Grand Adventure 2005

9:55:32 AM EDT

AOL made this transition pretty easy, despite other folks being so upset about it.  They partnered with Blogspot and set up a way to transfer my old entries.  So my new home is ready to move in.

Here is the link to my new home on blogspot.  Thanks for following our travels.  See you when we get there...

http://chroniclesofthehitchedandaimless.blogspot.com/

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2:22:24 PM EDT

Joel and I were sitting around a campfire and came up with some more ideas.  (It was cheap entertainment)

Unlimited Mileage

Where the Road Never Ends

Destination Unknown

See You When we Get There

Spoiled Rotten

Ain't Misbehavin'

 

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1:07:57 PM EDT

I found some goodies in the Thesarus to add to my title

Random: Aimless, Fortuitous, Unintentional, Indiscriminate

Motion: Migration, Fiddling, Fidget, Twitch (a personal fav)

Traveler: Intinerant, Gadabout, Wayfarer

So it could be the Fortuitous Wayfarers

Or Indiscriminate Intinerants

Or Unintentional Gadabouts

Well?

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8:45:36 AM EDT

Oh, some of the other AOL people are really mad about the journals shut down.  They are threatening to discontinue service, they can't figure out the links, some even wrote back in different languages.  Angry.  I think it is unfortunate and see it as an inconvenience.  But I have had a lot of fun doing my research, reading other peoples blogs and finding my inspiration.

Yesterday I was brainstorming new names (titles).  This one was titled "Grand Adventure 2005", for the year we went to the Grand Canyon.  Subtitled "Two Nomads travel the US" which really should have been the title.  Should I keep the Nomads part?  Then I thought I should throw it out to you for ideas.  I think I want to keep basic theme as traveling, even though we were grounded this year.  Here were some of my ideas:

Random Motion

Constant Motion

Roadrunners

4 Wheels Down (we tow the Jeep 4 wheels down)

Navigator

Wanderer

Following our Own Star

Road Trip !

Perpetual Road Trip

As always, I welcome your input

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2:52:57 PM EDT

I have just been notified by AOL that they are shutting down AOL journals on Oct 31.  So I will have to find a new home for my blog.  I need to do a little research, then I will let you know where my new home is before that deadline.

I never did give the final garden report.  I stopped counting at 30 canteloupe.  We grew 12 fine pumpkins to enhance the decorations of the campground.  There were about 5 watermelon and the first was the sweetest, most juicy we had ever tasted.  Bumper crop of zucchini, yellow squash, (hot) banana peppers, and green beans.  Tomatoes didn't do well, except for the cherries.  Okra is still producing.  Maybe Gumbo will be my next recipe.  And I'm already thinking about next year.

We are still in a fuel crisis, despite the news saying "the worst is behind us".  Yesterday brought a quick little shower and cooler temps.  I love crisp fall weather.  So with that, I'm going outside...

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5:32:25 PM EDT

Geek Squad was going to charge $400 to install a new hard drive and more RAM, so I just bought a new Acer Extensa for the same amount of money.  They transferred some old documents to the new one and now I have to learn Vista.  I have used Vista on my boss’s computer and have not been impressed.  But this is a new version, so hopefully it will be ok.  I think I may put a new hard drive in the old computer later on and reinstall XP on the old one.   I really missed the computer and now I have some catching up to do.

Western NC has been in a fuel drought since before Ike hit Texas.  They claim there is a shortage from Texas to the depot in Spartanburg.  When gas stations get a shipment, there are long lines and they are out quickly.  We have been told this has affected all the Gulf states, but my mom hasn’t had a shortage in FL.  So we have been grounded again.  We wanted to go to the BBQ Festival in Maggie Valley, but are afraid we couldn’t make it back.  Joel hopes we will be back to normal by the time we want to leave on Oct 15. 

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5:07:27 PM EDT

Shortly after Labor Day I started having problems with my Dell computer.  Then I got a SMART error message and was told that is a serious problem for my hard drive.  So I have taken it to the Geek Squad a Best Buy.  I have had so many problems with this Dell, that I'm not really sure I want to put more into it.  They are going to copy my information (if they can) and give me an estimate for a new HD and more RAM. 

We had a good Labor Day but I was glad when it was over!  I love the campground when it is empty.  I've found two nice trees by the river where I can stretch out a hammock.  It is my favorite place.  Wish I had thought of that sooner.

We will be here until October 15.  Then we are going to South Carolina to hunt deer.  We may return to Florida by November.  If it hasn't been blown away!

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11:14:47 AM EDT

I like her. (what I know of her)  I think she will shake things up. I’m sure the McCain Camp did their investigations to find any skeletons, and that Obama’s is scrambling to find some dirt. Certainly will make it interesting

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11:13:42 AM EDT

Prior to Fay, I wish I had taken a picture of the Swannanoa River and the lakes because they were so low. We could no longer rent jon boats because of people getting stuck. The river was barely a trickle. But then on Tuesday the 26th we received an entire day of rain from TS Fay. Wednesday night, the river crested over the bridge. And now the lakes are back up to their original water mark. Amazing what can happen in just one day.

The garden is still a little soggy after all that rain. I have given away 26 cantaloupe and there are still some on the vine. The pumpkins look great, and I’m hopefully they will hold out until October. The reports of the watermelon is that it is the sweetest and juiciest ever. The zucchini gave all and I think we are near the end. Tomatoes didn’t do well, but cherry tomatoes flourished. The banana peppers were too hot for most, by mistake. I cut the seeds out, stuffed them with cheese, wrapped them in bacon, and grilled them which cut most of the heat. I think they are at the end too. 5 little green bean bushes produced enough for everyone and some in the freezer. We are already planning next year.

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4:58:13 PM EDT

Casserole

This recipe is for a broccoli casserole, but I substituted zucchini and got lots of requests for the recipe.

1 cup mayo

2 boxes frozen broccoli (4 c fresh zucchini-but could use more)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 egg

½ cup shredded cheese

Ritz crackers

Butter

Cook broccoli according to package instructions. (I sauteed cubed zucchini until tender) Beat egg then mix with mayo, soup and cheese. Stir in cooked broccoli. Put in casserole dish. Top with crushed Ritz crackers (as thick as you like). Slice 1 stick butter on top of crackers.

Bake 350 for 45 minutes.

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