A pretty cool day

Today was a get some stuff done day. Den and I went for a walk (back to the mill for the two-mile rounder) and then we cleaned up and took the Tahoe and hitch to a nearby RV place for a minor repair job to our trailer hitch. All is well.

While we were doing that the ladies were doing the laundry and we were all done with chores by about 12:30 p.m.

We took a ride to Shipshewana and bought some more meat (wow, it's really good) and then stopped at several Amish homes to buy fruits and vegetables. A young girl sold us peaches and Diane said she would walk to the neighbors house a couple doors down to get tomatoes and asked us to pick her up there.

So after making the great peach purchase we headed down the road to the big "Tomato" sign and pulled in and there was no Diane. So we waited and then decided to drive back up the road to see where we lost her.

Here she came truckin' down the carriage lane carrying a fresh jar of honey that she bought at another Amish neighbor's house.

Back home about 4:30 p.m. where we grilled up some fine rib eyes that we bought a Yoder's Meat Market earlier that day. They were gooooood!

(Late add: Forgot about this when I posted yesterday) While we were waiting for our meat to be rung up at the check out a large group of adults and children filed into the store and were hanging around. They all filed back into the butcher room for the "sheep carcass contest." It appeared to be a 4-H event and we were told that the carcasses would be judged on the fat content, etc. We passed up the event.

After dinner the neighbors, who travel in a fifth-wheel land yacht with a 30-foot slide on one side and two others on the other side invited us over to see the "yacht" from the inside. Oh, boy, was it beautiful. It is 18,000 pounds of fine dark cherry wood. For the gear heads out there he pulls that with a new Ford 450 diesel with dual wheels in the back.

Then we returned home to our "little" home and watch a movie (Failure to Launch) we rented at an Amish video store (at least it was in an Amish shopping center) and they required only a minimum of identification and $2 to rent. We are taking it back tomorrow.

Sorry, forgot the camera, but the Amish don't appreciate the picture taking so I probably wouldn't have shot much anyway. More tomorrow. This time with photos.

On a scale of 1-10, today was a 2, as in No. 2

OK, the day wasn't that bad, but it didn't start out so well. A young couple in the camping space next to us apparently hadn't screwed down their sewer connection tightly enough and we came back to our camp after showering early today to find a river of, well how do I say this gently, No. 2.

What was particularly troubling is that they never bothered to come over and apologize or even acknowledge the mistake and that left me a little - make that a lot - disturbed before we headed out to church today. But it was Sunday and I didn't want to start the Lord's Day with a fist fight so I kept quiet.

The service at New Life Christian Church in Bristol was spirit-filled and the message on "Steadfastness, Stewardship and Obedience" was given by a visiting pastor, Glen Davis. It helped make me forget the troubles this morning, until we came home and had to deal with the spill.

Not being a tattle tale, I stopped by the office and just asked for a new campsite and they quickly accommodated us, but it left a bad taste in my mouth (and nose) all day. Tearing down our 33-foot rolling campsite and moving it 100 yards is no easy task and it got harder when my sewer connection was too far from the sewer discharge station on my site.

That meant for the second time today we had to move the trailer, this time only a few feet. My brother-in-law Denny was a huge help and eventually we were back in service, just in time for a major thunderstorm to roll through. There was a brief, but harrowing moment, when the trailer began to slip off it's stand because I forgot to chalk the wheels on our second mooring attempt.

We had Amish hamburger for dinner (excellent) and we sat outside until about 10 p.m. as the thunderstorm cooled things down a bit for the first time in four days.

A couple from Fairport, New York pulled in next to us in their beautiful and very large fifth wheel. After exchanging New York stories and credentials we spent a pleasant hour watching them set up their campsite. We also made a couple of shopping stops and found a great little electric outdoor grill, which we plan to try out on a couple of Amish steaks.

No pictures today, not that you would want any from this day. Tomorrow promises to be better.

A walk to the mill (again), a play about Peter and an Amish "Rock" concert

Another full day in Indiana. A lot of different activities, including "horse" made ice cream. It was "Christmas in July" at the Eby's Pines campground where we were staying, but we didn't learn in time to prepare a proper Christmas display and participate in the trailer judging.

Even Santa was here today. Hope he had his 24-hour deodorant on as it was hot again today.

The day started early and my brother-in-law, Denny, and I took the two-mile round trip walk to the Bonneyville Mill Park that I made the first morning we were here. In the rest room at the mill Denny and I ran into two young men putting on tuxedos for a wedding in the park.

One of them was the groom, the other the best man. We couldn't resist having a little fun. I wished them congratulations and Denny wished the groom condolences. Then they asked for a little advice and I told them I had lots of advice because I was on my third marriage. They got a laugh out of that.

Always remember the most important three words a man can tell his wife," I said. "I was wrong." Denny disagreed and said the three most important words were "I am sorry." Then Denny told them marriage wasn't really a 50-50 proposition, but more like a 90-10, or sometimes a 10-90 situation.

Hope they have a good life.

Then we headed back to Shipshewana for the afternoon performance of "The Rock, The Redeemer and the Resurrection Morning." It was a locally produced musical on the life of apostle Peter "The Rock." It was one of those "I laughed, I cried...." things.

The singing was outstanding, the comedy was good and the story line was touching. This is a play that we all recommend to our friends and family and it will be at the Blue Gate Restaurant and Theater for another four weeks.

I told the cast after the play that they should take this one the road. They would if they found someone to help them find places to perform. I hope they find that someone.

After the play we joined the crowds outside for the Ice Cream Social and some wonderful gospel music downtown. The crowds we joined were largely local Amish families and I can't tell you how much I have come to appreciate the kind and gentle folk that live the "old ways."

One of the "ways" they make real ice cream is using a horse on a treadmill to churn the fine cream into a delicious treat. Because of the diet I am on, I could only take a small taste, but the other members of the party thought the ice cream was pretty good.

The same company that performed the play we had just seen took the stage out of costume and performed many of the same songs, but a few old standards including a wonderful rendition of "How Great Thou Art." Then we stayed for a performance of "Breakthrough" a gospel group from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

We shopped for fruit at Yoder Supermarket and bought meat at the Yoder Meat Market and headed home for dinner.

Before we left town I snapped a couple photos of the Amish parallel parking lot for the concert. We left early so we missed the giant traffic jam of horse and carriages at the end of the street festival.

A trip to town, a table, some chairs, woven goods and dinner out

No pictures today, someone forgot the camera. That someone, would be me. Pretty mellow day anyway.

Went for a long walk around the park today and then got cleaned up and headed to Shipshewana. My sister-in-law Diane has been looking for just the right table for her new kitchen.

So we have been stopping at some Amish country workshops to find just the right one. Today we pulled into a farm and workshop and Ivan stopped working and came to an agreement with Diane to build her exactly the table she wanted. The price was really right. Looking around his shop you can see his craftsmanship is superb.

He has all the electrical wood working tools, but no lights in his shop. There are kerosene lanterns hanging from the ceiling for late work. No phone either, not in the house and not in his business. At least some of the folks have an answering service, but not Ivan.

The man is so busy he can't even start building the table until November, but Diane is not in a hurry, so November it is. I love these folks and many of the elder ones have little or no grey hair. Maybe simple really is better.

After making the table deal (which includes four locally made chairs) we stopped at another house where there was a weaving sign out front. A very young Amish woman, Irma, met us in her shop and she and Diane came to an agreement about making four woven seat cushions, four place mats - no fringe and a table runner all in matching burgundy, grey and white. A girl thing, I guess.

One of the funniest parts is when Joan and her sister tried to tell the young woman how to sew the woven items into the items they wanted. The women told Joan and Diane that she would do it the Amish way.

Not too interested in the great woven table products discussion, Denny and I stood outside and watched some Amish farmers bailing hay with a horse drawn tractor. The young man at the "weaving" house was putting together his new horse drawn buggy, which he proudly told us that he had picked up the day before.

He was installing taillights, a license plate (didn't know a horse drawn buggy had to have a license plate) and a battery to run the lights. He seemed really excited with his new buggy.

A playful little mutt was running around the yard and came up and sniffed Denny and I really good. After a short time Denny reached down and the dog snarled. It was my opinion that Denny should forget befriending the dog, but he reached down anyway and nearly lost one or two fingers.

I was kind enough not to say "I told you so."

With the table and woven items ordered we spent the rest of the day walking around Shipshewana looking at the stores. Mostly the items were "Made in China" or "Made in India" so we bought nothing else.

Dinner at the Blue Gate Restaurant in Shipshewana and then back to the trailer. A fun day. But without pictures. Woe is me.

Trailers and buggies, when worlds collide

Guy stuff and a friendly clash of cultures was how I would describe today.

The Laredo travel trailer we bought was built right near here in Goshen, Indiana at the Keystone plant. Actually, there are 18 plants. They offer plant tours, but the Laredo plant is currently undergoing renovations and was not available to tour.

We did however tour the plant that makes the popular Hornet trailer. The process is pretty much the same, we were told, so we received a pretty good idea of how the trailers are made. It was very interesting.

As you can see from these photos the trailers are put together in an assembly line. An assembly line powered by human strength. At each step there are about 15 people working to quickly install parts of the trailer and then when complete there is a call for a "line shift."

Four or five people then push the assemblies to the next station and the process continues. About 22 trailers a day are completed this way. Workers, many of them Amish, are paid by the piece so the workers are eager to complete as many as possible during their shift.

No one was working during the tour as they start at 4 a.m. and work until 2 p.m.

It was interesting and comforting to see the work that goes into making the trailers and making them sturdy. And, of course, they are made right here in the good ol' USA.

Next we went to an Amish furniture maker "Lakeside Furniture" so Diane could look at dinner tables and she found one she is considering to buy for her new kitchen. Calvin was the furniture maker and he had a delightful sense of humor and seemed to tolerate us modern folks just fine.

The buggies were out in force today, including three of them parked at the grocery store we stopped at and I snapped a quick photo, which is attached. Amazingly, some of the folks also parked the buggies and then walked across the street to a McDonald's for dinner.

Don't know why that made me smile, but seeing an Amish family going into a McDonald's for dinner seemed a little odd. More tomorrow.

Our tour guide was Tom Wiley, who is initially from Flint, so we had a nice talk about that. Great fun, but again, it was hot.

Early Posting Day 2 - A beautiful hike

OK, it's hot, but not hot enough from keeping us from taking a one-mile hike to Bonneyville Mill Park (trail from the RV park). It was a beautiful walk, but we lost a lot of sweat.

Anyway, and don't count on multiple postings again, but here are some photos from the hike today.

We're going back to the Mill (driving this time) to buy some real flour ground from this old, but still functioning mill.

It's always amazing what we find when we just strike out and look. OK, we're off for another adventure as soon as the others get back from their shower. I got a head start on that.

Land of Goshen, we're in Indiana

A short trip from home and we're right smack dab in the middle of Amish Country. My wife's sister, Diane and her husband, Denny, have met us here and will spend the week with us in our travel trailer at Eby's Pines Resort.

As you can see we ran into a traffic jam in downtown Shipshewana. Also photos of Denny working outside and Joan with her famous bonnet (the one all the girls in her life hate). It is pretty acceptable in these parts except that she is wearing shorts, which is apparently considered immodest in the Amish community. I was going to make her walk behind me to complete the picture, but that didn't go over too well. Also they were selling plants that no one would want, a mosquito plant. Didn't know you grew them.

Yesterday we quickly set up the trailer, leveled it and stabilized it and then headed to the Shipshewana Auction and Flea Market (mostly flea market). Bought some great fruit and vegetables and headed back to the trailer. It was hot, like nuclear hot here yesterday and it is supposed to be hotter here today.

Joan pre-made a spaghetti dinner which we enjoyed last night. The air conditioner is running almost full-time, but we're looking forward to some sightseeing and some quiet time in this very nice trailer park.

The pool looks inviting and we may give that a try this afternoon after a tour at the Keystone RV Factory. Keystone is the company that made our Laredo trailer.

Time departed: 10:02 a.m.
Time arrived: 1:40 p.m.

Miles traveled: 202