April 27-May 3, 2014

Little Manatee River State Park

 Wimauma, FL

Sunday-

Monte removed the plate from the hitch so he could wire brush and then paint it.   

 

 

After the plate was removed he discovered that the plastic glide pads that go between the lower skid pad assembly and the upper mounting assembly were cracked.  On Monday, Monte called Mor/ryde to request a replacement. 

 We received them on Friday at no cost. 

 I was impressed with Mor/ryde when we visited their facility back in August 2012 to have the independent suspension and disc brakes installed.  We have had a couple of issues since then that they addressed to our satisfaction so I would confidently refer Mor/ryde.

This is how far the pole Monte bought at the thrift store on Anna Maria Island extends.  

Our co-volunteers, John and Darlene, invited us out to their favorite Mexican restaurant.  Monte is not a big fan of Mexican food so I suggested he order the fajitas.  It was a good call-he liked them but also maintained that my fajitas are better.

I had the chicken quesadilla that came with beans and rice.  The serving was so large I ended up taking half home.  But I did manage to drink both my two for one margaritas.  

Monday-

 Monte and I worked together taking down shelves in the back room of the garage that will become an office.  After the shelves were removed I painted the walls.

I got the lizard seal of approval

Annie doing what she does best.  When we bought our rig I didn't like the chairs that came with it so we purchased two new chairs ($400 each).  Monte uses his all the time but I never use mine so Annie took it over--that is one expensive cat chair.

Tuesday-

Monte attached the shovel to the tractor and filled in gravel on one of the equestrian sites.  

 After lunch I went back to the campground with him to help rake and water the newly laid gravel.

 

 In the afternoon he dumped the black tank and then did his post dump chores that included treating the toilet.  First he pours in some canola oil, 

 followed by softener,

 and after a little swoosh with the brush,

some Happy Camper is added.   

The last thing he does is add a little lubricant. 

 There are many ways to treat the tank-this system seems to work fine for us.

Wednesday-

Monte’s back was a little sore so he decided not to work today.  But while I was doing my shift at the Ranger Station he managed to get two loads of laundry done as well as build a shelf in our hall closet.

 

 

 Thursday-

 I was scheduled to work the Ranger Station but ended up switching with the person scheduled to work on Friday because they needed to take time off.  I spent most of the day reading while Monte worked on one of the club cars.  It wouldn’t start so he suspected the problem was with the starter.  Unfortunately, he had to take off many parts to get to the starter.

 

Just before lunch he took a break to say goodbye to John and Darlene who are moving over to Rainbow Springs for a couple of months.  One of the many things I like about our lifestyle is meeting new people-unfortunately all too soon it is time to say goodbye.  We are going to miss them.  Our little group is dwindling fast as we are down to three rigs in the compound.  The other two rigs are solo males leaving me the only female left.  

 Friday-

I worked in the Ranger Station for the morning shift—It was my last shift in training—Beginning Wednesday there may be times when I am in the station by myself.  Each site in the campground was reserved for the weekend but with a forecast of severe rains we began getting some cancellations.   Most of my morning shift was spent on the phone with people who had reservations asking if they should cancel. 

Back home, after lunch, the rains came.   

Saturday—

Non stop rain all night and most of the day.  As we watched the news, my heart really went out to the people who had damage to their house from flooding.  

During a lull in the heavy rain, Monte went outside and swept some of the water off our large slide.

 Cabin fever was setting in so we decided to take a ride to Sam’s Club for The Taste of Sam’s. 

On the drive home, the rain began again and continued through the night.  I was happy to see the forecast for next week is for sunny days.