A Military Experience

A Military Experience.

On the last few days of February we visited with Geni's parents, Gil and Phyllis in Columbia Georgia.

We arrived on Sunday, February 26^th at Lake Pines KOA RV Park www.lakepines.net and settled in before the visit and after Phyllis got back from feeding her horses Gil made us a light lunch and we sat around the kitchen table until 8:30pm talking. They live in a large home, just 2 miles from Lake Pines. We noticed that the addresses were placed on the curb in front of homes! We were greeted warmly by them and their dog, “Rag-a Muffin”

The next day started with a light rain, and a temperature of 12ºC. We took it easy early in the morning, had breakfast before going over to Phyllis and Gil's home. Each morning Gil goes to a Fitness Centre and Phyllis drives to a farm not far from their home to feed them her two horses. We were invited to go with her to see them.

Before we left, however, Phyllis wanted Randal to show some computer things. Geni gave her an old lap top and she is just trying to understand it.

She drives a little Ford Ranger truck. She takes Rag-a-Muffin with her when she goes to the farm. The dog needs a step stool to climb into the front seat. There is an old barn with a few other horses in the pasture. Her horses, Butter Cup and Av Bas Nova, were in a penned area that was locked with a chain.

Phyllis has the stalls decorated with pictures of her riding over the years. Her love for horses goes back to her childhood when a cousin of hers got a pony and she did not! She was a good horse woman however does not ride them now due to her recent stroke and heart condition. But for a lady of 82, she is doing really well.

Randal helped to clean up the horse manure and dump it out side of the pen. Rag-a-Muffin likes to eat it and Phyllis has to call her off from doing that.

When we returned to the house, she took us to see the back yard and her three hens, who lay green eggs. There is a law against raising chicken in the city, but she does it anyway. Phyllis has a very artistic way about her and she loves nature. She has fall coloured leaves, drift wood and sea shells decorating the house. She has also done very good sketches of her children when they were young. She has drawn horses as well.

Gill was home, making dinner. He has quit a flair in the presentation. He made chicken breast, greens, beans, onion rings, toast with melted cheese and salad. He served white wine with the meal. It all looked very nice but he apologized that he does it from the freezer or cans, to the stove, to the table. .

He told us about his army days and then we were shown some pictures of their youth, his football career and travels in Europe.

During the night we heard the train go by a few times and woke up to the sounds of the Military Base artillery shooting off. It is just over a fence near the Lake Pines Campsite. We went for a walk and saw signs saying US Property No Trespassing

On Wednesday Gil took us to the National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center, Columbus Georgia, www.nationalinfantrymuseum.com .

We met Sgt. Major James Lee, a retired Infantry comrade of Gil's and a volunteer, who gave us a tour. We spent a couple of hours looking at an amazing display of the Wars the United States have been involved in.

The last day of our visit Gil and Phyllis came to our RV for lunch. The corn muffins, salmon loaf, rice, and stirred fried veggies were well received. Randal showed them some pictures of what Leon has been doing.

It is so nice to spend time with new people. The visit was very rewarding, indeed. 


Until next time "Discover It and Live It"

Stone Mountain

Stone Mountain, Georgia 
- February 24 & 25, 2012

When we left Myrtle Beach, it was 16ºC February 24^th. for Stone Mountain, a 301-mile journey. It was cloudy, with a chance of rain and wind coming up from the south and heading east. So we hoped to beat the conditions.

We were on the 501 at 7:45am heading for Florence SC. It was humid and partly sunny with temperatures of 21Cº. We stopped at Bishopville for fuel at 10:15am and then it started to rain. The skies opened up with thunder and lighting, for the rest of the trip, at times making it difficult to see.

We took I-95 at Florence and got onto I-20 By 12:30pm we were over the South Carolina/Georgia border, stopping at the information centre to sit out some of the rain. We picked up some information brochures and maps and were on our way again.

We turned off at one place looking for diesel, but had to turn around when we could not find a station. We drove into a church parking lot, which did not allow trucks! There was a sign in the middle of the road, which I had to move out of the way. Back on to I-20 and going further down the highway to Madison GA.

Stone Mountain Park http://www.stonemountainpark.com/

The traffic got heavier as we got closer to Atlanta. The GPS took us through the shortest route going through narrow streets of a village. The RV just made it around a corner! By the time we arrived at 5:00 pm the rain had stopped. We were leveled and set up in a very efficient manner.



Tour of Stone Mountain 
I got up leisurely at 6:30am and went for a walk at 7:30am. We met a few early risers and had nice conversations with them. Some were form North Carolina, near Hendersonville.

We walked around the camp site and down to the Stone Mountain Lake. There are a few camper here for the weekend and we were told by the staff that 200 boy scouts will be arriving this evening for an event.

We returned to our RV, had breakfast and then drove to see what the park had to offer.  Stone Mountain   Museum features artifacts and stories that span 12,000 years, from ancient civilizations that lived on the mountain to the present-day park. Learn about Native Americans and pioneer settlers. See how the community was affected by the Civil War and how Stone Mountain granite helped build the local economy.

The Confederate Memorial on Stone Mountain is the largest relief carving in the world.  Learn how it came to be through exhibits featuring original designs, scale models and the 11-minute feature film The Men Who Carved the Mountain.. Stand beside full-scale replicas of some of the elements of the carving while enjoying a grand view of the memorial itself.

We took a ride to the top of Stone Mountain in the Summit Skyride. This high-speed Swiss cable car provides a stunning view of the Confederate Memorial Carving as it transports guests more than 825 feet above ground to the top of Stone Mountain.

From the top, experience amazing views of the Atlanta skyline, the Appalachian Mountains and more up to 60 miles away.

Until next time "Discover It and Live It"

Chicken Dance

Over the last week we have seen chickens come and go and move to and fro.

Home on the Range/ Farm

When we arrived here and parked the trailer between the Zendo and the new building foundation. There were chickens right beside us, fenced in with a three foot high square wire fence on a semi flat field this side of the creek. There was another chicken run set up south west of us across the creek.

Meditation Zendo at sunrise

Broken Vertical Wire

I have since learned, from Leon of coarse, that there are two designs used when making the square wire fencing. One has continuous lengths of wire running horizontal and the other has vertical lengths that allow the fence to stand on it's own without bowing or bending in the middle. The later is the one that Leon prefers. Also it doesn't use as many posts to keep it upright as the horizontal.

Solid Vertical and Horizontal  Wire

The chickens are moved so the field is cleaned of unwanted seeds and grasses. The chicken droppings are good fertilizer.

A week ago the oldest flock was sold. The fencing was removed. Posts pulled from the ground and the square wire rolled into sizable bails.

The bails were hauled over to a field south of the corn field. This field already had three lines fenced so only one had to have the post put in and wire attached. This would be the home of the remaining flock from across the creek.

Last night after dark with all the chickens roosted in their coop. Leon attached his two wheeled tractor to pull the coop with the rest of us pushing it. We moved the thirty or so chickens up the hill, past the trailer, down the road past the corn to the next field. This all happened in pitch black conditions, not even the moon to guide us. So here we were Leon and Randal with their head lamps shining and Lorraine with a smaller flashlight showing the way. The journey took us about fifteen minutes.

This morning it was business as usual when the chickens exited the coup in their new home. Let the chicken dance continue.