06/25/2022

We got up at a reasonable hour and took a quick shower before heading out for a walk around the park. The weekenders were active with some already in the water either swimming or in boats which were either tearing around the lake at breakneck speed or anchored as the occupants sat with their fishing lines cast out. Might as well enjoy every minute and it got me thinking just how lucky I am that this is my way of life every day and they can only do it on the weekends. 

We returned for the usual breakfast attempts which resulted in the dogs ignoring their food. I ate mine and enjoyed it along with the morning Latte. We have nothing planned for today except to stay cool.  

I sat in front of the computer and quickly went through the few(er) emails that I had including one from BJ describing her luxury hotel lodgings. Sure, is a tough life for her on this vacation and her form of “roughing it’ is much different than ours although ours does have a very high level of comfort and convenience. No hotel staff to wait on us, as with me by myself, it is all self-service. The dogs are absolutely no help whatsoever except for their love and companionship and acting as though they are important with their constant demands for attention. 

I worked on compiling a log of our latest trip just for the record including campground costs and such to see what this trip will actually cost me when we finish. We went out for the final walk and wandered around for a while not going in any specific direction. I let Sandy lead the way and only occasionally redirected her to go close to where I wanted. It made for interesting walking. 

Back in Quatro, we had our evening meal followed by the usual television and relaxing. That is a strange statement as my whole life is one of relaxing even when there are chores to do. 

Written 06/25/2022. Read my other blogs at https://pondblog2011.com  

Shiloh on the Lake, Malakoff. Day 7 Sunday

06/26/2022

We went out for the morning walk and when I opened the door, the first thing that I noticed was just how empty the park is. Most of the weekenders have gone and even those staying in the cabins have left. As far as I can tell, there are only 5-6 semi-permanent RV’s left in the park and 4 of the temporary ones like us. There is only one cabin occupied. Late in the afternoon, another older Class A pulled in 2 sites away from us. That will all change this coming 4^th July weekend when I imagine nearly all the sites and cabins will be booked. We, hopefully, will be at Hawks Nest RV Park in Atlanta, TX. At least, that is the plan. 

We had nothing planned for today and generally lazed around a lot. I spent a couple of hours listening to a story on Audiobooks, which although the story itself was interesting enough, was not very well written and was a bit frustrating at times. The day drifted by until it was time to go out for the evening walk around the park. This is a very large park, and we easily get in our mile a day although I keep forgetting to bring my phone along. Not a good thing if there is an emergency of some kind. While we were out walking, it became obvious just how empty the park really is as there are empty lots all over the area. 

Back in Quatro, I fixed us our respective evening meals before settling down to the usual routine of watching TV. I am currently in the middle of a series called “Rookie Blue” which is all about 4 Rookie cops in I believe, NYC and the antics they get up to. For some reason, the writers have included a lot of live romances with some sex scenes between these same Rookie Officers. That is Ok except that it is taking at least 50 percent of the story wrapped around these individuals’ private lives as they keep swapping partners taking away from the actual policing part of the story. Do these writers really believe that so much of the characters private lives is good television? I would have thought that the NYPD would have a policy of no personal relationships between the individual cops although that might be hard to enforce. 

Jeez, I must be growing old if I no longer enjoy watching a raunchy sex scene…. 

Written 06/25/2022. Read my other blogs at https://pondblog2011.com  

06/23/2022

I typed in the heading and noticed it was already Thursday. I have no idea where the time goes as it is simply flying by along with whatever remaining years I may have. Still, I cannot worry about what may lie ahead and can only enjoy the present which we do. Me and the dogs, that is. We went walking and found the dog run which is not really a whopping success. You would think that being off the leash, both dogs would scamper around smelling all the new scents available to them and generally doing what dogs do. Mine, not so much. Sandy may wander around for a bit before returning and flopping on the ground. Mikey barely gets more than 5 feet away and invariably sits right next to me probably guarding me from whatever he imagines is out there. As soon as I say, “let’s go”, they rush over to be clipped onto the double leash we use and off we go wandering this way and that and stopping a thousand times to smell the roses. I think that the heat gets to them too just as it does me and they prefer the A/C in Quatro. 

Following breakfast, I settled down to write. I do not have any plans or need to go into town, and it is forecast to reach 102 degrees today which along with the humidity will make it at least 105, way too hot to be outside. As well as writing, I also cooked some pork and chicken that I had bought in Malakoff. I say I cooked it but in fact, all I did was to place it on the indoor grill and forget about it until it was done. Pretty simple and very tasty. I made a few phone calls and worked on a few pictures to pass the time.  I watched as the park Personel are going about their usual activities. I do not know how much involves outdoor work as all I see is them rushing around on their 4 wheelers although one of them was riding a large mower. This current heat wave is supposed to end on Sunday, and we may get to have normal high 90 plus degree temperatures. 

We went out for the afternoon/evening walk as the temperature had dropped at least 2 degrees maybe even 3 degrees but whatever, it was still hot and humid. We wandered around going in no particular direction with bossy Miss Sandy leading the way as she usually does. The cabins are beginning to fill up as people come in for the weekend but so far, we are still on our own. Our closest neighbor is at least 100 feet away.  

The evening was spent in the usual fashion, food all around, a glass of cheap wine for me and watching television with the remote in my hand to control the volume as it was late. It seems that nowadays, all television can no longer have quiet periods unless it is part of the plot. Just about all the shows I watch have music playing in the background even when people are talking the music always rises in volume in between the different scenes. So annoying and does not do anything to add to my entertainment. It does not help the quiet time imposed by the Parks either. RVs are not exactly soundproof… 

Written 06/23/2022. Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com  

Shiloh on the Lake, Malakoff Day 5

06/24/2022

We did not wake up until 10:00 am before going out for the mornings walk around the park. We wandered around and noticed that the number of cabin tenants had increased by quite a few. Today is Friday after all and these are the weekenders. We tried the dog run thing but that is almost a waste of our time as regards the dogs having some independence off the leash. Sandy wanders and sniffs for a bit before returning. Mikey, well Mikey stays by me all the time. They are always happy to have the leashes clipped back on, and we get on our way. There are a lot of squirrels here in this park which annoys Mikey to no end as he knows he cannot chase them because of his leash. They are very bold and wait until the very last minute before dashing up the nearest tree which only aggravates Mikey more. So near and yet, so far. 

We sat down for breakfast which at least I ate mine. The dogs did their usual sniff and turn away before I settled down to read and write. We have nothing planned and the day is ours to do with whatever we want. Gone are the days when there was something that needed doing every day like cleaning filters or cleaning out the ponds, even things like cleaning the house have dropped from 1800 sq ft to a little over 350 sq ft inside the RV. I have a lot more time to do things or just do nothing. 

I received notification that I had a letter in the office which I was expecting and drove over to pick it up and at the same time inquired about the times the washing machines are available. They do not have a change machine and I need to be sure that I go over when the office is open. Laundry can wait for a few days. I called our next stop just to confirm that the booking was OK and got their approval with a,” See you next week”. Our next move is scheduled for July 1 to Hawks Nest RV Park in Atlanta, Texas a trip of about 180 miles. 
 
The rest of the day was spent in the usual way until it was time to go out walking. We strolled around the park which is noticeably a lot noisier with the input of the weekend campers and their kids. 

Written 06/24/2022. Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com