What a day!

What a day we just had! You wouldn’t believe! But first I gotta tell you about last night.

We decided to eat out. We had passed an Italian restaurant each time we rode or drove from the campground to the rally site and we finally decided we needed to try it. First of all it was named ‘Angela’s” and there really was a Momma Angela running the place with an iron Italian hand. We were seated in a large room with a mixture of other patrons when we decided the “music” (an accordion player) was just too loud for us. So I asked if we could be seated in the other dining room. Momma Angela looked us over and thought for a moment and then agreed. The other dining room was apparently reserved for special guests as it was filled with women with big hair sitting with big men wearing shiny suites and see-through socks. Everyone knew everyone else and each time a new guy would enter the room he’d make the rounds of the tables saying, “Hey, how ya doin’”, there were hugs and back-slaps everywhere. I didn’t see any cheek kissing but that might have been going on also. There were three old guys sitting at a table by themselves and EVERYONE went over and said hello before they went to their own table. There was a HUGE guy sitting at the table next to us who I swear was “Bobby” from the “Sopranos” and if Tony himself had walked in I wouldn’t have been a bit surprised. I found myself tawlkin’ with a Joisey accent and gesturing with my hands within just a few minutes of sitting down. Cheryl started calling me Francisco (in Italian, pronounced “Fran-ches-co”). Oh yeah, the food was FANTASTIC! I have never felt so Italian in all my life! I’m so proud I have a tear in my eye.

OK, now about today’s adventures. The BIB strikes again! (BIB = B*tch in the Box. AKA “Jill the Garmin GPS voice”). She took us down a dirt road that supposedly went to a campground but instead dwindled down into a cattle track and then DEAD-ENDED at a lake! Someone had carved out a very small circle around a HUGE tree with a bulldozer and the ground was soft and muddy but I had no choice. I put the truck in 4WD-Low Range and yanked the trailer around that tree. About half way around I saw that I was about to drag the side of the trailer against the tree so I stopped and backed up and gave it a second shot. This time, with four wheels churning and throwing dirt clods all over the front of the trailer I was able to yank her out of there unscathed.

We finally made it to another campground and are warm and safe. BTW, we drove through Vermont (Great Roads!) and into New Hampshire today. Tomorrow we’ll visit with my old friend Pete Kogut and drive into and out of Main far enough to get a “been there” pin. We supposedly have WiFi here at this camp but I am not confident in it, so if this is not posted today (07-23) you’ll know why.

Later.
F, C, P & C.