"There's another way out to the highway," Kevin told us. "But it's a dirt road."
"I'm not worried about it being dirt," Mike said.
Kevin drove us out that way on our way to dinner and it looked like we might be able to skirt the low branches and get out without too much trouble.
"If you guys want to, you can use my truck tomorrow, but you have to take me to work," Kevin volunteered.
So on the third morning of our trip, we took Kevin to work and stopped at a little dinner for breakfast.
"How are we going to get out of here without scraping the roof up?" Mike still worried.
"You want to drive that dirt road again?"
"Yeah, let's do that."
After breakfast, we drove the dirt road again, this time with a more critical eye, and found at least one place where a branch looked like it would give us trouble.
"We could have Kevin cut it off," I mused.
"You can't go around cutting off trees that don't belong to you!"
"You can if they hang over the road!" I said and it sparked a memory. "Mike, remember right before we left? The county boys were out cutting the branches that hung over the road because the bus company called and complained about it scratching up their buses. Remember?" And boy, our county guys were not happy about it either! It wasn't that they didn't want to cut the branches, it was the timing of it. With all of the rains and flooding that took place in Pennsylvania, there were a lot of roads that needed to be fixed. "We could call the city and have them cut the branches."
"They're not going to do that." Mike was doubtful.
"Sure they will, it's their job!"
He was quiet for a moment, thinking. "You could ride on top and when I come to one of those branches you could pick it up and walk it along to the back and let it go," Mike suggested.
I didn't even have to think about that. "No."
"Why not? I'll go slow."
"I'm not doing that. Not now, not ever," my voice leaving no room for doubt.
When we got back to the RV, I went online and looked up the number for Eldon's City Hall and Mike called. He's a better person to handle these kinds of calls because he's more of a people person than I am and he has more finesse. I just put things right out there and sometimes come across as a bitch.
"We're visiting our son and we got our RV down here and I'm not sure we can get back out again. Could you have someone come out and cut the branches so we don't scratch our RV all up or maybe break something?"
"I'm sorry sir, we can't cut trees on personal property." I was sitting close enough that I could hear her.
"It's not personal property, it's the city streets."
Now she was doubtful. "Oookay. I'll send someone to check it out."
She took the address and it wasn't half an hour later the city guys were coming down the street. Mike went out and talked with them.
"The guys will cut the overhanging branches as far as they can reach," the supervisor told us.
"We appreciate that," Mike told him.
"Unfortunately it's just one of those things that doesn't get done until someone complains about it."
Mike spent quite a while talking and he liked Mike so well that he even cut a few low branches from Kevin's trees to make it easier for us to get out of the driveway.
"He's not supposed to do that," Mike said.
"Yeah, but it creates goodwill. And we all know that they can do anything they want to do anyway."
"Peg, Kevin's road doesn't look as bad as you made it sound," you say.
Well, I may have exaggerated a little.
We got ready and headed to the Lake. This is my first look at Bagnell Dam in more than two years.
The razor wire on top was new. "It's called Constantine Wire and it's what they use in prisons," I told Mike.
I see Mr. G is still there and his new shop is starting to look a lot like his old one.
"Peg, if that means junky, then I agree," you say.
Yeah. His old shop was so full of stuff you could hardly move around it.
The parking lot of our old place. They kept the name.
Mike called one of his old cronies and Tim came to chat for a while.
"Man! We had a heck of a time getting down to Kevin's," Mike told Tim. "It looks like one of our solar panels has a helluva scratch in it."
"Take pictures and send the repair bill to the city," Tim advised.
"Really?"
"Yeah. They're responsible to keep the streets clear and that's what they have insurance for."
And this is George. He's the man who bought our business from us.
We left there and went to visit our friend Margaret. Although I think she's a beautiful lady, she doesn't like to have her picture taken. This is her Shih Tzu, Lilly.
"Margaret, do you want to go out to Bear Creek for lunch?" we asked.
'Sure," Margaret agreed.
I had my favorite fish and chips. These are the best fish and chips I've ever had. The breading is light, the oil is fresh, they don't overcook it so the fish is tender. And their tartar sauce? It's made with dill and I love that almost as much as the fish.
On the way back to Margaret's we happen on a fender bender. As I remember, there have always been quite a few accidents in this area. It looks like nothing's changed.
We finished our running and went back to hang out at Kevin and Kandyce's house until it was time to go pick Kevin up from his work at 3:30. Mike had enough time for a nap and I took Ginger for a walk around the block.
Container gardening in some old tires.
And here's our RV parked in the driveway with Kevin's truck.
We left to pick Kevin up plenty early, as is Mike's way, but it was way okay with me. There were some interesting old buildings on the site where Kevin's shop is located.
Kevin on a fork truck.
Welder in the shop.
Mike parked the truck and I got out. "I'm going to explore while we're waiting for Kevin," I told him. There was a lot of stuff to see! I walked around and took pictures of all the old equipment sitting around.
These fiberglass critters used to live at Two-Bit Town on the Strip. Kevin's employer bought the property and moved them here.
The door was wide open but I didn't go in. I just stood outside the door and took a few pictures. The place was trashed.
One of Kevin's guys comes up the road. "They're getting ready to leave," he tells me. "They might leave you!"
"Naw! They won't leave me."
I turned my camera to take his picture and he gave me a big ol' grin. I love it!
I had time to take one more picture...
...before I see Kevin's truck.
Our next stop was getting Andrew from the bus stop.
At home, Andrew showed me all the schoolwork he did that day. I was sufficiently impressed and praised his good work.
"You want to play Old Bone?" Andrew asked.
I wasn't sure what Old Bone was but I was all in. We left Mike and Kevin talking their boy talk in the living room while Andrew and I sat at the center island in the kitchen and played an Old Maid type card game with updated characters and a bone for the old maid.
I'll tell you what! I had so much fun playing with Andrew! I noticed that if I left a card sticking up a little bit higher, he would always pick that card. I used that to my advantage and to teach Andrew a lesson. A lesson he learned well. Then he turned the tables on me and whenever he'd get the Old Bone, he'd stick it up a little bit higher, and I, of course, would take it back. Then Andrew started drawing the end card on the same side all the time and I used that for a teaching moment too. Andrew is smart and won six of the eight games we played. You have to learn to be a good loser too.
"Mom! You never let us win when were kids!" Kevin tells me. And he's right. I didn't let my kids win. My mother didn't let us kids win either. About the only game we played was Double Solitaire and if you won, then you knew you won fair and square.
Kandyce got home from work and settled Andrew down with a DVD. Right off the kitchen, there's a sunken area that may originally have been intended as a breakfast nook. The kids didn't find it convenient at all, moved the table closer to the kitchen, and use this area as a second living room. I love it. In fact, I love their whole house. It's the perfect place to raise a family.
Mike kept Kevin company while he made spaghetti and cheesy garlic bread for dinner that night.
Kevin's a good cook and it was yummy. I liked the way the garlic bread was stacked so pretty on the plate and that was the only picture I took of our dinner.
Mike wanted me to document the scratch to the solar panel so I climbed on top the RV.
I sighed. "Yep. It looks like a big old scratch!" I called down to Mike and snapped a few pictures. Then I got down and ran my thumbnail across it to see how deep the scratch was. Would that hurt the solar panel? I wondered. And the scratch scratched off! It wasn't a scratch after all.
"What was it?" you ask.
It was the sealant they used around the outside of the solar panel. Whoever applied it wasn't careful and let a string of it fall across the panel where it dried. Despite the horrendous screeching and thumping that took place when we drove down Kevin's road, we didn't have any damage at all. Yay!
The next morning we left for our rendezvous with Mike's brother Cork in Iola, Kansas. I took a ton of road pictures and for our fourth day of vacation, all there'll be is the road pictures.
The little town of Mack's Creek looks like a ghost town.
The ONE WAY sign ruined my picture.
Here's the next shot.
Lots of tractors.
Old grain elevator at Ft. Scott, Kansas.
I remember when the landscaping around this caboose was new.
And then we were in Iola!
Until next time, let's call this one done!
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