We rafted down the river on a Friday.

We had begun thinking about the rafting trip on Monday. On that day, it had been casually mentioned and lightly discussed. There was only slight interest. On Tuesday, the subject came up again, and there was more interest. The discussion centered around the river rating of “2 with some 3”. Just what did that mean? Did that 2 rating mean we might get a little wet? Did it mean that survival would qualify us for the Olympics? Should we update our wills?

On Wednesday, it was time for a decision. The group was gathered around a morning campfire for a dutch-oven brunch. Brenda brought the rafting brochure. It said our trip would be “fun for the entire family”. It gave the cost and the time involved. And slowly, we began to envision ourselves going down that river. Our eyes kept looking at the river running through the campground. That was the river that we would be rafting. It looked fine. And with that, the decision was made! Six of us would go…..Brenda, Lotus, Beverly, Ruth Ann, Margaret, and me. What a memory we were going to make!

And the trip was exactly what we had hoped for. That 2 rating meant that the raft did need our paddling, but not all that much. The water was cold, but we didn’t fall in. The weather was bright and sunny, but it wasn’t too hot.

And what a memory we made. That picture says it all.

So long for now,
Suzanne

Mountain meadows, mountain streams. Colorado is so beautiful. And my campground was right in the middle of it. The flowers were blooming right there in my campground, and the stream lulled me to sleep at night. But I decided that I wanted to see even more. I decided that a horseback ride through the meadows and streams would be ideal. Nothing too adventurous……just a nice pleasant ride.

And that is how I met Regina.

Regina was the beautiful brown and white horse that was assigned to me. Her job was to safely transport me along the easy/adventurous route which I had opted for. Easy/adventurous meant a 3-hour ride with no running or galloping and the route would go up the mountains.

Regina let me know right away that the “no running or galloping” rule still left a lot of room for thrills. After all, a sudden twitch and jump to the left did not qualify as a run or gallop. But if the twitch and jump occurred on a slick wooden bridge over a rocky stream, then that would certainly give the rider a good thrill. And for that little trick, our group’s trail leader turned around to check on the situation.

Regina also seemed to know the subtle differences of the various paces that a horse can do. She knew the difference between a run/gallop and a trot. It seemed that trotting was allowed. Regina would trot in order to catch up to the horse in front. Regina did enjoy her trots.

And Regina also knew that a slight change in route could provide a thrill. Going to the left of a tree instead of going to the right could make a BIG difference if the trail being followed was narrow, winding, and on the side of a mountain. Regina’s little attempt at going left provided a huge adrenalin rush to me. And once again, our trailer leader turned around to check on the situation.

This 3-hour ride through the mountain meadows and streams was beautiful. I did become used to Regina’s “trotting to catch up”, and Regina did stop twitching, jumping, and changing course. Our trail leader no longer had to turn around to check on the situation. I was able to relax and enjoy the mountain meadows and streams. I even took a picture of the beauty that I saw. And, on the return trip, Regina behaved herself on that bridge.

Ya’ll take care,
Suzanne

Well, I knew that I hadn’t blogged in a while, but I didn’t realize that it had been almost four weeks! When I last wrote, I was still in Salem, OR. In these last four weeks, I finished the Rally in Salem(six days), traveled to Colorado to meet up with friends (four days), stayed in Colorado (seven days), traveled home to East Texas (three days), and readjusted to Life-On-The-Lake (eight days).

So, I asked myself…..“How do I get back to blogging? Where do I start?” I decided to start with TODAY.

Today is a Rainy Day Schedule. Now-a-days, that means that I get to stay inside, drink lots of coffee, and enjoy watching a good soaking rainfall that is going to fall for hours and hours.

Forty years ago when I taught sixth-graders, those words meant something entirely different. It meant that students would not be allowed outside and that students would remain in their room during recess.

I dreaded those words from the principal.

I would look out the window and see torrents of rain coming down and wonder why the principal didn’t realize how beneficial it would be for my 30 hooligans to experience the wonders of nature. I could see no reason to keep them inside. They should step outside and benefit from the great outdoors. They should take measurements…..such as amount of rainfall, length of time needed to completely soak their blue jeans, and number of children able to squeeze under a slide and stay dry.

My principals never agreed with me. Isn’t that strange?

That’s it for now. It is so good to be back home, and it’s great to enjoy this Rainy Day Schedule.

Ya’ll take care,
Suzanne

P.S. Did I say “hooligans” earlier? Please forget that. I meant “angels”.

Well, I find it hard to believe that today is the thirteenth day that I have been here. I rechecked my math…..and it really is thirteen days!

The Rally officially started last night. And the seminars started today. I attended two. One was an introduction to Amateur Radio and the other was a Red Cross training session. I have been a member of the Amateur Radio Club of the Airstream Club for about four years. The session today was to explain amateur radio to non-Amateurs. I attended just to help out in the presentation.

The Red Cross training session was sponsored by the Airstream Angels. I recently joined this organization. Its members respond to disasters by going in their Airstreams to help out. It makes sense to encourage RVer’s to become Red Cross volunteers. After all, any volunteer who arrives at a disaster location with their own bed, water, food, and septic system is a big plus!

I’ll be attending one seminar tomorrow, and then I’ll be traveling to Portland to visit Camping World…..just a really neat store for RVer’s! I happen to need a small item. While I’m there, I’ll just check around and see if there’s anything else that the trailer must have.

That’s about it for now. I’m enjoying this Rally. I started out way too busy…..it is pretty exciting to be here. But, I wore myself out. Now, I’ve got a much better routine…..sleep a little later, go to bed sooner. Ahhhhhh. Nice.

That’s all for now. Ya’ll take care.

Suzanne

In my trailer (my home), I have many quilts. All of these quilts have been made by my mom, and they are beautiful. I want to show you the last one that she made….she made it by special request from me. It hides my catalytic heater. This heater does a wonderful job of warming up my living room and kitchen area, but it doesn’t look very pretty. And, it’s the first thing you see when you enter my trailer!

And the reason I am showing it now is because the wording on this quilt is so appropriate for a traveling RVer like me. The wording is a cross-stitch that Mom did many years ago and saved because one day it would be perfect somewhere. And now it is! That cross-stitching is also one of the pieces that lay soaking for ten days in Hurricane Katrina muck before we could salvage it. So …… not only is the quilt beautiful, it has quite a story!

That’s all for now.

Ya’ll take care,
Suzanne