OCTOBER 28:
Today MW was up enjoying his coffee early, but I lolly-gagged. When I finally got it together, we took a little hike down to the old town site. It is strange that a fairly thriving town of ninety families just pretty much disappeared. The buildings are totally gone, even those made of brick and stone. Once the town was abandoned, people took the materials to use in their new homes or as mementos. We walked around the site for a bit, then checked out the visitor’s center exhibits.
Back at Penelope we decided to head to town for lunch and go to the WWII museum. On the way to Pocahontas we passed a field with two horses and a llama. They are just so cool looking…both, but mostly llamas! We ended up at Don’s Steakhouse, which is a hopping place for Sunday lunch. They have a buffet, but we opted for catfish, which was very good. (The hushpuppies were flavorless, though. They need to talk to my Mom about how to make a good hushpuppy!) At lunch we figured out that the museum is actually in another town, so that will be on tomorrow’s activities. We drove through the downtown area before stopping at the grocery store for supplies.
After putting everything away, it was time for a little nap in the lawn chairs. That is something that we haven’t done much of this trip, but we need to change our MO. The best naps are in lawn chairs with the wind blowing through the tree tops. (Well, a hammock may have a slight edge on the lawn chair, but not much.) Most of the campers cleared out today, leaving just five sites full, so it is pretty quiet now.
Later I worked on this blog for a little while, then we watched some TV. I had cereal for dinner, while MW took a pass as he had eaten quite a bit at lunch. This was such a nice, relaxing day.
OCTOBER 29:
This morning MW noticed a guy leaving very early on his motorcycle. He apparently pulled in late last night, slept on the ground beside his bike, then left before the park rangers showed up this morning. Sleeping on the ground is hard-core! MW didn’t notice whether he had a pad of any kind.
Laundry day has come again, so I got up first thing and headed to Pocahontas to get it done. On the way I stopped at the Donut Palace for a little breakfast to take with me.) As always, I had my computer, planning to get a little work done, and was happy when I found the place empty with nice table to work at. I got my loads started, but not until I cleaned various clothing items out of the washers. There were all kinds of things…a pillow case, a pair of kid’s underwear, a towel, and about a dozen kid’s socks…spread between ten washers. Who doesn’t check the machine to make sure they got everything?! With all of my stuff running, I sat down to work. Alas, it was not to be. About five minutes later, an older couple came in and the man started talking to me. I chatted for a few minutes, then tried to get back to work. He was having none of it! I waited for him to take a breath and turned back at my computer, the universal signal for “I’ve really got some stuff to do.” It didn’t phase him. I learned about his seventeen brothers and sisters, and where they all live, his health issues, and his farm. He was very nice, but the conversation precluded me getting any actual work done. He stayed until about ten minutes before the last of my loads was finished drying. By that time I was folding and taking stuff out to Brutus, so I just packed up my computer. A few minutes later another guy came in, this time around 30ish. I was just getting ready to leave with my last basket of stuff, and he offered to carry it out for me. It was a nice gesture, but the “sugar” this and “sweetie” were irritating. It doesn’t bother me at all if an older man or woman does it, but when someone clearly younger than me does, it just feels insincere and creepy. I thanked him for the offer, nonetheless, and headed back to Penelope.
When I arrived MW helped me put everything away and make up the bed, then we headed over to Walnut Ridge to find him some McRibs. We noticed that everyone has vacated the park except for us and a Casita (that I am calling a Bambino just to irritate MW). You can hear a little traffic from the road and an occasional train, but it is really pretty quiet. After lunch I stayed at McDonald’s to get that work done while he went over to the Wings of Honor Museum. He said it was a nice tribute to the people who served in WWII and provided a good overview of how the base was used during the war and post war years. They really focused on recognizing those who served and died from this area. After a while he showed back up to pick me up, and we headed back to Penelope. On the way back to camp we passed a little calf who was so small that he must have been born earlier in the day or the day before. Too cute!
It was a gorgeous day, and MW built a fire. We spent the evening enjoying the fire and the weather. When dinner time rolled around, we went with chili dogs (cooked over the fire on a stick, of course) and smores and toasted marshmallows. I got a little more work done, and later in the evening we went in and watched a little TV before turning in.