Sheltering in Place!

We arrived home on Tuesday after a 5 day slog from Florida to Fortress Woodlawn. Many Frenchies seen along the way fleeing the states at the last minute. Also lots of college students heading home after the party. We were able to keep to ourselves during the journey and only had to worry about using dreaded gas pumps. 

It was a good decision for us to cpme home as we are fine here with no worries about getting the infection if we are careful.

Today I finished cleaning up the motorhome and stuffing it inside the barn. Pipes drained and blown clear, head drained and cleaned, coach washed and all products emptied from storage. Whew!!!

Not too much to say about the pandemic except we knew something like this was coming. We are prepared! Many chores and projects to accomplish here at home over the next few months, and I will be getting the Wall Street Journal to keep me entertained. Missing baseball!

Here endeth the winter trip and all plans to go west in May look to be cancelled. Maybe next year we will get to Yellowstone!

Homeward Bound!

We left Ft. Myers on Friday after hemming and hawing for a week. When ping pong got cancelled, I was ready to get home and concentrate on social distancing. Don't bother to visit us for a while!

Met some rude Frenchies on the way yesterday. I got yelled at in French for not being quick enough at the gas pumps. Why did they wait until the last minute to head for home?

Lots of college kids clogging up the road also. Good times are over for now.  Roads jammed yesterday but not as bad today.

On another note, filled up the RV at $1.84 per gallon!! Not bad eh?

We are currently in Petersburg Va.  at the South Forty Campground. Pennsylvania tomorrow! Will the rest areas be open?

Theodore is chilling after a long day on the road!

So am I!

It's Cancelled!

It seems that life as we know it has been cancelled by the Corona Virus. Saturday was our long awaited trip with friends to see the spring training Mets play and now it is off. Darn! ACC tournament with Syracuse off to a winning start, canned! NBA is done (Who cares?) MLB has shut down everything.

I am OK with this decision as I think we should all act aggressively against this virus. Even before Trump's speech last night, Joanna and I headed to Publix to stock up! (Now I'm sorry I didn't get a key lime pie to soothe my sorrow). We wanted to beat the crush of humanity that I am sure is going on today.

We plan to stay anchored here in North Ft. Myers for a while to wait this thing out. We will hunker down and stay at home the next few weeks. (I will probably go to ping pong tomorrow).

Today we have Alex, the detail man from Shiny Apple Co., here making out motorhome sparkle like new. What a great job he is doing!!

Awww...C'mon!

I have been a fisherman for most of my life. I can remember riding my bike to fish Beaver Dam on Long Island as a kid, and later as a youth learning to fly fish 2 summers in the wilds of Canada (a story in itself). My more recent fishing has involved tens of thousands of casts for trophy salmon and steelhead trout on the mighty Salmon River in Pulaski, NY.

But alas, the human body is frail, and I am finding that the cumulative wear and tear for this lefty has taken a toll. I suddenly find that my shoulder has become "painful", to say the least ,when I attempt to do the things I love like fishing and table tennis. Today it was ping pong which lasted for all of 2 minutes before I had to quit and head home for a hot pack.

My doc has suggested I start my career over as a righty. I have tried this with only modest success. And really...how long would it take to turn me into a right handed sportsman? Is there enough time left in my athletic career for me to become a righty ping pong player??

I am stubborn and so I will rest and get back on my horse Friday. I do this while keeping in mind the possibility of having to watch a fishing movie sometime in the distant future. Until then, I plod on to the finish line, enjoying every step!

I have just finished reading a wonderful book passed along to me by my brother and titled: Beneath a Scarlet Sky, by Mark Sullivan. It is based on the harrowing life of a young Italian hero from World War 2, and is a must read in these troubled times. The book ends with a marvelous quote by the main character, Pino Lella, that I reproduce here in its entirety:

"You know, my young friend, I will be ninety years old next year, and life is still a constant surprise to me. We never know what will happen next, what we will see, and what important person will come into our life, or what important person we will lose. Life is change, constant change, and unless we are lucky enough to find comedy in it, change is nearly always a drama, if not a tragedy. But after everything, and even when the skies turn scarlet and threatening, I still believe that if we are lucky enough to be alive, we must give thanks for the miracle of every moment of every day, no matter how flawed. And we must have faith in God, and in the universe, and in a better tomorrow, even if that faith is not always deserved."

The above words are an inspiration to me.

Joanna chats up our neighbor, John, during the cocktail hour on a beautiful day here in paradise.

The Great Performance!

Friday night was the big talent show and I was front and center with my comedy act. I must admit that it went over really well. The Swan Lake folks have already invited me back next year. Who knows? I may be the new Rodney Dangerfield on the retired people's circuit of comedy.
So, here it is:

"Really Big Shue!"

Tomorrow night is the big talent show here at Swan Lake and I am set to perform my stage act. I think I have some funny stuff but we will see how it all goes! In a worst case scenario I can fall back on my Ed Sullivan imitation...the only imitation I have in my arsenal!
"Right here...on our stage...Topo Gigio!" 
I will report back!

"Kid games" (pool and ping pong) are going well and next week I may be going to a rival venue to play some pretty talented people. Should be fun!

Went to the local car show with my neighbor here in North Ft. Myers.

I used to have a '57 Chevy when I was a teen. I still remember picking up my Aunt Nancy and driving in to see my Mom in NYC when she was sick. We stopped at Uncle Donnie's and Aunt Nellie's on the way home through Queens. That was 1969. My 57 Chevy was midnight blue with a white top. Loved the car but the heavy duty clutch was too hard for Joanna so we traded up.

I just liked the looks of the 59 El Camino in the 2nd picture.

The last picture is a 56 Caddy, like the one my dad owned but a different color. Dad's was canary yellow and black. Many terrific memories of that car, especially trips to the drive in at Westbury on Long Island. Picture the 3 young boys in the back seat jabbing and needling each other!! I always got stuck in the middle!

Newsy news

On Monday we had the internment of Diana's husband, Gerhard, at the cemetery on a gorgeous day. Later in the afternoon we headed to Ariane's Rest. , a long time family favorite, to celebrate Gerhard's life with a dinner for family and friends. Here is a shot of nephew Ian and his wonderful young family. (I guess you would have to call it a snapshot)

Tuesday I took my brother, Rich, to the car museum in Naples. Lots of historical vehicles and also much about racing at the Revs Institute.

Lots of snow falling back home right now so we are in the right place. It has cooled down into the 60's so it was a good morning to walk and walk I did.

I have signed up to do a stand up comedy routine next week for the Swan Lake Talent Night. I'm going to do a ten minute routine and hopefully I will get laughs. Nervous about this but what the heck! It is something I have always wanted to do.

Observation: When I was 10, 11, and 12 years old I played ping pong, shot pool, and rode my bike. Now I am 70 and... playing ping pong, shooting pool, and riding a bike. Hmm....

We just purchased a water purifying pitcher. We are using way too many plastic water bottles so now we can reduce/eliminate them. Why? Because we are trying to lessen our carbon footprint. What are you doing to help protect our environment? Are you waiting for government to do it? I hope not! You can make a difference if you try. Ed Sanderson, Mike Tirrell, Phil Tippen, and others take note: Now when I put water in my adult beverage, it will be pure!