Trip day 12 near Columbia, TN

 95º with bright sunshine here near Columbia, TN with a feel-like of 102º Tuesday Noon.

Well, have taken 620 photos since we left home on July 30th -- 263 photos just yesterday and this morning.  Spent just over 3 hours editing yesterdays and another hour & a half this morning.

Although the grounds are not open to the public right now, we stopped at the front gate of Rory Feek's place for photos.  (Per the suggestion of our waitress this morning at Marcy Jo's Mealhouse & Bakery)

We have followed Rory Feek for years.  Here are some websites on him Wikipedia  and His Web Page  Have many of his and Joey's recordings and his books, CD's and DVD's.

Yesterday morning we drove by the Feek place and then into Columbia.  walked around downtown and got coffee & roll at Muletown Roasted Coffee.

Walked through several shops, including a mall with lots of booths in it.  Some neat signs here.  Phyllis got a blouse at one of them.

Asked a man in downtown store what we should see in town---he pointed out that a block and a half away was the home of James K. Polk, the 11th president of the US.  Went there and joined another couple on a guided tour by our guide Phyllis.

Click HERE for Polk's Wiipedia

We spent probably 90 minutes on the tour and that much time or more looking through the museum which is in the house next to his.  This house was one he had bought for his sister, who lived there with here 11 children for some time.   Polk was a sickly man, spent much of his time studying when young, became a lawyer and eventually Governor of Tennessee and later President from March of 1845 through March of 1849.  He died just 3 months after leaving office.  His wife wore black in mourning for 42 years until her death.  He was a workaholic, and had to be busy all the time.  He posed one time (some 6 hours) for a portrait and said it was the most waste of time he had ever done.

His Mexican-American war from 1946 to 1848 brought about much of the west that had been claimed by Mexico to being part of the US.

Most interesting time there.

This morning we drove to Marcy Jo's Mealhouse & Bakery for breakfast (Delicious and huge)

Leaving Marcy Jo's Mealhouse & Bakery, we stopped at roadside stand and bought some tomatoes and peaches.

Then, went on to Marcy Jo's Bakery & Coffee House.  Was full from breakfast (and even brought big cinnamon roll where we bought breakfast to take with us--actually man from Illinois at table next to us was finishing him and said it was great and so we ordered it---only to find that he had paid for ours) we did buy loaf of bread and a sticky bun and cherry Danish for later.

Have returned to the trailer and after spending this couple hours on the computer and resting, will head in to Columbia this afternoon.

Later, Lynn

Day 10 - in Columbia, Tennessee

84º here in Columbia, TN at 7:15 pm on Sunday.  In sunshine has been a hot day today.

           Week ago Friday 229 miles Clarinda, IA to Marengo, IA; last Sunday 67 miles from Marengo, IA to State Center, IA; this Friday 245 miles State Center, IA to Canton, MO (Via Gladbrook, IA and Marengo, IA); 255 miles Saturday Canton, MO to Cape Girardeau, MO; and 225 miles today (Sunday) Cape Girardeau, MO to Columbia, TN (with stop in Franklin, TN).  So, at the end of our 10th day on the road, we are 1,021 miles down the road.  Have spent time with our son Cameron and his wife Patty as well as their daughters Emily and her friend Derek; Ashley and Ashley's husband Heath, and their kids Jessica and David, as well as 30 some people who have wintered in Kenwood RV Park in La Feria, Texas in the Rio Grande Valley.  And got to visit with a Texas friend we sing Barbershop with at his place in Gladbrook, IA, and my brother Don and his wife Vicki in Cape Girardeau, MO..  Now we are on to the "touristy things". 

This morning we left Cape Girardeau, MO

about 8:10 am, heading across the

Mississippi River into Illinois

Went across the narrow part of Illinois and into Kentucky.

Kentucky has a lot more trees than corn or beans; and, a lot of road construction.  One area of nine miles was two-way traffic with concrete dividers the whole way.

When we crossed over from Kentucky to Tennessee we needed gas and saw a Walmart gas station for $2.779.  Went into Walmart where we used the bathrooms and then got a card to save another 3 cents, only to get to the pumps and they were out of the 'regular" and only had premium at $3.399.  Passed and went a few blocks away, through heavy traffic and finally got into a station that was advertising $2.899 to find papers on the pumps that they were out of gas......so about 8 miles down Interstate 24 we stopped at a station that did have gas for $2.899.  Had paid that in Cape Girardeau before we left, but gas in Illinois was almost uniformly $3.399.  Took an hour extra time, but we don't have a tight schedule.

We stopped at Franklin, TN as I had read their county fair was on. 

 They parked us quite some distance from the grounds, but had volunteers running golf carts to ferry people to the fair grounds.  Did not realize they charge $12 per adult -- but today was "Seniors" day and by showing drivers license we got in free!  We shared a delicious Philly-Steak-& Cheese sandwich and lemonade--even though they were the usual overpriced fair thing, they give us a senior discount on them!

Spent time in one large building which had quite a variety of displays (and it was air-conditioned).

This was a huge watermelon to guess the weight of.  

Patty - here are the Bundt Cakes..................

I have some video of this guy practicing for a later program.  He bounced on his back on one trampoline, go clear up to the platform in the middle on his feet, turn to fall on his back on the other trampoline and repeat it several times.  I did get some video of this -- little more than I could do.

Two of the guys on their pogo sticks would bounce at least 3 feet off the floor, take their hands off the handles or their feet off the bottom -- not both on the same bounce -- and were really going at it.  One finally missed it a bit when he came down after having his feet off the pegs and did a fair amount of limping, but went back up on it a little later.

After walking around for some time, we rested a bit and listened to this group sing.

GROANER'S CORNER:((   A country preacher decided to skip services one Sunday to spend the day hiking in the wilderness. Rounding a sharp bend in the trail, he collided with a bear and was sent tumbling down a steep grade. He landed on a rock and broke both legs.  With the ferocious bear charging at him from a distance, the preacher prayed, "O Lord, I'm so sorry for skipping services today. Please forgive me and grant me just one wish--make a Christian out of that bear that's coming at me!"  At that very instant, the bear skidded to a halt, fell to his knees, clasped his paws together, and began to pray aloud at the preacher's feet: "Dear God, please bless this food I am about to receive."

We will be here at this park for four nights and spend several days looking around -- hope to see home site of Rory Feek and his area.  We watch him on RFD-TV and follow his blog.  HERE is his web site.  We weren't able to get any tickets to his concerts at Homestead Hall as they are all on the weekends and are sold out months ahead of time.  Hope to visit Marcy Jo's Muletown, Marcy Jo's Mealhouse and Marcy Jo's Bakery and Coffee shop as well as the Farm and the Schoolhouse.

Will keep posting, Lynn

Day 9 on the road is over and we are in Cape Girardeau, MO

 It is now 8oº with "feel like" of 90º at 7:05 pm Saturday in Cape Girardeau, MO.  When we got here at the RV Park in Cape Girardeau at about 1;30 pm it was 93º with "feel like" of 102º while we were setting up the travel trailer.  As I finish this post about 8:00 pm it is down to 79º.

Hot direct sun.  We unhooked trailer and used the shower facilities here and then went the mile or two to my brother Don's place.  After a bit of a visit we went out to eat.

After a little more visit back at their place and them fussing with the dogs, we headed back to our trailer, hooked up and won't take much to pull out in the morning.

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A pastor who was badly overworked went to the local medical center and was able to have a clone made. The clone was like the pastor in every respect--except that the clone used extraordinarily foul language. The cloned pastor was exceptionally gifted in many other areas of pastoral work, but finally, the complaints about the dirty language were too much.The pastor was not too sure how to get rid of the clone so that it wouldn't look like murder. The best thing, he decided, was to make the clone's death look like an accident. So the pastor lured the clone onto a bridge in the middle of the night and pushed the clone off the bridge.  Unfortunately, there was a police officer who happened by at that very moment and arrested the pastor for making an obscene clone fall.

-------------------------

Why do people hate getting up early in Athens?  Because Dawn is tough on Greece.

More as we head down the road -- Lynn

Eight Days on the Road

 82º here on the Mississippi River at Canton City RV Park in Canton, MO at 6:35 pm.

Here is the photo that was taken Thursday evening at 5 pm at the Kenwood RV Park Summer Rally at State Center, Iowa.

Last evening had a gift exchange game where Delores Margot was Master of Ceremonies

Gallaway's great granddaughter spent her time riding her bike and complaining about the food.

The ladies brought up-to-date the white T-Shirts for the Summer Rally----and made us wear them for the group photo.

Last night, after the gift-exchange, we had

ice cream 

and than several types of games were played.  We played Pegs & Jokers with Cranes, Pat Smith & Butch Geisking and Butch's daughter Bonnie and husband Gary.

This morning Dick Messer, Bill Connelly and Jerry Witt fixed pancakes, some with blue berries, for breakfast.

When we pulled out of State Center we headed for Gladbrook and visited with Bob & Marcia Weise.  Bob sings with us in the barbershop chorus and we car pool with him each week and have become friends over the last several years.  Got to see their home in Gladbrook and their farm that their son now lives on and farms.

Picture of barges (taken thru window blinds) going down the Mississippi in front of us.

Will head to Cape Girardeau tomorrow.

Lynn