What the Hail???????

Yesterday morning found us in Effingham, Illinois, with hail pounding down on us at 6:30 a.m. Grrrr. Terry was already up and it woke me up so we hurriedly closed up the slides. That is a bit of a pain in our motorhome, but having to replace slide toppers would be worse. The hail, which we couldn't see in the dark, must have been larger than pea-size, but we didn't have any damage. I do think it would have punched some holes if we had not acted quickly.

We were camped at Lakeview Campground, our second visit there. It is a nice camp and we initially met the owners the first time we were here. At that time, they had just bought the place. They are a couple retired from the military and they do a nice job on their campground. They keep it clean, restrooms spotless and give you personal service.

We had a troublesome light problem with a turn signal and brake light and Terry decided we would stay an extra night so he could tackle that problem. He had already spent a couple hours with it and decided to totally rewire it from where it plugs into the coach on to the back of the truck. He got his wire all cut and harnessed to go. When he pulled the plug that fits into the socket on the motorhome, he found the problem. That large plug was cracked. He opened it up and tightened all the wires and everything worked. So now he tells me we must go and buy a new plug! As it was, a mobile RV repairman was in the park and he had the exact plug we needed, so he bought it and finished the job in short order. We are so lucky Terry knows all this stuff. Where would we be if we had to rely on others for such things.

I met many new dogs in the park and one lady in particular stopped to chat awhile while I fussed over "Pepper." She and her husband were traveling with her husband's niece and her husband and their two dogs. She said, "They have a Scottish Terrier, but she's white." My heart flipflopped. White Scotties are quite rare; and, as you know, we had one, Neal. We also had a black Scottie, Bailey. The little dog down the lane was "Fiona." I got to meet her. She was a typical Scottie, rather aloof and could really care less about me. Hahaha. But she still took my treats I offered. She was a bit out of sorts because she had torn a nail on a deck that had holes in it and it was causing her some discomfort. They ended up taking her to a vet yesterday who gave her antibiotics, some pain medicine and trimmed the torn nail. She is one loved and cared for Scottie. She lived with a red heeler, Carmel.

While we were talking, Gloria said they were all going out for supper and we were invited to join them. This is what camping and fulltiming are all about! Meeting people. We all went to a local steakhouse and had a great meal. Glorida bought a whole pie at the restaurant and we all enjoyed peach pie a la mode when we returned to camp. Thanks, Friends!

We left Effingham this morning. Storms made there way across our route yesterday and wind was promised for today. Great choice, eh? Drive in rain or wind? We checked the weather maps carefully and decided to leave very early this morning (7:15) and miss the wind which was to start later in the day. That plan worked perfectly and after seeing the flooded fields and ditches along the way, we were glad we were driving in the rain.

We are at the New Lisbon Family Campground near where we used to live. Many people from our little town have summer trailers here and we got to see some friends when we arrived. We are here for four days for doctor appointments, then we head to Virginia to see the kids and to celebrate Ronan's fourth birthday!

Till next time. . .

Dale