Over Here, Over There

Hello

We're in Wells, Nevada tonight. Don't ask me where that is. I don't have a dadgum clue. All I know is, we left Jennifer's condo in Vacaville, California this morning and went over Donner Pass (boy, was it cold up there) to Truckee, to Reno, to Winnemucka (No, we're not in Canada,,,I don't think), through Battle Mountain, Echo, and Wells. Not only am I good and lost, but Bill lost my lunch money for tomorrow in a slot machine where we stopped for tonight. I went into the truck stop to go to the bathroom and came out only to find Bill hovering over a couple of slot machines like a vulture. Just when you think you can trust them!!!!! Not to worry, I'm just kidding. He only lost a dollar. But that'll teach me not to stay in the john very long from now on. I calculated that I had been in there for 5 minutes, and he lost a dollar. If I had been in there for 10 minutes, he'd have lost 2 dollars, etc., etc., etc. The possibilities could be catastrophic. (Not if he values his life.) Maybe he was paying me back for tormenting Bob with that shopping trip. Who knows what goes on in a man's head, especially when his name is Mann.

It's time for my feel-good pill. Good night. We'll talk more tomorrow. Maybe by then I'll have a better idea where I am.

Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

Two Pillows

Hi
I told you I'd be back. Well, here I am. We had a wonderful time at Sister's house in Salem, Oregon, but like they say, "All good things must come to an end." Try as I might, I couldn't seem to justify staying there and sending Bill out into the trucking wilderness all by himself. We're in Medford, Oregon tonight, hauling a travel trailer. We'll be delivering it tomorrow in Sacramento, California. And guess what! We have a daughter and a grandson we'll be able to see at that stop. Boy, talk about perks. This job has the perks. So I guess you could say I'm riding from perk to perk.
Sister and I went shopping yesterday and had a great time. She has decided to re-decorate her living room. We had all sorts of plans drawn up as possibilities. Our only mistake was in letting her other half in on the plan but leaving him at home while we went to do the shopping. I could tell he was really nervous about turning the two of us loose on a whole town that was just ripe for our little adventure. I could almost see dollar signs flying past his eyes every time one of us said something about which plan we thought we might want to go with. I'm surprised he didn't have a nervous breakdown by the time we got home. To make a long story short, we were gone for several hours. He needn't have sweated the small stuff. We got home with 2 pillows, and we lucked out and found those on sale. Beware, Bob, there's always the next time I'm in Salem. You might not be so lucky the next time. (He probably thinks we bought more and hid it in the garage, with the intent of sneaking it in the house one piece at a time.) I learned that trick from my mother many years ago. Who could blame him for being a little suspicious, tho? Several hours and only 2 pillows later we went dragging into the house. Even I have to say that is a little hard to believe.
It's time to go to bed and get ready for another day.
Good night, everybody
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops
PS Earline, I'm getting your comments, but I can't seem to find your blog spot. Send it to me again. I must have written it down wrong. I can't wait to see your new paint.

beautiful country

Hi, everybody
We've been through some beautiful country today. The highlight of the day was a herd of elk (12 to 15) that were grazing close to the highway. We were in the Umatilla Indian Reservation. This must have been a good year for vegetation because they were all fat and sassy. It was great to have a close up look at them. We're coming into Portland right now, which means we'll be at sister's tonight. Goody, goody...I'll have a real bed to sleep in tonight. I can hardly wait.
Jean...I was just tickled to death to hear from you, especially with your good news about Victory Temple Church. Tell Pastor Gary I said, "Go, Gary, go!" For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about --- about 2 years ago Victory Temple Church went to contemporary music in our worship services, which left a bunch of us old heads sitting there looking around and wondering what world we had walked into. I think we may have successfully proved that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. For my part, I actually bought a contemporary songbook. I thought (imagine that) if I just studied it a little bit that I would get the hang of it. To make a long story short, that book knocked my hat in the creek. I know less now than I did before I started. Anyway, bless his heart, Pastor Gary must've felt sorry for us and announced that we'll be having 2 Sunday morning worship services--one traditional and one contemporary. Praise God for good pastors. (He probably got tired of looking at all the confused faces every Sunday.)
You may not hear from me for a couple of days, but I WILL BE BACK.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

missed ya

Hi
We spent last night in Laramie, but after fighting the road all day all I could think about was putting my head on my trusty little pillow and going to sleep. I wish I could say that was the end of a good story, but if I said that I'd be lying like a rug. The other three stooges settled down for the night without a problem, while I was busy coping with leg cramps....ALL NIGHT LONG. See if you can get a mental picture of this...There's not an inch of empty space anywhere in this truck when we get our beds made down, and there I am in the middle of it all throwing things right and left, trying to find a place to stand up so I can hopefully work the cramps out of my leg...3 times. I was about half mad at the rest of them because they were sawing logs while I was trying to keep from screaming and crying. All that kept me from getting out of the truck so I could stand up and work the cramps out was there were people parked all around us, and I was stripped down to my panties and nightshirt. What a sight that would've been. I thought morning would never get here, but it finally did. I was mad at the rest of them because they weren't awake to sympathize with me, but I didn't hurt anyone. I was just a little cranky, that's all. I overcame it all when we got into Wyoming today. I got busy watching all the pretty little antelope and the beautiful countryside and forgot about everything else.
We're in Utah now, almost in Idaho. We'll probably be in Oregon to drop off the trailer we're hauling by sometime tomorrow.
Bye for now.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

RAIN

Hello again
We're in Iowa tonight and mighty glad to be stopped for the day, I might say. The weather has been wild up here. It rained cats and dogs on us, and I had one of each in my lap. Both the girls must've gotten scared when it started beating down on the top of the truck, and they beat a path straight to me. Bill tried driving with his glasses and without them, trying to decide which was best. I guess he must've made the right decision because we made it to our nighttime stop in one piece.
I heard from Bill's doctor today. HE DOES NOT HAVE DIABETES. Thank God. The bad news is, he still has to watch his sugar intake, and he's not a happy camper about that. I tried to tell him when you get old, things like that do tend to happen...And if looks could kill I'd be dead right now, along with everything close by me.
Earline, don't quit sending your comments. I'm getting them.
It's good to hear from everybody. Keep talking to me. I'll be back home some day.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

Continued

Hi
It's me again. I decided to finish what I started today with that little short posting. I was so tickled about getting to go back to Oregon I just had to tell someone. We were hotfooting it down the road to Kalamazoo to drop off the boat we were hauling, and the phone rang. It was our dispatcher, and all Bill said was, "Hello. I'll take it." It didn't take him but a New York minute to decide to go see Mama and Sister again. Aren't we the lucky ones, getting to travel all over the country like this? (We have plenty of prozac on board.) We're spending the night in Waukarusa, Indiana. We are all hooked up to a small trailer and ready to head out early in the morning. Well, as soon as we get coffee, anyway.
It's really pretty in Indiana and Michigan. Waukarusa is home to a group of Amish. Their homes are always so clean looking, but what I like the most is watching them driving down the roads in their horse drawn buggies. It's just the neatest thing to see.
Keep your fingers crossed, everybody...the air conditioner is still working, and nothing else has broken down. This is going to be an even better trip than the last one. I just know it is.
Bill wants me to walk him to the bathroom. It's quite a ways from the truck, and he's afraid of the dark. Catch ya tomorrow.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

Goody, Goody, Goody

Hi, everybody
This one's going to be short. We just got a call from our dispatcher. We're going to get to go right back out to Oregon to sister's and Mama's. What luck!
Catch ya later.
Francie

Tired, Tired, Tired

We're just across the border into Illinois, headed for Kalamazoo, Michigan with a boat. Then we'll be turning back to Indiana to pick up another load.
I think I woke up every hour on the hour last night thinking, "Is it time to go yet, is it time to go?" So this evening I'm almost too tired to write my blog. We just got back to the truck from eating dinner, and pardon me, folks, but my bra has to come off. Sadly, it's too early to go to bed, so I'm going to have to tough it out for at least another hour (8 o'clock). Don't laugh---it's what old folks do best. Speaking of dinner, I think I told you Bill went to the doctor yesterday because his triglycerides (sugar) were way out of whack. The doctor tested him for diabetis (Did I spell that right? Nevermind, I'm so tired I don't guess it matters.) Anyway, back to dinner. We went into the restaurant, the waitress handed us the menus, and what did Bill do? He turned directly to the back page where all the deserts are listed. Boy, has he got a lot of work to do --- or not. I told him I would help him figure out what he can and cannot eat, but I will not allow him to make a nag out of me. I would kinda like for him to hang around this old world for a while yet, but it's up to him. He's a big boy. I did, however, manage to talk him into eating a baked potato. I thought he was going to poodle up and cry all over the waitress when she brought it to him. All I could think of to say to him was, "Be brave, little buckaroo." I'm afraid I wasn't much encouragement.
I'm so pooped, I hope I've made sense. If not, you can tell me about it tomorrow.
Good night.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

The Road's a Waitin'

Hi
We got to sleep in our own bed in a real house for a couple of days, but it's time to get back to business. We're picking a boat up in Missouri and hauling it to Michigan. We'll be leaving the house in the morning. Bill had diabetic tests run at the doctor's office this morning, but we won't know any results for a couple of days. He actually had to do without coffee AND food till almost noon today. Boy, was he a bear. Let's just say we're both glad it's over with, and I hope we never have to repeat it. If he turns out to be diabetic I don't know how I'm going to keep him out of the sugar. Honestly, I can just watch him eat and get diabetis.
I got the lawn mowed, paper work taken care of, laundry done, truck packed, so all four of us are chewing at the bits to go. In fact, Ally almost had a nervous breakdown when we went to the doctor this morning and left her here. She was sure we were leaving without her and her sister, the cat. She did a very entertaining jig when we got back home.
Bye for now. We'll talk tomorrow.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

"comments"

Hi, folks
It has come to my attention that the "comments" part of my blog was not working. I think I fixed it, so talk to me.
Francie

Home for a Minute

Hi again
We came dragging into the house last night about 7 o'clock. We're not here to stay, by any means. We're all four having fun with our great big picnic. We just stopped by to check our mail, take care of a little business, and do some laundry. While I'm at it, I think I'll toss Ally in the tub. She's getting a little on the doggy stink side. I'd rather not climb back into the truck with her in her present state. We'll probably leave in the morning, headed for Indiana to pick up another load. I'd sure like to go back up into the northwest. I love it up there. It's so pretty. Well, except for that one stretch of highway Bill got us on where all you could see were great big mounds of dirt for hours and hours and hours. And there were no rest stops, either. Every 3 hours I was asking where was the next bathroom. We finally found one rest stop just in the nick of time, and Bill walked Ally while I went into the can. Boy howdy, let me tell you, I came out of that thing with fire (not smoke) blazing from ears, nose, and mouth. It was nothing but a rotton, stinking outhouse. Bill almost died over that one. I came stumbling out of that thing with some excellent advice for him. I'll bet he won't take that road again. I just had one question for him. I couldn't help but ask him if he knew what I would do to him if he ever did that to me again. I think we're clear on the subject of isolated highways.
Got some packing to do.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

Nebraska

Hello, everyone
It's Saturday, and I'm writing this while driving down the highway, so I may not be able to keep a signal long enough to finish it. We'll see. We just left Wyoming. We'll probably be in Nebraska the biggest part of the day. Nothing new to report. Ally Oops and Sammie Sue are still fighting for a position on my lap. I guess that's just always going to be their mode of operation. Thank God, I've trained them both well enough that they know when we are eating they dare not get close to it. Every once in a while they actually get into a slapping match to see which one gets to sit on "the throne". And just let Ally win the coveted position, and Sammie is liable to slap the snot out of her. They're a big part of our entertainment, and they're good little truckers. All they need is a ball cap, and they're in costume for the highway.
Hey, Lisa, did you get back from your scuba diving trip yet? I hope you took a lot of pictures. The only problem is, I don't know when I'll be home to see them. All things in good time, I guess.
Bye for now
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

Floppy Hands

Hi, folks
To tell you the truth, I'm not sure of where I am right now. All I know is, I THINK we're somewhere in Idaho. We started early this morning, and we're stopped (again) at a garage that's trying to fix the air conditioner. This is the third stop, so maybe this stop will be the charm.
I'm telling you, there's a lot of crazies out running loose on the highways of this country. Vehicles pass us on a regular basis with hands flopping around with one finger appearing to be completely and grotesquely out of control. It's really disgusting. Thank God, my southern gentleman husband chooses to ignore them (maybe just one or two off color comments now and then, which is always under his breath.) That's good, because I really don't want to hear it.
Hey, you guys. I'm not getting any "comments" from anyone. Are you still out there?
Earline: What's going on with your clan? Did the dog get over his broken leg?
Jennifer: Did you get moved into your new home?
Debbie: Did you'all have fun at the beach. I was so jealous I couldn't see straight.
Jean: What's going on at the church? If we can stop long enough, I think I can pull up one of Gary's sermons on the computer.
Bob and Bobbie: I already miss you guys something terrible, even though you called today. I miss not being there with you and watching Ally run up and down the stairs.
Brother: We talk to you every day, but are you keeping up with the blog?
Karissa: What beautiful little girls you have.
Wanda: I'd feel a whole lot better if you'd give me just a short update on you and the kids.
Well, now we're at a park. We have to wait for the garage to get the part they "said" the truck needs in order to get the air conditioner fixed. Oh, well. It is a pretty park.
We'll talk later.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

Hello again
We're leaving Salem, Oregon this morning. We had a real nice visit with family while there. Ally had all sorts of fun running up and down the stairs at Bob and Bobbie's house. They have a deck that is to die for, with trees and birds all around it. It's always such a pleasure to visit them. Their home is so serene and relaxing. Sammie had a bedroom all to herself. She must have been real tired from the trip because she burrowed under the covers and stayed there the whole time we were there.
We got to see and hold the newest member of the family before we left this morning. Her name is Heidi, and she's Bill's great, great niece. Boy, that makes Bill sound really old, doesn't it? As I say, if the shoe fits, wear it. In this matter, it's a good fit.
Did I tell you about getting lost the other day in Idaho Falls? We took the scenic route when we were trying to deliver the trailer we were pulling. Somehow we got into a residential area. Bill said he wasn't lost---he just didn't know where he was. What is it about men that makes them refuse to admit they're lost and absolutely will not stop and ask for directions. He got so frustrated and at one point said, "This will not go in your blog." We finally got there. I guess that's all that matters.
Gotta go. I'm about to lose my signal.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

Sister's House

Hi, everybody
We're at Bill's sister's house (Bobbie) today in Salem, Oregon. It's our very favorite place to visit. We got to visit with Bill's mother today (also in Salem). In fact, we accompanied her to the doctor. She's in pretty good shape to be 100 years old, and she's one of my favorite people. This evening we sat on Bobbie's deck and visited for a while before super. We actually got to sleep in a real bed last night. It was really nice. There were still all 4 of us piled up in the bed, but it was a real bed. We finally got the air conditioner on the truck fixed today, so we will probably be leaving Salem sometime tomorrow. We've had a wonderful visit with family. The cat, Sammie Sue, must have been really tired of the truck. She took up residence in the bedroom and has been asleep under the bedspread all day long. Ally, the dog, has been playing on the stairs today. She gets a big kick of running up and down them. I guess she must've had some energy to get out of her system after being cooped up in the truck for several days.
Time for bed.
Good night, all
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

WHAT A DAY!!!

Hello, everybody
I'm actually writing this on Tuesday morning because I couldn't get onto the blogspot system last night. We're in Idaho today, but we were in Wyoming all day yesterday. You should have been with us. We saw everything but bear and zebras. There was a bumper crop of antelope this year. We saw literally hundreds of them scattered all through Wyoming. Some of them were even out in the pasture grazing right alongside the cattle. High up on a telephone pole, we saw a huge nest with an eagle peeking over the edge of it and looking around. There was one wild mountain goat climbing a mountain. He must've been down by the Snake River getting himself a drink of water and then was making his way back home. We followed the Snake River all through Wyoming, and we're still seeing it in Idaho. The water up here is beautiful. It's always crystal clear, and I love the streams that flow alongside the highway. The mountains out here are truly a portrait straight from the hand of God. Some of them are still snowcapped, and they are colorful and majestic. It was a beautiful day.
Time to hit the road again.
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

no catastrophic events

Hi, all
We're in Cheyenne, Wyoming tonight. It's been a pretty uneventful day, with no catastrophic events happening. I'd say we were due one of those. Well, there was one minor problem: The air conditioner has gone out, and it's 85 degrees. It will probably run us out of the truck and into a motel tonight, but worse things could happen. Oh, and I almost forgot. I spilled a cup of hot coffee on myself this morning. You know how when something doesn't want to give, and you keep tugging on it? Yup, that's what happened. I was trying to get the lid off the cup to doctor my coffee, and when it finally opened, coffee went flying everywhere. Oh, well, I needed a little more color about me, anyway (red). And besides that, a hundred years from now I won't know the difference. What was that I was saying about no catastrophic events? Maybe that was a bit of a stretch.
Bill wants the computer, so I'll say good night.
Francie, Bill, Ally Oops, and Sammie Sue

Two Trailer Trip

Hi, folks
I missed you last night. I couldn't get online. We must've been in a bad place. Anyway, I'm back in business now. Let's see now---where am I? Bill says we're in Avoca, Iowa. Isn't that thrilling? We picked up a big trailer last night, and we're pulling it to Idaho Falls, Idaho. It's actually the second trailer we hooked up to. The first one had something wrong with it. We started down the road with it, and Bill started saying, "There's something really wrong with this trailer. It doesn't feel right at all." Then he started looking in the mirrors. He could see nothing to the left of the truck, but he could see half of the trailer to the right of the truck. Well, heck, I reckon, something was wrong. Trailers aren't supposed to pull that way. Even I know that. We turned around and took that turkey right back where we got it from and got another one. So we're "on the road again". We should be able to deliver this one Tuesday.
We're getting every one's comments, and we're enjoying hearing from you all. It's so neat to be able to stay in touch this way. Keep the notes coming our way.
Good night,
Francie, Bill, Sammie Sue, and Ally Oops

duh!!!!

Hi, everybody
It's me again, Margaret. We started off pretty good today, but we're not ending up very gracefully. Bill is having to fight Sammie Sue and Ally Oops for his bed. Both are sprawled out all across it.
We left Harrison, AR early this morning and took the boat we were hauling to North Little Rock. We were both glad to get rid of it because that meant we were ready to head OUT OF STATE!!!
While we were in North Little Rock we drove by and looked at the house we lived in when we first got married. I can't understand why the whole neighborhood looked so old. Then we drove by the furniture store where I used to work. There was a "for lease" sign up front. That was the last straw. I was so depressed after seeing the old house and the for lease sign, all I could think of was I had stumbled into the twilight zone and needed desperately to find my way out. Of course, the twilight zone had to be the entire state of Arkansas.
Well, are you ready for this? We're sitting in the middle of a truck stop at Effinham, Illinois. I am a tired but happy traveler, so I am going to bed.

Francie, Bill, Ally Oops and Sammie Sue

I Left Home

Hi, everybody
Congratulate us...we finally made it away from the house!!! It was a miracle, let me tell you. We went in circles for 3 days, trying to get things ready, and then just as we thought we were "out of Dallas" we got a job hauling a boat from Knoxville, AR to Tulsa, OK and wound up right back at the house for the night. That's just downright embarrassing. I should not be admitting to this. We picked the Knoxville job up yesterday afternoon and then got onto I-40 and ended up going right through Fort Smith at bedtime. By this morning I was just chewing at the bits to successfully get away from the house. Great! Okay, now get this---We've traveled all day long, and as I sit in the truck writing this blog we are still only in Harrison, AR. (We dropped one boat off in Tulsa and drove to Miami, OK to pick up another boat that's going to North Little Rock.) I don't know whether to laugh or cry. In spite of everything, the day has gone quite well, except the dog and the cat jockeyed for a position on my lap the entire day. Their idea was both of them should sit on "Mama's" lap at the same time. Neither of them was going to be outdone. Tomorrow the 3 of us are going to have to come to an understanding.
Francie, Bill, Ally oops, and Sammie Sue
PS Bill is already screaming "HELP"

Gettin' Ready

Hi again

I think I've managed to notify all my friends and relatives of the blog site, so now all that's left for me to do is pack up my clothes, the dog and the cat and head out for God only knows what. By the way, if you want to make comments at the bottom of each posting, I think you will have to have a Google account, but it's real easy to do and doesn't cost anything. It tells you how to do it if you click on "comments" at the bottom of the posting.

We worked the truck over today. (The first thing we had to do was take it to the car wash. Bill is real good at trashing out his truck. You've heard about people that leave a trail everywhere they go? Well, Bill piles it up all around him.) Sometimes it gets pretty snaky in there. I'll just have to rely on Sammie Sue and Ally Oops to protect me from whatever critters happen to decide to go with us on the trip. I do hope this doesn't turn out to be a trip of horrors. Time will tell.

Bye until next time.

Francie