A picture is worth a thousand words ?!

Picture one & two: Before and after pictures of my RV site at Wycliffe Associates, Orlando. The following are my notes from May 24th: "I'm writing this from my camp chair--in Walmart parking lot--in Walterboro, South Carolina. I may spend the night right here--in the chair--because my T@B is an oven. When I opened 'er up--at 7:35 PM--it was 95 degrees. Eighty-nine now (8:20) sitting outside.

I didn't check..., I didn't write it down, but I think I arrived about 6:30 PM and immediately headed for Walmart Customer Service to request permission to park overnight. Then I bought a few groceries--and browsed. I left Wycliffe Associates about 6:40 AM so 12 hours on-the road (and 360 miles).

Picture 1 @ 2 (as mentioned above): My RV site for four months. Picture 3: I've left the campus and ready to turn on main thoroughfare. Picture 4: I wouldn't get very far without fuel. Picture 5 & 6: Panera found me!! I wasn't searching.... (My long-time followers know my love for Panera, and free WiFi.) Picture 7 & 8: A roadside rest stop. Picture 9: A shady place behind a Hampton Inn Hotel. I was tired, hot and sleepy so pulled off I-95 about 12:55. Picture 10 is the Hampton Inn sign. I napped in my chair for about an hour. I had taken the thermometer out of the T@B at 1:11 and documented it was 91 degrees inside T@B (all closed up during travel). The thermometer was at my feet and picture 11 tells the story: 99 degrees at 2:22, in the shade. Picture 12: Another roadside rest stop--to stretch my legs. Picture 13: As soon as I opened the door after Walmart shopping; 95 degrees! Picture 14: Late evening sun on T@B parked near Garden Center.

The thermometer says 86 degrees at 8:45, and it's really quite delightful. A slight breeze and little (if any) humidity. I'm under a light standard so have bright light to hand write this (picture 14). Behind me (only 50 feet?) are four "big rig" trucks with their engines idling. Interstate 95 is at this very edge of the Walmart parking lot and a steady stream of noisy car and truck traffic. This is such an extreme from the quiet isolated environment of the last six months!

It's exciting to be on-the-road again meeting (briefly) folks who stop to admire the T@B. Between this paragraph and the previous paragraph, I've had a delightful conversation with a man riding a motorcycle. He rode by--and I waved. He circled around and stopped. He immediately commented on the Smiley Face (back of T@B) and decorative plate on the front of the KIA ("Still Saving Lives" [referring to Jesus]). His parents are RVers so he's attracted to the various RVs. He has volunteered after Katrina. ~~ I had this kind of interaction for eight months--last year--on my travels. My recent visitor said he felt so blessed because of a wave and a Smiley Face. ~~ Eighty-four degrees at 9:30 PM."

The next morning I wrote: "Seventy-six degrees at 5 AM when I crawled out of bed. I did not sleep well and checked the clock at least twice an hour. 'What time is it; how hot is it?' The Interstate traffic diminished but the nearby truck motors never ceased. **IF** I had purchased gas at the Walmart Murphy station the previous evening, I would have started driving earlier. (I learned long ago, it's better [if possible] to fill our gas tank in the morning. Cold gas is 'more for your money.')

Speaking of gas--and money--it cost me $90.49 on the first day of my journey (plus toll fees in Florida). Murphy USA gas--at 6 AM--was $48.00. Near my destination: $54.75 for gasoline. That comes to $193.24 for 545 mile trip. I don't plan to do much traveling!!"

That evening I wrote: "I drove 545 miles and did not escape the heat!! Now I'm told the mosquitoes are brutal as soon as the sun goes down. (I believe the Lord protected me from the Florida Lovebugs!! Dare I pray that the Lord put a screen around me from the mosquitoes??)"

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Picture 17: Rest stop. Picture 18: A shady spot just off the Interstate. I wanted to consult my Atlas for best way to get to Waxhaw. Praise God I stopped when I did! My turnoff--to Lancaster, South Carolina--was the next exit. Picture 19: North Carolina State line (the sign is difficult to see). Picture 20 & 21: Arrived at JAARS minutes earlier and had to search for large parking space for KIA & T@B. Picture 22: I was assigned site #10. New neighbors greeted me and (later) said I should be on the other side of the street so I would benefit from the late afternoon and evening shade. Picture 23: Had not unhitched; moved to site #1. Pictures 24 & 25: One-hundred-seven degrees when I unhitched at 12:45. (True story: The thermometer was so hot it changed the date! I had to re-set.) Picture 26: Ninety-five at 1:44--in the shade. Picture 27: One-hundred-five at 4:44 as the sun found the thermometer formerly in the shade. Picture 28 (May 27th): Panera found me!! I wasn't searching.... Picture 29 (May 27th): Shopping at Walmart (after bagel & coffee at Panera). ~~ Then: The search for NC-DMV.