Say Hello to Roscoe Oct 2016

We have been pooch-less for over a year.  After Charlie Dog died, I really didn't want to get another one.  But, Bob really missed not having his buddy.  I finally realized that I would be less miserable with a dog than Bob would be without one, so I agreed to getting a rescue pet.  After several visits to various shelters, he came across a little dachshund mix  that captured his heart.   The folks at the shelter said the dog was found around Table Top Mountain, but it took 4 days before he was captured.  They have no idea how long he had been there or how he got there.  Was he abandoned?  Did he run away from his owner?  What was his name?  Well, they took him in; de-ticked him; put a chip in him; fixed his cuts, scrapes, and bites; fattened him up; and offered him for adoption.  We struggled with naming him, but settled on "Roscoe", and he seems happy with that name.  Best estimate is that he is 5 years old.  He's house trained and incredibly well behaved.  At times he cowers when we go to pet him, but we are hoping he will learn to trust us.

 

It didn't take Roscoe long to find his favorite spot.

He loves to walk, and it will do Bob a world of good, too.

No, Roscoe, the geese don't want to play with you.

More of Roscoe to come!

 



    

Signs of Fall - NC mountains Oct 20, 2016

In keeping with our plan of a weekly adventure, Bob and I took a ride along US 64 between Franklin and Cashiers, NC, to get a glimpse of the color changes.  The leaves still haven't peaked, but it was quite scenic in the mountains.

 



The walkway at Dry Falls

The path leads under the falls below

Water levels are very low due to the extreme drought conditions around us. 

 







Townville Tragedy Sept 29 2016

While we were on the road, we were pretty much off the grid.  We can't get tv;  radio,  cell phone and internet service is often sporadic.  Late Wednesday afternoon Carol called us to let us know the breaking news...there was a shooting at the Townville Elementary school.  As the story unfolded, we learned that a young teen (Jesse) had killed his father and then went to the school where he shot 2 youngsters and a teacher.  One of the victims, Jacob Hall,  later died.  Rumor mill was that Jesse had complained to his father and others that he was being bullied, but no one intervened.  There have been no newspaper reports to that effect.  Throughout the town there are now signs honoring the emergency responders.  The Townville exit (#11)  off I-85 will be named the Jacob Hall Interchange.  It will be a small solace to his family, but will serve to memorialize the young boy.

 





The New River Gorge Thurs Oct 6 2016

Thursday we drove about 50 miles south to the New River Bridge and Gorge.  The bridge is the 3rd highest in the country and 3rd longest single span vehicular bridge in the world.  It stands 876 feet above the river below.  The 3rd Saturday of October is called Bridge Day.  The road is closed and the bridge becomes the site for parachuting and wing suit dives; bungee cord jumps are no longer permitted.  The New River is misnamed for it is actually one of the oldest rivers in the country and unusual in that it flows south to north.  A very winding road leads into the gorge.  The ranger advised that Bob's extended cab dualie would probably be pushing the envelope on some curves, but we made it down and back up with no problem (whew!).



The gorge as seen from the visitor's center

On the observation deck

Nearing the bottom of the gorge

Going across the river on a bridge at the bottom of the road 

Under the girders at the opposite side of the bridge on the way back up. 

The next day we drove north of Sutton, but it began to rain heavily , so we decided to get back to camp and pack up for the ride home the next day.  We did get quite a bit of rain from Matthew on the way back, that is until we got to the Spartanburg area when the rain stopped like someone shutting off a faucet.  We are in  severe drought conditions in Anderson County, and could use some of Matthew's moisture, but it wasn't meant to be.  Lake Hartwell is down almost 8 feet of its full capacity.  Thankfully, we got home safely after another round trip of over 2500 miles, and Bob is already making plans for a trip out west next spring.





 



Next stop West Virginia Oct 5-7th 2016

We said good-bye to all and left New Jersey Tuesday morning.  We spent the night at another Passport America campground called Shawnee Sleepy Hollow in PA off I-99, and on Wednesday we pulled into an Army Corps of Engineer park named Gerald R Freeman.  It was a nice quiet spot on what was supposed to be a lake, although the section we were on was not much more than a wide creek.  Due to the drought, the water level was low and one of the streams was bone dry.  However, rain from Hurricane Matthew set in on Thursday and by the time we left on Friday, the creek was full.

The view from our campsite



The still water created a beautiful mirror

Bob tried his hand at fly fishing...something he hasn't done for years.

Towards dusk, a flock of turkeys appeared in the meadow across the lake. 

 

 

 

 

 

Jersey City Adventure Monday October 3, 2016

Cousin Carol and I had previously discussed making a trip to Jersey City to see if we could find some of the addresses of where our grandparents lived and where our grandfather is buried based on documents we found via research and papers her mother had.  Our grandfather, Paul, worked for the Delaware Lackawanna railroad and was killed at the train station February 3, 1923.  We were also hoping to find information about his death by researching newspaper archives.  Carol had googled the addresses and worked out a map and felt confident about making the journey into Jersey City, so we set off Monday morning.  She did a great job navigating, and we were very pleased with our outing.



The entrance to The Holy Name Cemetery where our grandfather is buried.  We stopped in at the office and showed an attendant a copy of the gravesite deed.  She directed us to the section where we should search.

There did not seem to be a logical pattern to the way the rows were labeled, but after walking the area we found site # 10 where Grandpa Paul lies.  However, there was no gravemarker for him.  "Why not?" is another question that will no doubt remain unanswered.

We stopped next at the main branch of the Jersey City library only to find the New Jersey room with all the historical archives was closed for renovation and would not be open for several weeks.  A librarian did call one of the archivists who was at another branch, and he was very informative.  The Journal newspaper had given its morgue to the library, so there was no sense in going to the news office.  We might also check with the Alexander Library at Rutgers, New Brunswick.

 Our grandparents' homes were no longer at the addresses we had.  One had been cleared to make way for the Roberto Clemente ball field; another had morphed into a shopping district.  The site where our grandfather had died was ironically at the Hoboken yard where last week's train disaster occurred.

Carol then drove us to Liberty State Park.

There we saw the stainless steel Empty Sky monument which was dedicated on the 10th anniversary of 9-11.

And the Central Railroad terminal which operated from 1892 to 1954.

Carol is reading about how the immigrants embarked here on their way to trains after leaving Ellis Island

Ferries depart from Liberty Park to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty.  The upper part of Lady Liberty can be seen between the minarets on the roof in this picture.

Liberty Park was a perfect choice to end our day's ancestral search, and the weather helped make it a perfect day.

 

 

 



NJ Sunday October 2, 2016

We were supposed to meet with the Konecny cousins on my father's side Friday night, but when Bob ended up in the hospital, I called cousin Anne and said we needed to cancel.  However, I had some things I had wanted to give them, so I made arrangements to drop off the pickled peppers and toys for the kids at cousin Amanda's house in Wayne on our way to the cemetery on Sunday.  I really have gotten to dislike driving from Oak Ridge into Clifton.  The traffic is horrific and the drivers are crazy.  It took us most of the day to run a few errands, stop to see Amanda, and get to the cemetery and back.  I was really frazzled by then since we had taken a wrong turn from Amanda's and ended up driving through some of the worst parts of Patterson, but managed to chill out at Adele's with a cup of tea while she showed me some recent photos of their shore vacation.



Amanda and (soon to be 3) daughter, Alina

Alexa, Amanda and Adam's 7 year old girl

 





Family Gathering & September Birthday Celebration Saturday Oct 1 2016

Adele had planned a get together to celebrate the September birthdays and for Bob and me to get a chance to meet some of the newest family members who were able to attend.  As always, Adele put out a wonderful assortment of appetizers; salads; main dishes; and plenty of desserts for all 21 who were there.



Uncle Mickey with daughter-in-law Barbara and great grand daughter Isabelle

 Uncle Mickey with his grandsons Joey Paul and David and  great grand kids, Isabelle and Wade

Kevyn, Albert's wife is standing. Seated are Izzy's mom, Melody, and Wade's dad, David.

I don't know what made Annie laugh, but it must have been a good one.  She is wearing a back brace as a result of a fall when she was on vacation in Mexico several weeks ago.  Adele is making sure she has the setting right for her picture taking.

Bob and baby Wade.  Wade is Kim and David's first son, born this past May.

The birthday celebrities Joe and Nelson standing left and right, and Uncle Mickey sitting in the middle.  They are joined by Joey Paul and daughter Izzy and Kim and son Wade.

NJ Wed - Thurs - Fri Sept 28 - 30 2016

It's a good thing we decided to stop in PA last night.  There was road construction around exit 305 on I-80 near East Stroudsburg, PA.  One lane was closed and backed up traffic for over an hour.  We stopped for a late breakfast at Cracker Barrel before setting up camp at Mahlon Dickerson Reservation, the Morris County park we've stayed at for years.  We then stopped to see cousins Carol and Nelson for a little while, then met cousins Adele and Michael at the Jefferson Diner for dinner. 

Thursday we went into Clifton to visit the cemetery and then stopped to see our friends John and Plish at their home in Bloomfield.  They were headed out to their daughter's house in VT the next day, so we were glad to get a chance to see them (even though we had just seen each other the week before in Calabash) and have some of Plish's delicious meatball sandwiches and potato salad!  That night, we went to Adele's and played a cut throat game of 3 handed pinochle with Michael, who ended up winning.  The happy-go-lucky vacation feeling quickly evaporated when a little after midnight, Bob rousted me from bed with the words, "Get dressed. We have to go to the hospital."  He was having chest pains.  He called 911, and we were advised an EMS crew was on its way.  In my panic and the midnight darkness of the campground, I tripped over the raised asphalt walkway and went flat out on my knees.  Thankfully I didn't break any bones.

We spent the rest of the early morning hours and all day Friday at the Denville hospital.  Cousins Adele and Carol came to comfort us.  Carol brought me some things from the camper, and Adele came with a huge care package ensconced in a beautiful monogramed tote bag.  They left around dinner time.  We later got tests results confirming Bob didn't have a heart attack; suspected problem was either angina or acid reflux.  He was advised to see his family doctor when we got back to SC and by 8:30 pm he was discharged.  Although I was reluctant to bother anyone at that hour, I did reach out to Adele and Michael and asked that they come and take us back to the campground.

 

The road leading out of Mahlon Dickerson camping sites.  It was a blustery day, as were most of the ones that week.  The trees had not yet changed colors.

Bob did a pretty good job of taking this "selfie" of the  4 of us!

 

Jersey Trip Tues Sept 27 2016

Happy 94th Uncle Mike!  We celebrated it driving up I-77 to I-81 to I-80, stopping for the evening at Moyer's Grove in Wapallopen, PA.  We probably could have made it all the way to Jersey, but we felt we already had a long day on the road.  And, by the time we actually found the campground (directions were way off in the Passport America book), it was an even longer day!  This park is open year round and is very family friendly.

A hobgoblin's carriage!  The park owners were already in full swing for Halloween festivities

A small creek flows under the covered bridge that leads to the rv sites

Bob is enjoying the fall decorations and the somewhat cooler air

 







On our way to NJ Monday Sept 26, 2016

Jack and Angie left for Asheville by noon the day before.  Bob and I continued getting ready for our trip east. Both of us had already gotten a head start on Saturday, and since this was not our first rodeo or road trip, we were getting pretty good at packing up what we needed.  By Monday morning, we were ready to hit the road.  We originally planned to make the trip in 2 days, but Bob was concerned about one of the trailer tires, so we found a tire shop in Elkin, NC, and arranged to get a new tire, to be on the safe side.  Good thing we did, because Bob noticed another of the rv tires was low because there was a nail in it, so we had that repaired as well.  It was a small and very busy shop, so it took about 2.5 hours for them to take care of us.  By then it was late afternoon and starting to rain, so we decided to stop for the night at a Passport America park, Fancy Gap Campground and Cabins, on the Blue Ridge Parkway off exit 8 on I-77.



I was concerned that Bob wouldn't back up too far into the site...it was a bit of a drop to the woods below.  Within a hour after stopping, the fog was so thick you couldn't see outside the windows.

Before getting back on the interstate the next rainy morning, we stopped for breakfast at a little diner that had recently opened up in an old gas station/garage.  All the décor was auto related.  The light hanging down behind Bob's head was made from two license plates bent together and strung from a hub cap.

Back home and visit from friends Sept 24 & 25 2016

We planned on returning home from Calabash before heading on our annual trip to New Jersey in order to meet our friends from Bonita, Jack and Angie, who were heading to NC on a vacation to celebrate their anniversary.  We met with them for dinner in Anderson Saturday evening, and then Sunday morning they stopped to see our camp site before continuing to Asheville.  It was wonderful to see them, and we appreciated their going the "extra mile" to see us!

 

 



Old Brunswick Town September 21, 2016

After visiting with Joe and Bev, Bob and I continued to the riverside park in Southport on the Cape Fear River.  We were only a few miles from Wilmington, and never having toured that city, we headed in that direction, but decided instead to stop at the Brunswick Town Historical Site about 15 miles north of Southport.  Wilmington and a ferry ride to Bald Island will have to remain on our "to do" list for now.

One of several covered picnic/swing areas at the Southport park



A view looking north toward Wilmington

More open seating along the river's edge

A bayou off the river on the road to Brunswick Town

An alligator at the edge of the road waiting for treats.  Despite signs forbidding feeding the gators, the ranger said they are used to being given handouts and often hang out at this spot.   

 The historic site consists of the remains of the St Phillips Church (built in 1768 and destroyed during the Revolutionary War); the remnants of the original  settlement; and Ft Anderson, built and occupied by the Confederates in the Civil War.     

The pathway around the old settlement leading to the Cape Fear River.  The town was settled in 1726 by Maurice and Roger Moore.  Brunswick Town and Newton combined to become Port of Brunswick.  Like the church, the town was destroyed during the Revolutionary War and was never rebuilt. 

 



Only some of the stone foundations remain.  

One of the busiest ports in pre-Revolutionary times and one of the more strategic sites during the Civil War were once here on the banks of Cape Fear.  Now, in addition to being a historic park, the grounds have been used as a setting in the tv series Sleepy Hollow for part of Purgatory and the location of Methuselah's sword.  Also, archeological digs are still being done here.