Morning Cup Of Coffee And Weather

Woke up to 25 mph winds with gusts around 50. Temp is a nice balmy 25 right now. We be above freezing until sometime Christmas Day. Not often you get daytime temps below freezing for 2+ days in SC. Fun times here in the Palmetto State.

Last we hit one of the nearby state parks to see the light display there. The SC State Parks have a Holiday scavenger hunt called Dashing Through the Parks going on right now & this was one of the items on it. We spend a fortune to win free T-shirts.

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It’s finally above freezing and hit 38F today.

 

I woke up this morning and found 52 degrees before sunrise, with the wonderful "Florida smell" in the air.

The only downside is that it is supposed to rain all day today, at least drizzle. No camping though. Too much salt still on the roads. But I have to admit, I thought about it

After today, the temperatures drop a little bit, but certainly nothing horrible --- overnight lows around freezing then turning to pretty much a normal winter for us. January and February have on Accuweather have a few weeks where it doesn't look fun, but that is 60 days away, and much will change by then.

I'm starting to think about booking my spring trips. Maybe even start planning the big summer one - I am thinking Mackinaw City, MI. It's been years since we've been there, its close, and I genuinely love the summers there. Highs in the high 70s to low 80's, nights in the '60s. Whats not to like?! October through May

Todays task? The automatic antenna on Serenity stopped working -- I think I'm going to replace it. I'm really enjoying some time away from the office. i just wish it was warmer and drier. Though, our water table is lower ... we can use the rain.

 

Happy New Years to Everyone

 

....and to you!

 

It will be a happy New Year when the Packers beat the Vikings later today.

 

..hmmm, wasn't the pack the odds on favorite to win the division this year in preseason predictions.
I'll admit that the Vikes certainly haven't looked like a great team in many of their games, but when you set an NFL record by wining 11 games, in one season, by one score or less, usually in the last minute or OT, there is a little more than luck involved. They just never give up. Eventually that probably won't be enough to win the big one, and Philly seems to be the one to beat for the SB crown, but who knows, even they can have a bad day. At least the Badgers , and Gophers represented the Big10 well, unlike some others in the conference.

 

Happy New Year!
Pretty decisive victory, as have been all the Viking loses this season. Looks like the pack is getting their game together just in time.

 

Yikes!

 

I bought them and they are as good as advertised. The pots are especially good. The pans are no better than cast iron.

 

Who else is having a really hard time getting back to work today after taking some time off for the Holidays?

Chasing down a business opportunity that I'm genuinely excited about makes the daily grind a lot harder. Its true that you can't serve two masters...

 

Work? What's that?

 

A four letter word!

 

I retired in June but still consult when needed so I have slowly slid into retirement. It really hit home when the holidays ended and nothing changed with my daily routine.

I just setup our first retirement trip. Going slowly from Pennsylvania to Alabama in April/May to see grandkids and then head home thru Tennessee, Kentucky, and Ohio to see friends and stop at a couple of National Parks we have not seen. Our goal is to visit as many of the 63 official National Parks as we can during retirement. This is the first trip we can do without a time limit so we will take 3 weeks and most days when we change campsites we are driving less than 4 hours. Our first camping trip longer than 1 week (except when hiking the Appalachian Trail) so if all goes well we will start planning longer trips out west.

 

I will be taking a four week trip next month. Three of us will leave Wisconsin and head for Texas. One person will fly out of Dallas and two will join us as we continue on to Colorado and Utah visiting family. We will stay at hotels along the way and at relatives as a destination.

This is my adopted mother and the star of the road trip. She is 97 going on 17!

49CA5478-0D5A-40AD-9970-C29A4FE4229A by Tour 931 posted Jan 4, 2023 at 6:19 AM

Our last trip to Florida went great and adopted sister Linda made lunches along the way. I might just pull the CI so we have a better kitchen and not just an ice chest stuffed into the back of the Outback. We didn’t have much room.

I test drove this used 9 passenger van yesterday and then ordered a new one.

50E7A9DF-ED5F-41CF-B2E2-AFE12BCA7D57 by Tour 931 posted Jan 4, 2023 at 6:25 AM

 

Y'all make me jealous I've got a few years left before I retire if I ever get to retire

Seriously, I have my doubts, some by choice the rest is by looking at my 401k :O.

I've had to deal with two sets of parents (mine and my wife's) who retired and wound up being bored and slipping into mental stagnation within a short time of hanging up their spurs. While I am sure my job will change, I'll probably always have some part-time gig or volunteering for a service group.

Like Steve, I'd like to travel a bit -- but as much as I love exploration, I'm really only good for about 2-3 weeks at a time being away --- some day

 

I was gone for seven months in my first teardrop. Month trips are about the right amount of time now although I’m buying the van mostly for day trips. I retired 19 years ago at the young age of 54.

 

Rub in it

With the right tow vehicle, I think a month would be about right. By the end, I'd probably be looking for a private shower and hot tub We've gone for 2 weeks a couple times now...I don't think 4 would be that much different.

The longer we're out the more stuff we fine we need to bring --- for a weekend, we'll just need the grill and a few chairs. Going longer, the toys will need to come --- the kayaks or the bicycles.

I'm thinking a lot about this right now. A transit would be really nice, or perhaps a promaster. But the prices are just too high right now, and I'm not ready to pay 5000 above sticker for the privilege. Which is what a friend just paid to get his ford pickup.

IF I do find a van at a price --- I'd want to build in a bathroom and maybe even a shower and a small "TV room" with sofa style seating to watch movies more comfortably. I think the combination of the two would really be the perfect sweet spot.

 

Thats good news. Figured the supply chain schtuff would unclog over time and recession has taken care of the rest, including interest rates...the new and used truck market was stupid money only six months ago...