November

Hi! It is November 20th. I just today put the peat mulch around my miniature roses. I wait as long as I can, until just before freezing temperatures. All day cold. It has been so pretty the last two days. I have washed sheets and bed spread and hung them outside. They are cold when I bring them in, but are dry when they warm up to house temp. I do miss my out door dryer when we travel. But now all the outside work is done. My roses are the last items to be taken care of. My Aunt gave me a small miniature rose bush several years ago. And then when we dug up the old oil barrel I divided the bush, hoping at least one would live. They all lived and now I have a row of roses. Pretty as they bloom all summer.

Hopefully we will take off in about 2 weeks. or less. Will go to Florida again, maybe go West this summer. Talk to you later. jkc

Winchester Speedway

Saturday October 3rd, was a windy day. We started the day by going to an Ethanol plant in Union City. A very interesting tour. the amount of corn they used daily is amazing. and they run 24/7. Not that many people to run the facility. We had "Mike" lead our tour. He is their maintenance chief. When ask if this was state of the art and could they build more just like it, He answered, "Remember, I am the person in charge of maintenance, yes, I would make some improvements first."

The Hoosier Cruiser had a great "pitch In" lunch. Good cooks in our group.
A lazy hour or two and then off to the Winchester Speedway. it was old timers week end.
They had on display several old race cars. From the 30's on up thru the 60's. They took laps around the track in between the main races. Fun to see those old cars go. No roll bars, cigar shaped cars.
The sprints with the winged top, ran qualifying 10 lap races. 2.06 minutes. 1/2 mile track five miles in 2.06 minutes. Fast! We missed the last two races. And that was ok. It was windy and
cold. so we stopped at McDonald's for a hot drink and burger.

Sunday, coffee and donuts, a short hymn sing and devotions. A good way to go on our way back
home. Via Flying J. to load up on propane, diesel fuel and dump the tanks. Getting ready for
winter.

We have drained the water tank and Wednesday when the sun is supposed to be out we will
get out the air compressor and blow out the lines. Drain the hot water heater and do other
maintenance to prepare for heavy frosts. We hope to be gone before snow. We shall see what
November brings. Have a good day. jkc

Randolph Co. Fairgrounds, Hoosier Cruisers

Friday night, October 2nd.

We arrived early on Thursday, here to help greet each coach as it arrived. When we weren't talking to those that had arrived. Happy hour was great if you did not mind standing under an umbrella every so often. New recipes to taste and want the recipe. maybe we should have a Hoosier Cruiser Cookbook.

To the chicken Shack for dinner. Ernie and I had chicken gizzards. We know, they are not good for you cholesterol. But they were delicious. Home and to bed by 9.

I am wearing a short boot on my left foot because of a torn muscle on the bottom of my foot.
Not bad, but tiring. Even get to wear it to bed for 3 to 6 weeks.

Friday, after hearing it rain most of the night and at breakfast the clouds cleared and the day was dry. Windy, but dry. Half of us went to Workhorse Custom Chassis factory in Union City, Indiana to go thru the plant. No workers, which in a way is a bummer, not seeing the actual work being done, but nice as we could hear our guide and really look at the various stages of putting together a chassis.

And when you are located near Winchester, Indiana, a stop is required at Mrs. Wicks Pies and restaurant. We had the special for the day of a toasted cheese sandwich, a cup of vegetable soup and drink. And then a piece of pie. I had black raspberry, slightly warmed and Ernie had butterscotch. Both delicious. And then we went back to the store and found two "damaged" pecan pies. (crust broken) and a good sugar cream pie. Mrs. Wick's sugar cream pie is supposed to be Indiana's State Pie.

After lunch and a pit stop at the RV it was on to the Ghyslain Chocolatier Company in Union City. Oh, My, you should see the chocolate sculptures that were displayed in this company. We had a taste test between Hershey's chocolate and Ghyslain's. I like them both, but I guess Gjyslains was smoother and more chocolaty. any way------- then we were shown how they make some of their chocolates, some of their molds and a video about the history of the company. they also have two restaurants and you can have a lunch during your tour if you like.
They do all of the food prep at the Union City facility. croissants, breads, meats, desserts, etc.
they ship all over, have trucks that go a 450 mile radius. they had seconds for sale. Flavored
chocolates and turtles. Mama turtle was full price. she had almonds in her hollow tummy that were her eggs!. The small turtles, 12 in a box, 6 different nuts in their tummy's, and each type a nut a different color on the back of the turtle. Pretty and neat. We were told we could take the boxes home, wrap them in saran and freeze them for 3 months. defrost for 12 hours in refrig and then enjoy. We will!
Back to the RV and I said I needed to do a Wall Mart Run. Ooops, we were ready for some R & R, but realized that when we got home from there it was time to line up for supper. We had an early time to avoid the crowds. This time we went to the Randolph Grill in Winchester. Had a choice of steak, chicken breast or tilapia. I had the tilapia and Ernie had the steak. We had a salad and a baked potato. and then came a mini dessert. Just a small amount of chocolate with a dab of whipped cream and raspberry flavor in the bottom of a tiny cup. Some were oreos and some were apple. Just a nice touch to a good meal.

And then when we got home I decided to write on the blog. I could not get the pass word right.
Ernie finally bailed me out and had to create a new password. This happens to me every now and then. They do not always ask for you to sign in or to give the password and I forget the password. Woe, is me.
Have a good day Saturday. We will! jkc

Later

It is a week since our rally. thought I better finish telling about it. Saturday, we went to

Carolee's Herb Farm. Site seer, you should have been there. Acres of gardens and herbs. Gardens for the butterflies and humming birds. Do not put a garden or food out for other birds near a butter fly garden. The birds will eat the butter flies. A children's garden and a faerie garden. And all kinds of plants. A kitchen garden also. She had a variety of spinach that can grow on a vine. Doesn't wilt during the summer. Looked good. She has a book and several small booklets. Tea pots and fairy houses. A nice morning trip.



That afternoon, we went to a quilt shop and then back over to the Minnetrista grounds. They were having a green space/idea fair. Interesting. Back to the campground for some visiting and then a big party. We had seen a cd the night before of all our members. Not your studio pictures, but at least we can look up a picture to see who we are talking about.

Tonight was a free catered meal and than a Magician. He was good. And the audience was super. He was having a good time, because we were also. I think it is obvious when a performer is doing well and has the audience right with them. Makes it more entertaining.



Sunday, after coffee and donuts we had a devotional period. Our leader had us singing several of the old time hymns and then had a short message.



We got home, got the essentials out of the RV and called our daughter. It was her birthday and we planned to take her out to eat. No, she wasn't up to that, but we could order a pizza and come over. So we did, along with a German Chocolate Cake, courtesy of Pepper Ridge Farms.

I added some star shaped candles and we had a party.



Monday, we crashed. Did very little. Tuesday, we got a call from our son, On Wednesday he

was scheduled for a heart catherization in Anderson. so we spent most of Wednesday at the hospital. His heart was clear and in good condition. So now it is to a G.P. to find out what is causing the chest pains. But a big relief that it is not his heart.



Thursday, was the start of a neighborhood garage sale. I had very little, I took it over to our neighbor and helped her all day. In a drizzle. And back and forth to the RV to help Ernie with changing the oi in the transmission. Today, my nose is very stuffed! Is it my allergies or do I have a cold. We shall see. So, now you are caught up on J. and E. See you later.

September Rally

Friday evening. good two day. Yesterday we just enjoyed seeing everyone. One couple had not been to a rally in several years, so they were quite welcomed. Ernie finally found the quarts of oil he had been hunting for the last two weeks. Sat and talked and then went out to supper to the Texas Roadhouse. There were 11 people and it took 32 minutes to get a table. Actually 2 tables. It was good, Ernie and I shared a rack of ribs. We had a campfire (courtesy of Dick S. and his portable fire pit) and we were all there for an hour or so.

Friday, This am we took a tour of the Minnetrista/Ball Mansion. This was quite interesting. The Minnetrista is an organization that has preserved the Ball Brothers Homes and surroundings. They have beautiful gardens and various activities through out the year. The exhibit this month has been memoribilia from t 1968. Do you remember what happened in 1968? The home we went through was the wood built home. Has a secret passage to a porch.
Not really furnished, but interesting in the number of rooms in the home. Smaller than what you would think for a "mansion"

Ernie and I called friends that live in Muncie and went out to Arby's for lunch They came back to the fair grounds with us and we had a good visit. Then the best tour.
At PAWS! The Jim Davis Art Studios. The artist for Garfield. They do not give tours at this facillity. But our Presidents wife knew a lady that had worked there for over twenty years and we were able to get a private tour. After working hours. Our guide was a gentleman who had retired from business and then came to work for Jim Davis. for another 20 years. He was only 88. We heard how Davis got started with Garfield, from the comic strips, to getting in the newspapers, and merchandising. He was with National companies and then bought out his Garfield business from these companies and does all of this from his own complex. They had a very large room with articles that "veners" come in to see and decided what they would like to have in their stores. We saw his 4 Emmy's and many other awards. We could even touch the emmys. Just a great tour that we were privileged to be able to do this trip. More later,
time for supper jkc

HOOSIER CRUISERS

Thursday, Sept. 17,2009

We arrived around 10 am. Got a good spot to park, not far from the building we will be using for meals etc. there are to be 41 coaches here for this rally. It is the 35th year for the Hoosier Cruiser Club. Many things are planned. So we shall see what unfolds.

Ernie had a torn muscle in his right leg (calf) last month and so his varicose vein surgery has been postponed. But we have managed to take down the shutters (6 pair), strip the paint off of
those aluminum things, prime and paint. They do look so much better. Back to the dark green that they were many years ago. Have done a few other chores also. Bleached out the fresh water tank in the RV and I have started polishing the outside. Have both ends and the passenger side done. Anyone want to help get the other side done?

Another chocolate thought I got on the e-mail. Earth is the only planet with chocolate!..
don't go to the moon if you need a chocolate fix.

Don't go to the moon if you need your chocolate fix.

see you later. jkc

FOOD?

For those of you still checking out our blog. I was cleaning out one of my cook books today. You know the kind that you are supposed to put those recipes in that you cut out of magazines and newspapers. Or friends give you. And some how they never get put in properly in that cook book. I found this and had to pass it on to other chocoholics.

CHOCOLATE

Chocolate is a VEGETABLE!

Chocolate is derived from the cocoa bean
Beans equal vegetable.

Sugar is derived from either sugar cane or sugar beets. Both of them are plants, in the vegetable category. thus, chocolate is a vegetable.

To go one step further, chocolate candy bars also contain milk, which is dairy. So candy bars are a health food.

Chocolate-covered raisins, cherries, orange slices and strawberries all count as fruit, so eat as many as you want.

Remember STRESSED spelled backwards is DESSERTS

Send to 4 women and you will lose 2 pounds.
Send to all women and you will lose 10 pounds.

Now the last two statements I am not sure about. The other just makes sense, doesn't it?
jkc

Pictures from Warsaw

Our rally masters for the Warsaw rally are seated there in front. Standing at the other table is the lady, Carol Knarr, Storyteller.
She spoke after our dinner about Kosciusko County.

And what do the men do at rally's? Check out problems with members RVs. Do you know who these guys are in the picture?

Happy Hour! We had a good time visiting and trying out new recipes for snacks. Good ones. It was nice to get the group together for the hour or so each evening at 4.

this is the inside of a boat.

You have to see the next picture to see the finished product. We visited the home of the original catamaran boat. Splendor Boats. And we watched the fiberglass process. The owner stated that their product was one of the few that put the foam insulation in the hull of the boats. He stated he developed the catamaran style The boats are customed made for each individual. He does not use a dealer. You come to him to plan your boat. Now his grandchildren run the plant.

The owner of the Splendor Boats talking to us, standing on one of his boats. 28 feet is the longest they make. We were able to get in the boats on the showroom floor and see the fine craftsmanship.

The young man with his back to you is one of the grandson's of the owner. He asked if we had any questions. Yes, where does that piece you are working on fit in a boat. He smiled and said. "We diversify, so that we keep busy year around. This piece is the housing for a fan that will go into a large chicken coop. We were at Silver Lake, near Mentone, which is the egg capital. Interesting.

A bell helicopter. We visited the Lawrence D. Bell Aircraft Museum, in Mentone, IN. This is a helicopter that had been used in one of the "wars" Mr. Bell was born in Mentone and altho his family moved to California he did not forget his home town. There is a library that he funded and then he had his memorabilia

sent to Mentone for the town to have a museum.

Looking at the helicopter.

This power cement wheel barrow. Mr Bell developed this to make it more efficient to pour the runways when building airports. Very Useful. This one was found in California and brought to Mentone and restored. Two weeks later, they found one in North Webster, not far away. Now they have two!

The famous egg in Mentone. The largest egg, what about the hen? Just a few of the pictures of an interesting rally.

Hoosier Cruiser Rally

We took off on Thursday, July 6th. I drove from just north of Anderson to the Kroger Store in Columbia City. We have found that in Columbia City do NOT try to park you RV in the Wall Mart parking lot. There is much more room at Kroger.

We enjoyed seeing friends. Seemed like a lot of new members, a least to us. We have not been to every rally the last year and so do not know some of these newer members. Happy hour Thursday at 4. Lots of good snacks, but we still had room to go out to eat at the Golden Corral.

We traveled to the Wagon Wheel Theatre to see the show Chorus Line. It was enjoyable.

Friday, was a pitch in breakfast. Several egg, sausage, or potato casseroles.

And Zucchini bread!

And then off to Silver Lake to the Splendor Boats facility. Home of the original catamaran boat. We watched how the fiberglass was applied and a boat put together. Actually when the young man asked if we had any questions we ask how the piece he was working on fit into a boat. Well, it doesn't! he said. This is the housing for a fan for a large chicken house. The area is one of the largest egg producing areas in the U.S. We do not build boats all of the time, we diversify.

We need to keep working all the time so we do take other jobs.

They build custom boats. What size do you want, up to 28 ft. long. What will you be using your boat for. fishing, skiing, cruising around a lake.? What equipment do you want on it. The owner had worked for Rinker boats. He developed the catamaran concept. Great looking boats on display. Does not use dealers. You come to him for your style of boat.

Then on into town in Silver Lake to Whetstone Woodenware. The make kitchen utensils. Many different spoons and bread boards., forks, Beautiful items. We were taken to the work shop.

Tom Sitler a retired school teacher, Math, and basketball coach is now working there, rough cutting many of the articles sold in the shop. He was interesting. I ask him his name, and when he said Tom Sitler, I ask if he played basket ball in the early 50's. Hey, don't date me! No, I said, did you every play basketball and know a my brother John from Syracuse?

He smiled the biggest smile, Yes, Silver Lake H. S. made Syracuse Basket ball team very unhappy one year, at the 1951, County tourney,

Syracuse had a top team with tall players. John was 6'4, and there were a couple more tall players. Silver Lake beat them in the tourney, and we were all short. Then he went on to tell me that John had become a pharmacist and was still around. I had to tell him no. John, my brother died last Sept. But interesting to meet Mr. Sitler.

Another couple and Ernie and I ate at the Homestead Restaurant for lunch.

Ernie and I went to Syracuse to take some dishes to my sisters. Ernie went to garage sales, while I helped my sisters go thru some closets in our parents home. We had a good visit while cleaning.

Back at the Warsaw Fair grounds we had hamburgers and hot dogs, with all the fixings. We had missed happy hour. Business meeting for the Hoosier Cruisers followed. Home to fix my Heart Healthy egg-sausage casserole. (Sat. morning I decided as I was serving it, that I had too much French bread for the crust.)

Saturday, after breakfast we traveled to Mentone, IN. to the Lawrence Bell Museum.. Lawrence Bell, was born in Mentone and his memorabilia was sent to Mentone with the instructions that a building be built that could house a aircraft on loan from other museums. So the town worked to find funds and now have an interesting museum. They have a Bell helicopter, and many interesting articles about Mr. Bell. They also have an area that is more of a museum for Mentone.

Back to the RV for lunch. I took part in a Trash or Treasure Hunt in Pierceton, In. Pierceton is an antique shop town. Our task-----we were given a sheet of paper. Listed were 8 items to find in 8 different antique shops. The items were not listed as to where they were located. Fun,

don't tell where we found this or that. around 40 of us looking for these items. Then we had to decide if they were true antiques, or not. Reproductions did not count. Fun day.

After a catered evening meat, by Ruby Tuesday, we had a story teller. Carol Knarr, originally from South Whitley. Another Kosciusko town. She gave some history about Kosciusko. How it got its name. and connections to the early wars. And then one of our members gave her some interesting stories he has learned as a history buff.

Ernie has some picture, so I will write more with those. good night. jkc

Back Home

It is Thursday and it is not wash day, but I did. 4 loads and hung many tee-shirts out side on the line. The last load did not get completely dry outside, so it is now hanging on hangers in the bathroom. We took the RV to the west side of Anderson for some repairs. And Ernie just told me what we are having done. I can see it, he showed me on the Freightliner chassis that was at the FCOC rally, but I cannot name it.

So----- I have been pulling a few weeds among the flowers. The impatiens did not suffer from heat as I thought they might. In fact they look great. But the tomatoes have a problem. Maybe from too much dampness, or blight or ????? anyway, some of the plants are sickly.

And the peony bushes have black spots on some of the leaves. Now what do we do.

We are tired tonight, relaxing from being gone two weeks. Time to rest. have a good day

jkc

A Day at Allison & the 500 Track

Hey! Hey! Hey!!!! Look at these trucks! there were 15 of them. And we got to drive them on the Allison Transmission Test Track. Yep, We did!! I Did!!! 4 of them!. What an experience! We were told to go out and get in one of the trucks, we would have a person from Allison with us to tell us how to drive them around their test track. The track had several stops, turns and curves. so I got in a big one.

This is a Western Star 4900SA, Cat C15, 475 hp. Weighted at 61,900 lbs. With a 53 foot trailer. You see these going down the road with a load of big gravel or rocks. Very nice, except "jake" brake was on and I still have trouble using it, until I have driven several miles. Here I am ready to climb aboard the first one I drove.

And there I am, ready to take off. My helper, Ty, was very nice, told me I did a great job.? And told Ernie that I had done a good job also. Then I drove a semi. Freightliner Columbia MBE 4000. -12.8L 450hp @ 1900rpm/1550lb-ft @1100 rpm. Weight Empty (w/trailer) 29,260 lbs. Weight Loaded (w/trailer) 56,200 lbs. Each rig was loaded. with something so we could tell how it felt to drive a loaded rig. Then I got into a "box truck" Piece of cake after the other two. On the other side of the stand were off road dumpster trucks. Big ones. the track for these had a hill. A straight up hill. As I was driving up the hill my helper said just keep the flags on either side of the road in view. And that is all I could see, beside the sky. Stopped at the top and then came down and not seeing the road for a few feet coming down.

This is one half of our group from the red bus. A total of 80 of us made this filed trip. One bus to Allison's in the morning. We also had a tour through the factory. Just a portion, but our guide was a floor supervisor and made the tour very interesting. Allison's had a box lunch for us, a good one. And then we all got a protable, round cooler with the Allison name on it. Our bus took us to the 500 mile track at Speedway. We had tickets for the museum and a ride around the track. A good day, I do believe.

The Indianapolis Speedway Museum.

One of the cars in the museum. We left at 7:30 and back to the campground by 3. I just got up from a nap. This evening I get to help with supper. There is a cater and we are to have prime rib, baked potato, salad and dessert. The helpers serve and see that there are drinks available. etc. Not sure what the entertainment will be tonight. Last night I did not stay for the entertainment. Came home, showered and was in bed by 9:15. This good life out here can be tiring sometimes. We leave tomorrow (Wed) morning. See you down the road or along the way. jkc

It's pizza time! We had had a full brunch about 11'30, and it is tradition that after our annual meeting that we have pizza. this used to be done at the National Convention. It was decided not to do that as sometimes it is difficult to get enough pizza for 500 people as everyone comes out to the meeting at National Conventions.

Our Style shows participants. They were really funny. You can see the young man in front in the blue dress. These crazy old people he is probably thinking.

A full picture of a Freightliner chassis and the semi that carries it to different areas for display. It is awesome to see what we ride on every day. That tire at the side is a new tire that they are trying out. This tire is double tire and replaces dual tires. It cost a mere $800 and with rim it is $1200. Supposed to be a super duper tire, giving a better ride.

Just had a group picture taken. I may be in the background.

It is not yet 6 am. The ambassadors for the Freightliner Club, they travel with the semi group, were parked behind us. They just left. A diesel engine is not very quiet when it starts at 5:30 in the morning. We said it would make a good alarm clock as we have to board the 7:30 bus for Allison's and then after lunch the 500 mile track. A busy day. See you. jkc