Saturday, August 15

Play-Mor Campground,   Bremen, IN $32.10 per night

Another campground we stayed in last year. We are near where our trailer was built, but that company has gone out of business due to the recession. Along our way, a kind motorist brought to our attention that we had something hanging from the underside of our trailer. We pulled into a parking lot and found a section of the underbelly cover (which is little more than plasticized cardboard) had come loose on one corner and was dragging on the ground.  We did a fast jerry-rig job of holding it up with a strap to get us on our way. We stopped at a hardware store and picked up some bolts and fender washers to do the repair tomorrow.

Sunday, August 16
Frank began today by crawling under the trailer to fix the underbelly cover which was coming off yesterday. He drilled some holes in the I beam frame and used bolts with fender washers to affix the cover to the bottom. Later we made 2 trips to the hardware store for parts and some glue. Frank put wheels on his little end table which holds a notebook computer, a cassette deck and some cables.   He is in the slow process of playing back a bunch of old books on tape stories and recording them onto the computer. Much of this is done while exercising and being able to move the table around is much easier with the wheels. When finished they will be made available to close friends on a private server back home. For lunch we drove to Amish Acres and ate till we were stuffed. A great place to have a good home cooked meal. Later we added some rubber matting to the bottom of our truck storage box to stop aluminum from rubbing off on all the stuff stored there. Finally we drained the water from the trailer and flushed the hot water heater. We made the mistake of not draining it in June and it was full of junk and bad bugs. Finally we have it completely clean and the water softener is now recharged and working correctly again. A long day and we are both tired and looking forward to bed and a bit of a rest tomorrow.

Monday, August 17
Rain Rain Rain. We have had 4.34 inches of rain so far today and expecting more in a bit. It's been one of those days when it rained, then sun shining, then clouds, then more rain, then sun again. At one point we had some major lightning and the campground's Internet went out for several hours. We went to Menards home center today and found plumbing parts we have been unable to locate. We added a captive air tank to the water pump. This helps reduce pump cycling and generally stabilizes the water pressure when using the pump. Also took that opportunity to clean out the trailer basement and vacuum the dirt out. Frank got the weather page working and online (see link at top of page). Weather from the trailer is updated every hour when the trailer is in a campground and we have an internet connection. Very productive day.

Tuesday, August 18
Today was a more relaxed one. Tom did laundry, we cut up and installed some new rubber matting in the front compartment where the grill is stored, and we had dinner at Amish Acres again. Frank did some web page work and we both did a bunch of reading. It was mostly sunny but warm and humid.

Wednesday, August 19

Emerald Trails Campground   Crete, IL $35.00 per night

Thursday, August 20
Today was a major project day. We replumbed the captive air tank so it won't leak or move around. Then Frank ran a new power circuit to the space under the bed to eliminate extension cords feeding the electric blanket, and moved the front webcam computer to a space under the bed. Between those two projects we had a good part of the trailer apart, but the result is great. For lunch we went to a German restaurant about 15 miles away, very good meal. We also met another "family" member who is staying in the campground for several months. Had a very long and fun conversation with him here in the trailer.

Friday, August 21
After completing our normal early morning routine, we spent a lot of time reading favorite books. In the late afternoon we drove to Alsip and visited a Radio Shack where Frank got a set of headphones and an audio adaptor to use while recording his books on tape. Then we stopped in at Contestant registration and went on to the Country House Restaurant where we had a great dinner. Finally another visit to contestant registration before returning home to our trailer.

Saturday, August 22
It turned out that Frank's dessert at the restaurant last night had artificial coloring in it, so he lost some sleep dealing with that. We attended the first day of the Chicago Rodeo. Great weather, in the high 60's, and somewhat overcast. We saw our friend Terry from Fort Valley compete in barrel racing and flag racing. If we remember right, he was fourth place in Barrels and third place in Flags. Plus we had a chance to visit with Bob from Fort Valley and several friends from Chicago. It was a great day. We had spaghetti for dinner in the trailer, then watched some of the Chicago Bears football game on TV.

Sunday, August 23
For our last day here we returned to the rodeo. A nicer day but still quite cloudy. Gallery will be availalbe in a few days. The day started out misty, and as it turned out it was sunny in Chicago, 50 miles to the north. We were on the very edge of a storm. Later in the day it turned hot and sunny. In the evening we went to dinner at a favorite restaurant, then to the rodeo's awards, then back to the campground.

Monday, August 24

West Lake County Park   Davenport, IA $17.00 per night

We drove about 184 miles today, a bit longer than we would like but not bad. We are in a very pleasant and immaculately cared for county park. The only drawback is they only have 30 amp hookups.   We are both bushed after the long weekend at the rodeo and we are looking forward to a good night's sleep.

Tuesday, August 25
We decided to stay here another few days for two reasons. One is we have more travel time on our hands than we need to get to Kansas City; and two, we are expecting very heavy rains with thunderstorms during the next two days and nights. So staying here, we went shopping. We refilled a 30 pound propane tank; visited an Oreck store to buy sweeper bags; and visiting the ubiquitous Wal-Mart. For lunch we brought home some burgers from a neat chain of the mid-west called Steak and Shake. Good food. For dinner, Tom made corn on the cob, BBQ pork cutlets; and sorbet. We await the rains, as we can see it coming closer.

Wednesday, August 26
We chose correctly. Thunderstorms moved in during the night and rumblings can still be heard. Nearly two inches of rain so far. We did some computer chores and read, while staying dry. Hope we can move further west tomorrow.

Saturday, August 29

Prairie Band Casino and Resort   Mayetta, KS $15.75 per night

The sun is shining and the weather is great. We moved to a campground we stayed at last summer just a few miles north of Topeka Kansas. Internet is good. Along the way we stopped to swap drivers and found an interesting historical marker.   After arriving in the campground, we selected our own spot, and proceeded to clean/wash the truck and trailer. Windows and truck, plus carpet, looks nice again. Dinner tonight at the Casino's Buffet, but since we are in the campground, it is a two for one event. Dinner for two at $16.00.

Sunday, August 30
Today we drove north to Holton, expecting their great hardware to be closed on a Sunday...but luckily, it was open and we shopped for almost an hour. We got many things we needed for trailer projects. Then we went grocery shopping. Not quite up to Giant Foods standards, but acceptable. Dinner at the buffet...so cheap and no cooking.

Monday, August 31
We both worked on computers today. Frank did the newsletter for ASGRA. Tom played with updates to files. Tonight's buffet was more expensive $ 21 for two...Prime Rib and Shrimp, plus hundreds of other food items. Great meal.