trench about 140 feet long, 2 feet deep, and nearly 14 inches wide…more than enough to bury the lines that we would be setting.

While Gary’s backhoe was a wonderful machine for digging the dirt and breaking through tree roots, it didn’t remove the roots or smooth out the ditch, so when he was finished, I grabbed a shovel and an axe so I could smooth and level the bottom of the ditch and hack away those pesky roots that could keep us from laying the pipes. Meanwhile, Barbara was busy picking up the roots and branches that had been dug up or broken off and hauling them off to a new burn pile for future destruction.

As we were finishing the job, Bob and Mary drove by in their golf cart to see what we had done. When they left us, Bob went back and picked up the trailer load of pipes and other supplies that we bought this morning and brought the trailer down to park it on the new slab…ready for another day’s work.

All in all, it was a very successful day…we accomplished far more than we had dreamed for the day and, although worn out from the heat and exertion, were looking forward to what we might be able to do tomorrow.

“Feed your faith…starve your doubts” …marquee at Harvest Acres Baptist in Mineola

From Holiday Village at Lake Fork,

Jim & Barbara.

A Little Waiting

Saturday, May 9 – Saturday, May 16, 2009

Saturday, May 9

Today was not much more than just a travel day. We arose fairly early, got Big V closed up and ready for travel, and were on our way out of Vicksburg by 7:30. It was nearly 3:00 pm when we arrived at Holiday Village-Lake Fork, a longer trip than it would have taken in the car, but we took our time and stopped along the way when we felt like it…the last stop being at the Flying J just west of Shreveport to take on a load of fuel and propane.

When we got to Holiday Village we immediately parked Big V in the east end of the RV park, planning to dump and flush the tanks and fill our fresh water tanks in hopes of moving to our new lot and setting up there. We went ahead and unloaded the Vibe from the trailer so the trailer could be moved to a secure storage area.

Thinking that before we did too much to Big V at the time, we drove the Vibe up to our new lot to see how things were. Imagine our disappointment to find that the place was in far worse shape than we had left it six weeks ago...overgrown with weeds and grass, and no sign of our concrete pad. The fill dirt had been hauled in and spread and the trailer with all the concrete rods and forms was set up, but nothing else had been accomplished.

After finally contacting Glenn, who we had hired to do the work, we learned that the day before the concrete forms were to be set, the monsoon season hit the area with a vengeance, bringing well over fifteen inches of rain in a two-week period, with as much as 8 inches falling in one day. Needless to say, much of the dirt had been washed away, leaving ruts in the dirt that remained.

We were, of course, bitterly disappointed, especially when we noted that the weather forecast for the coming week called for even more rain, making it impossible for any more ground work to be done on the lot.

Knowing that we had to stay around for a couple of weeks, we returned to Big V and started setting her up for an extended stay. At least, we were in a well-shaded lot this time with more than enough parking space for the car and the motorcycle.

We spent an hour or so getting everything set up and then drove to Mother’s house in Mineola to visit with everyone there. Ernie had gathered all our mail while we were gone, so as we visited, we also did a “mail triage,” sorting out the obvious trash and keeping only what we thought might be interesting and/or important.

Weary from the traveling and feeling down because our plans had fallen so flat, we returned to the lake and settled in for the night, hoping for a brighter day tomorrow.

Sunday, May 10

Happy Mother’s Day!!!

For our Mother’s Day celebration we attended Harvest Acres Baptist church with Mother, Ernie, Billee, and T.J. We were even able to snag the pastor after the service and get him to take this family picture of all of us dressed up and looking human. After the service we all went over to TJ’s house where Ernie and I grilled some hamburgers and hotdogs and we all enjoyed a nice picnic dinner

The rest of the day was spent in quiet leisure (after the obligatory trip to the Mineola Wal-Mart)…a little straightening and cleaning around Big V and a very necessary afternoon nap so we could be rested up to do not much of anything during the evening.

One thing that we did accomplish was to find our bird feeders and a stand for a beautiful basket of flowers that Heidi gave Barbara when we were in Toccoa. We got the stands mounted in the lot that we are currently parked in and are now just waiting for the birds to come along; meanwhile, we’ll admire the plant as it puts on new blossoms each day.

Monday, May 11

It was just another quiet day for us. After another look at our property, we decided we were going to have to act like landowners again and purchase a few necessities, like a lawnmower and some rakes.

So, when we went into Mineola today to see Mother, Ernie, and Billee, we found a farm supply store that had good prices on lawnmowers and tools and made the plunge.

Back at the park, we assembled the lawnmower and broke it in by mowing our RV lot and the one next to it. The recent rains have slowed down the grounds keeping crews, so we decided we’d better just go ahead and clean up around Big V before the grass got so tall that we couldn’t find our way home.

The mower worked so well that we took it on up to the lot and Barbara started mowing while I gathered up fallen tree limbs and started pulling and cutting briars that were trying to reclaim the place.

Tuesday, May 12

The rainy season has returned…it was too wet to get anything done at the lot or even enjoy sitting under the awning at Big V. We made trips to Mineola to visit with the family and pick up mail, but that was pretty much the extent of our activities.

Wednesday, May 13

TJ and I took Mother to an orthopedic specialist in Tyler today while Barbara stayed at the park and did laundry and other household chores.

Mother has been having trouble with her knees and her rehab guy told her he wouldn’t work with her anymore until she got clearance from a doctor. So, we made the trip to get her checked out. I was really impressed with the doctor…he explained that the sound in her knees that was bothering the folks at rehab, a kind of clicking sound, was not her knee trying to lock up, but was really just a band of tissue that was stretching over a screw head that holds a steel post in place. He told her that he would perform surgery to remove either the screws or the post (or both), but recommended that she go on with rehab and get some strength back and then come see him again in a couple of months. Since no one in our family is crazy about having surgeries, this was great news for all of us.

When we returned to Mineola we ate at a nice Mexican Restaurant and then took Mother back to the house. While she went to her room and crashed, I hopped on the cycle and made my way back to Holiday Village where we just whiled away what was left of the afternoon and evening.

Thursday, May 14

More rain…just a repeat of Tuesday.

Friday & Saturday, May 15 & 16

With not much that we could do around the lot and more rain predicted, we made the executive decision to get away for a while…loaded up the car and drove to Bossier City, Louisiana, for a pre-weekend getaway.

We returned to Mineola to pick up our mail and check in with Mother, Ernie, and Billee, and then drove up to Holiday Village to settle in for a quiet Saturday night.

Soon after we got home we got a telephone call from TJ letting us know that Cousin Rob, who has just assumed the pastorate at a Lutheran Church in Crockett, Texas, had wrecked one of his motorcycles late this afternoon. He was bunged up pretty bad, but was sent home to begin recuperation. All we know that this writing is that he tore a rotator cuff and damaged a knee…more on that story as it comes to light.

And that, dear readers, is the latest news from the Wood County Warriors, seekers of truth, justice, and the eradication of briar patches!

Count your blessings...not your problems. 1st Baptist sign in Big Sandy, TX

From Holiday Village at Lake Fork,

Jim & Barbara

A Little Volunteer Time in Georgia

Sunday, April 19 – Wednesday, May 6: Toccoa, Georgia

Happy Birthday during this time to: Daughter, Whitney (20), Daniel Duke (21), Grandson, Little Jimmy (22), Stephanie Francis (29th)

Little did Jim and I realize almost 3 years ago (just before we retired) as we read and prayed the Prayer of Jabez in Liberal, Kansas, just how greatly God was going to expand our territory!

We just completed our 2nd round of doing volunteer work and renewing friendships in Toccoa, GA, at the Georgia Baptist Conference Center.

Because the time flew by so quickly Jim and I decided that there was no way we could write our journal the normal way. Therefore, we agreed that we each would share our thoughts and combine them to make one entry.

This time around my assignment for the first two weeks in Toccoa was to be the assistant to the bakery chef, Heidi. To say I was delighted would definitely be an understatement since I had spent a little time with her in October, and thoroughly enjoyed working with her then.

Not only did I get the experience of watching a pro at work, I actually learned some new recipes, learned the value of appearance when plating desserts, and many more handy ideas for serving, cutting, and placing bakery products.


Heidi, in the photos above, prepares her “three mile high” meringue for lemon pies and banana crème pies (I think…can’t remember now)…Those toppings were so high, Joe, one of the other chefs, took a ruler to them!

Those of you who know me well know that I’m basically a simple, do it fast, do it easy type of cook; so I really found pleasure in learning the finer parts of culinary skills such as how to place the dessert on the table for a banquet, decorate the top, sides, etc. of a dessert so that it’s more appealing, but the greatest feeling was when Heidi said, “Place these on a tray, basket, etc.” and I was responsible for the display.
Eric, the head chef, taught me how to accent the lemon bars by slicing a strawberry…what fun I had!

Sometimes though, Heidi didn’t need help with desserts so I learned from Joe, the day chef, to do a variety of jobs…like lay out bacon, tons of bacon, hours of cooking bacon!!! One day, Jean (another volunteer and I) had to cook up 2” deep pans of bacon (photo shows the pan with only one batch of bacon in it! We had to fill 12 of these!)…it took forever! However, once again, I learned something really cool…the best, easiest, and neatest way to cook the bacon is to put it on a sheet pan, place it in the oven at 350 for about 15-17 minutes (of course, this depends on how thick your slices are, etc.) Anyway, it must be good, because everyone always raved about it at breakfast. (I don’t eat it, but it looked really good.

Another Joe job one day was to fix the stuffed sea bass. Now, that was really cool…Used an ice cream scoop to spoon out the stuffing…placed it on the sea bass…folded the fish over…then later it's basted with sauce… and baked…yummy!

My least favorite Joe job (Joe and I in photo) was to cut “bite size” pieces of zucchini and yellow squash…15 pounds of each…boring!!! But, even then, I learned the “proper” way to cut.

Towards the end of the 3rd week we were there, I learned how to set up tables for a banquet…with round tables, everything is placed according to a clock…for example, the salt and pepper go at 3 o’clock whereas the sugar goes at 9…there’s a lot of other “rules”, but won’t go into them as most of you probably already know this stuff…but for me it was intriguing.

My last assignment was one I was dreading, but wound up being one I really enjoyed learning. I had to fold the cloth napkins in the stand-up accordion fan method. Billy, one of the other volunteers, is a master at this skill; but he wasn’t there the last week. So…I was very concerned because one day he had tried to explain what he did, but it looked so difficult (which it is, of sorts). However, like a brave soldier, I tried to pay close attention to Teresa as she moved her lightning fast hands…it didn’t take…she had to slow down. Once I got the hang of it though, I found that I wasn’t so shabby myself…now I can help Billy in October!

I’m certain that I’ve left out a lot of other things I observed and learned, but I’ll just close with photos taken during that special 3 week period.
Above is a break table that Eric and Heidi set up one day for a group…Jim helped them move things over to the auditorium for this and when Eric asked if we could take a photo for them, Jim called me and I came running with the camera. Doesn’t everything look appealing?

On the day that Heidi and I had to place the desserts on the tables for a banquet, she also had to make a birthday cake for the guest of honor, Georgia’s Senator Butterworth. Then, Eric, with what I called his “regal” look, had to present it to him…
Just as a side note, the cart that Eric is using was one of two built that week by one of the volunteers, Dickie. All Eric did was give him a picture from a catalog, and voila! Dickie made them – out of nothing but scrap materials from the maintenance shed!

In fact, the first time the cart was used was on Friday, April 24th, the 30th wedding anniversary of our volunteer coordinators!

As a special surprise, the volunteers planned a noon time celebration where Bill, the center’s director, would present Nancy and Jesse with a huge fruit basket arranged by Heidi and wrapped by Eric’s wife, Ruth. We also prepared some miniature Hershey bars announcing their anniversary and a special sugar-free dessert. You might say this endeavor was a community affair which indeed caught our fearless leaders off guard!
Another reason this day was so special for Jim and me…Well…let me begin with Thursday night the 23rd. Mike and Kelly were driving from Richmond to Toccoa to stay with us over the week-end. Jim and I were so excited; but, we were also very exhausted. We knew M & K were going to be arriving late in the night as they didn’t get to leave home until after work. I thought I could stay awake, but finally around 10, I told Jim that I just had to have a short nap. He said, “Okay, I’ll stay up and wait for them.” Well…around midnight, he fell asleep, too.

For some reason, I awoke at 12:45 AM and realized that the door to the bedroom was closed (we were sleeping on the couch since we had to work Saturday morning). I woke Jim up and said, “Jim the kids haven’t gotten here yet have they?” He said, “No, I don’t think so.” About that time we heard Mike say, “Dad, we are here!” Those two kids came in, brought their entire luggage through this narrow space between the couch and chair, and never woke us up!

Friday morning we left them sleeping and headed off to our respective “jobs” but they came down to the dining room at noon in time for lunch and the anniversary celebration.

Jim: For my part, I learned how to do some different maintenance tasks around the conference center during out three-week stay. Of course, there was also plenty of time in the dishwashing room, especially during our first week when there were so many conference guests.
What can one say about the industrial dishwashing experience other than that it is always an educational adventure! Once the trays start rolling down the conveyer belt, the world goes into hyper-gear and we enter a time warp. When everything is finished (it feels like 12-hours later), we finally emerge into “real-time” to find that it has only been an hour and a half, but what a fast, furious, and [mostly fun] 90 minutes!

After three days of concentrating on the dishwashing room, Bob (our friend from the Atlanta area) and I moved downstairs to help Roger replace ceiling tiles in one of the large rooms.

I’ve never worked with ceiling tiles, and I’m sharing this description of the experience in family confidence, since it’s nothing I want to include on my resume’ because someone might read it and offer me a job.

The existing tiles were 2’ feet by 4 feet and set in a suspended ceiling. Over the years, most of the tiles had become badly discolored and warped. Our job was to install new framework so we could install 2’ X 2” tiles. Because of the constant high humidity in northeastern Georgia, the four-foot lengths could not hold their shape as long as they might in a drier climate. Unfortunately (for me, at least), Dennis, the maintenance director, couldn’t locate cases of the 2X2 tiles, so we had to cut 2X4 tiles into the proper lengths and shapes.

For those who have worked with ceiling tiles, you know what a nasty job it can be…the nicest thing one can say about it is that at least they aren’t made of asbestos, because the fibers get onto and into everything, and the cutter’s hands become raw from handling the material. Since Bob and Bill were doing the framing, I got to be the cutter, using a razor knife to do the slicing and trimming before handing the finished tiles to the others to be installed in the new suspended frame.

In addition to shaping and installing the tiles, we also did our own cleanup at the end of each session…carrying all the old tiles and other assorted residue and trash up the hill to the dumpster. Oh, and did I mention that there was no air conditioning downstairs and the outside temperature was in the upper 80’s with about 90 per cent humidity? Not the most fun of all the jobs I’ve had, but I was working in great company and learning new skills.

By Thursday, we had finished the ceiling downstairs in the dining hall and Bill, Bob, and I moved to the chapel to help the maintenance staff and a couple of other volunteers start work on a new ceiling there.

My job was to climb up on the scaffolding and rip out some of the existing tiles (the old-fashioned 1’ squares that were glued on) so the new suspended frame could be mounted to the ceiling joists. Since there were many years of dust accumulation in the ceiling, it didn’t take long to be covered in dirt and fibers, not to mention drenched in sweat.

By the time we finished the day’s activities (including another round in the dishwashing room after the evening meal), I was whipped. Still, I did my best to stay up to meet Mike and Kelly when they arrived, but, while the spirit was willing, the body was weak, and I fell asleep shortly after Barbara did.

When we told Nancy that Mike and Kelly were coming to visit, she said that we could have the weekend off if we could stick around and help through the lunch rush. That was no problem, as the kids were worn out from their drive to Toccoa Thursday night and slept in while we went to work.

After doing our morning chores (Barbara working in the kitchen and me in the dishwashing room and chapel), we joined all the volunteers and staff for lunch and the special celebration of Jesse and Nancy’s 30th wedding anniversary. This was also a special time for Kelly, as she got to renew her acquaintance with Jesse and Nancy (she had first met them in Hollywood, Florida, when she was in the IMB Journeyman program while Mike was in China) and several other volunteers who had also worked with Jesse and Nancy in Hollywood.
When we finished with our dining hall duties, we returned to the campground and Big V to clean up, get a little rest while the kids explored the surroundings, and then start our weekend.

First on our agenda was to take Mike and Kelly out to Toccoa College to show them the famous Toccoa Falls. Bob and Nell took us out there last fall, and we wanted to show the sight (a 186’ waterfall that cascades down a sheer rock wall and then courses through the campus).
What we first found was that the old rock building that housed the visitors center had been burned out by an electrical fire sometime after we were here last fall. It was a beautiful structure, and it was sad to see all that was left was portions of scorched walls. Still, the falls were as beautiful as ever, and we were able to take some great photographs.

From Toccoa we drove up toward Clayton to show the kids Goats on the Roof, the quaint set of shops that we visited last weekend. Of course, more photos were taken as we watched and fed the animals while they wandered around on their unique sod roofs.

On the way back to Toccoa we stopped at Tallulah Gorge, another natural wonder that Bob and Nell showed us last year. Unfortunately, the store that houses the viewing point for the gorge and river was closed for the evening, so we had to settle for a brief glimpse while we stood on the fence surrounding the property.
Back at Big V, we went into full family mode as I built a fire, started the charcoal grill, and eventually whipped up one of our favorite meals, barbecued ribs and sausages. Barbara had already made (at Kelly’s request) a batch of Puerto Rican potato salad and some baked beans.

While we waited for the meat to cook, we introduced the kids to our washers game and soon we were all busy with our own little tournament.

When the meat was cooked we moved inside (the night bugs were making their appearance) and enjoyed a great meal and lots of conversation as we continued to get caught up on each other’s activities since we last saw Mike and Kelly at their wedding in October.

Even though Nancy had given us today off from dining hall duties, we went on down to see if we could be of any assistance since Mike and Kelly had driven to Seneca, South Carolina, about 30 miles from Toccoa, to visit some family friends from the time when Kelly lived there as a small girl.

While Barbara went back to Big V to take care of dishes and straighten the place, I helped some of the guys move things from the dining hall to the auditorium for a break session for one of the conferences that was being held this weekend. Below, are Ken Hogan, Billy Enfinger, and I as we are hard at work moving supplies into the auditorium.When the kids returned, we hit the road again, this time driving up to Helen, the little German-style village that Bob and Nell had first shown us last fall and that Jere and Gwen took us to last week. We were hoping to eat outside along the Chattahoochee River, but the wait for those tables was over an hour and our stomachs told us we’d rather go inside to enjoy a meal.

After eating, we toured the village, stopping first at an ice cream parlor where Barbara, Mike, and Kelly had their dessert before heading off for some serious shop-looking. From Helen, we made our way back over to Clayton (unfortunately, I misdirected Mike and took us the l-o-n-g and slow route through the mountains) and then own to Tallulah Gorge State Park where Mike, Kelly, and I hiked the trail down to the bottom of the gorge while Barbara, who was unsure of trying to hike a demanding and unfamiliar trail, stayed on the top with the car.

The trail from the top to the bottom of the gorge is a well-marked and relatively easy series of metal stairs, 1,099 of them to be exact. The trail from the bottom to the top is exactly the same set of steps, but they are all ascending, and it is a very strenuous climb. The thing that keeps the hiker going is that there is no simple way to get a rescuer in there if one becomes incapacitated, so you just have to do what has to be done…keep putting one foot ahead of (and slightly higher than) the other until the top is reached.

We were drenched with sweat when we completed the ascent, but the scenery we saw made the trip well worth the effort. As we have discovered through many of our experiences, the greatest beauty of our country is not always seen from the roadside…we have to work to get to it.

On the way back to Toccoa we stopped at a little roadside stand so Kelly could get some boiled peanuts, a southern delicacy, but something that (to our thinking) is definitely an acquired taste.

When we got back to Big V we again started a fire in the fire pit and then I started the charcoal grill and cooked up some hamburgers to go with our leftover potato salad and baked beans. We then shared a delightful evening of talking, eating, and playing washers, topped off with a movie that the kids had brought to share with us.

Sunday morning we took our time getting around. When everyone was up, Barbara and I started breakfast, French toast, bacon and eggs, and lots of coffee…good fuel to get us all through the day.

The kids spent their time getting packed for the trip back to Richmond and after eating, getting the dishes washed and their car packed, we followed them into town for a stop at Wal-Mart before seeing them off.

The rest of the day was spent washing clothes, resting, and waiting for our seven o’clock meeting with the second-week volunteers.

My work for the second week was entirely in the chapel, installing the new suspended ceiling. Bill Strong, a volunteer from Lynchburg, Virginia, headed the crew that was installing the frame, and worked with Dave Lute, another Georgia volunteer, while I spent most of my time working with Ken Hogan from Alabama (we had also worked with Ken when we were building the church in Ethridge, Tennessee).

This week we had the right sized tiles to place in most of the framework, but all tiles around the edges had to be measured and cut to size. Ken, a retired assistant superintendent of schools, taught me the fine art of cutting and shaping the tiles so they would drop into place…yet another job that won’t find its way onto my resume’.

We had hoped that we could finish the job by Wednesday evening, but sometimes the best-laid plans are nothing more than well-laid plans, and it took us until Friday afternoon to have all the tiles and lights in place…just in time for a scheduled event in the chapel Friday evening.
With no volunteer services required for the weekend, we spent a quiet night at Big V and then got up Saturday morning and drove two hours up to Cherokee, North Carolina, nestled in the beautiful Great Smoky Mountains, for some time of rest and relaxation, returning Sunday afternoon to get ready for our final week of activities.

Bob and Nell returned late Sunday afternoon and we went out to eat with them before returning to the King Hotel to meet and greet the newest batch of volunteers, most of whom were from First Baptist Church of Jonesboro, Georgia.

Bob and I thought we would be on the chapel paint crew, but something happened that kept that job from starting until Wednesday, so we finished job that we had started during the first week – removing, cleaning, and reinstalling the heater/air conditioner filters in the 240 guest rooms of the hotels and lodges.

When we finished with the filters, we joined Terry, one of the permanent maintenance crew members, to help install new lighting in the dining hall. I don’t know when the lights were installed, but they were probably put in when the building was constructed in 1977. It must have been a time of much cheaper energy, because there were sixty clusters (four boxes in each cluster and 7 bulbs in each box…you do the math).

Each cluster took an hour to remove and replace, and we could only do the work when no one was using the dining hall. We got our exercise from moving the heavy tables and chairs out of the way, positioning the Genie-lift, and hauling fixtures back and forth. It wasn’t the most difficult job I’ve ever done, but it was exacting, and I became pretty proficient in uncrating and prepping the new fixtures so they could be wired and installed.

Barbara: It’s important at this point to tell the story of how Jim came to the point of taking up the trumpet again. Last year while at Toccoa, we met Billy from Florida who for his own personal reasons was teaching himself how to play the piano. (He didn’t sound like a beginner!) Little did Billy realize that his taking up the challenge to play would be God’s way of using him to show Jim that he should be using his natural-born talent for the Lord’s work, too.

Once we left Georgia last October, Jim began to faithfully practice his trumpet and has used his abilities since then to give devotionals, not only at Toccoa, but at Ethridge also. Thank you, Billy!
Two other events that took place during the 2nd and 3rd weeks of our time in Toccoa are worthy of mentioning…

First, one night after devotionals, a group of us decided to take a lazy trip around the lake in the pontoon boat with Bill Strong doing the navigating. Plans were made to pick up some of us at the campsite… While we were waiting for the pontoon to arrive, Jim and Ruth had fun playing around taking some hitch hiking photos while Ken kept watch for our ride.
This adventurous group included: Jim and I, Ken and Ruth (Alabama), Pilot Bill and Jean (Virginia), Billy and Lillian, Pat and Margaret (all from Florida).
Our next to the last night that we were in Georgia, we invited Eric, Ruth, and their daughter, Kate as well as Heidi and her three children (Hannah, Jared, and Olivia)…(her husband Kurt was on the road and unable to come) and Bob and Nell over to Big V for some homemade ice cream and visiting. Later the couple, Beaman and his wife from Seneca, SC, who were set up next to us, joined the group.

The weather didn’t cooperate…rained cats and dogs…but we set up under the pavilion adjacent to our campsite. What fun we had! Our visiting turned into Jim playing the trumpet and having the music float over the water…it was an awesome experience. Then, as Jim found his next song, Bob and Eric traded off telling jokes. This was certainly an act that should go on the road!
Just a little side note from my point of view...Jared and Jim are giving the Texas hand sign in the photo of the men…they did it to be ornery since I am not a Texas fan and they are. In fact, Heidi and the kids even brought out Texas Longhorn lawn chairs! How rude was that?
Jim: We told Nancy earlier in the week that we needed to leave sooner than we had originally planned so we could be back in Mineola for Mother’s Day. So, by Wednesday evening we had finished all our duties, packed Big V and moved her down to the parking lot, and were set up for our final Toccoa evening. We said our goodbyes to volunteers and staff, visited with Bob and Nell in Big V, and then retired for a quiet night, hoping to get enough rest to get us well down the road on Thursday.

Before leaving Thursday morning we went back to the dining hall to say goodbye to the morning staff and then returned to Big V to head off for the day’s driving adventure. We got away from Toccoa at 7:30 and drove, and drove, and drove, passing through Atlanta (an adventure we could just as well do without), and around Birmingham, Alabama (a place where it is always raining when we go through), and on to Vicksburg, Mississippi, one of our favorite places, where we spent a couple of nights just resting before the final push to Mineola.

Our memories of the time we spent in Toccoa far outnumber the ability to write about them all. The Toccoa experience is like a wonderful homecoming and reunion of family and friends, as well as a gathering of new friends (almost like meeting cousins that we have heard about many times, but have never seen before). We are now bonded together through the service and the Toccoa experience, and know that we will always have a special relationship.

“And whatever you do, whether in word or in deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” – Colossians 3:17 (Toccoa volunteers’ memory verse)

Adhering to the philosophy that a photo is worth a 1000 words, we're adding just a "few" more photos of special people...special times...

With grateful thanks to the team that God put together and that Jesse and Nancy directed,

Jim & Barbara

Georgia Baptist Conference Center Toccoa, Georgia

A Little Between Time

Wednesday, April 15 – Saturday, April 18, 2009

Wednesday, April 15

Happy Birthday to Aunt Glennis Wright in Marianna, Florida!!!

This morning before saying our goodbyes to the volunteers in Ethridge, Tennessee, we took time to have one last photo with our “Toccoa” friends Mike and Renee from Ohio and Lynn and John Worley from Georgia.

After having the morning devotional and breakfast with the group, and then as they all drove off to the new church site for the day, we turned our attention to getting Big V ready to travel again.
Getting ready to move includes straightening the inside up so the slideouts can be pulled back in, disconnecting the water and sewer lines and the electricity, and then backing Big V up to the trailer so we can prepare to load the Vibe. All in all, it takes nearly an hour to have everything loaded and buttoned down so we can head on down the road.

Around 8:30 we pulled away from the church and started off on the day’s journey to northern Georgia, between Blue Ridge and Blairsville. The route took us south on Highway 43 to Lawrenceburg and then east on U.S. 64 to Chattanooga.

We did just fine until we got on a bypass loop around Dalton, Georgia, and missed our cutoff. When we drove back into Dalton, we realized that we had done something horribly wrong, so we stopped and got directions from one of the local store managers. Armed with information about what to look for, we continued the trip without incident, although Barbara did call our friends, Jere and Gwen Akin, to let them know we were going to be later getting to their home than we anticipated.

All went well though, and we arrived at the cutoff to Jere and Gwen’s house right at 4:30. They were at the highway to meet us and guide us back up to their house. We needed the guiding service, because there is a quarter mile of narrow gravel road that we had to follow along the way, and they went ahead to stop any oncoming traffic, since there was no way that two vehicles could meet and get by each other for that short length of the road.

We arrived at the house in time to get a quick tour and then left with them to attend the Wednesday night supper and Bible study at their church, First Baptist of Blairsville, where we met some really friendly folks, got reacquainted with Pat Baldwin, one of the ladies we worked with at Toccoa last fall, enjoyed a wonderful supper, and had a tremendous Bible study-an introductory lesson about the lives (and deaths) of the 12 Apostles. My only regret was that the series would be a tremendous history lesson and we wouldn’t be there to hear it!

We returned to the house to unload a few things from Big V since we were staying in their gorgeous upstairs guest room complete with a breath-taking view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Then we visited the rest of the evening away, catching up on each other’s activities since we last saw each other in Toccoa in October.

Since it had been a long day for all of us, we called it a night fairly early and headed for bed and a good night’s sleep.

Thursday, April 16

What a fun-packed and adventurous day this turned out to be!

First, I awoke very early and went downstairs to check my email. Jere soon made his appearance, did his morning workout, and then we went out to the hot tub that sits on the lowest landing of the house and overlooks the joining of the Blue Ridge and Smokey Mountains to the north…a great way to begin a morning.

While Jim and Jere were out enjoying the hot tub, I did some photo taking of the views around the Akins lovely home. Some of these photos were taken later in the day by Jim as he surveyed their land. Awesome place!
When everyone began to seriously gin around, Gwen fixed a wonderful breakfast for us and then we headed out for the days adventures.

The first stop was at First Baptist Church, where we got to see the inside of the sanctuary. They were doing some remodeling inside, so we didn’t take pictures, but it truly is a beautiful facility.
From the church, we drove down to the town square to visit the old county courthouse, (photo on left) which is now a museum and a site for local concerts. The upper floor of the building, the courtroom, is now used as a small concert hall. The museum houses a number of northern Georgia’s historical artifacts and has a special room just for military history.

We left the museum and began the drive out of town through the Chattahoochee National Forest toward Helen, the quaint little German-style village that Bob and Nell took us to last fall. Before we had gone very far, Jere stopped at an old grist mill that is not only still in operation (they were grinding grits this morning), but also houses a little market where we saw a wide variety of jams, jellies, preserves, and syrups. Of course, we just HAD to make a few purchases there.

Back on the road again, we wound through the mountains, stopping at a couple of specially marked scenic views to take some pictures. While the pictures turned out very nicely, they can’t begin to capture the grandeur and scope of the beautiful northern Georgia mountains…some things are just meant to be enjoyed in person!
We arrived in Helen around noon, looked through a couple of shops, and then decided to have lunch at a little restaurant, “The Troll,” on the banks of the Chattahoochee River. Since it was midweek, there wasn’t much of a crowd, so we were able to sit outdoors and enjoy the view as we munched on brats on a bun and German potato salad.

After eating, Barbara and Gwen visited some of the shops while Jere and I sat outside in the town square and enjoyed the warm sunshine while doing some serious people-watching.

We left Helen and headed back to Blairsville on a different route, this time going through the town of Hiawassee where we stopped to get tickets to an upcoming concert at the fairgrounds. Then, it was back to Blairsville for more visiting while Gwen cooked up a virtual banquet for us.

We whiled the night away by talking and showing Gwen and Jere the DVD that Barbara made of the church building project for Liberty Hill Baptist Church.
Soon, it was again time to call it a night. Jere was scheduled to get up and out early so he could join some college classmates for a golf tournament tomorrow morning, and we needed to get things put together so we could load Big V and take off on the next leg of the journey.

Friday, April 17

Even though I woke up earlier than usual this morning, I just missed seeing Jere before he left for his golf tournament. But, Gwen stayed behind and fixed us breakfast fit for royalty…if we stayed here much longer, we’d have to leave the car parked and just walk up and down the mountain to try to keep up with the calorie count!

After saying our goodbyes and thanking Gwen for their wonderful hospitality, we loaded Big V and followed Gwen down the mountain (she led the way so she could stop any oncoming traffic) and then took off toward Toccoa, traveling back through Hiawassee and Clayton before coming to the cutoff to Toccoa.

We arrived at the Georgia Baptist Conference Center around 12:30, checked in at the office, went to the dining hall to visit friends there, and then, after leaving the trailer in the lower parking lot, drove Big V and the Vibe up the hill (and narrow, dusty road) to the campgrounds, where we located the site we wanted, parked, and set up housekeeping for the next three or so weeks.

As it did last fall, our site overlooks Lake Louise and the beautiful woodlands that surround it. Now though, we see the gorgeous spring colors and green trees…what a beautiful place to come serve our Lord!

We spent the afternoon and evening cleaning house, washing clothes, and doing all the thousand and one chores that come with setting up the RV, and then went down to the dining hall to enjoy an evening meal and meet with Jesse and Nancy Fairfax, coordinators for the volunteers, who had also come in a couple of days early to line out the job assignments for the volunteers who will arrive between now and Sunday evening.

Saturday, April 18

With the house set up and no chores to take care of today, we decided that even though we had been driving or riding the last couple of days, we’d go off for a little quiet time together. So, we threw a change of clothes into the Vibe and headed off to see the mountains, driving through stretches of the Chattahoochee National Forest, the northern Georgia and southern North Carolina reaches of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and the southern section of the Great Smokey Mountains.

No chores, no responsibilities, and a beautiful Saturday…what a way to spend some time away together to regroup and refresh before starting a new volunteer mission in Toccoa!

“Without Friends no one would choose to live, though he had all other goods.” Aristotle

Hiding away in the Great Smokey Mountains,
Jim & Barbara