Along came a TORNADO!!!!!!

When I leave on one of these road trips I expect a little excitement and maybe even a problem or two along the way..... But a tornado is just a little more than I bargained for!!!!!

So there I was outside doing some work and I get a phone call from my son and he asks if "everything is all right" to which I replied "everything is fine" and then I said what is the problem and he said that a tornado had just landed by his plant and they lost power. Well from there things only got worse. He came home to work since we still had power. We then decided to clean the gutters out that day (at this point you are allowed to say that I am not the SHARPEST KNIFE IN THE DRAWER!!!! so we got out the 24 foot extension ladder and up I went.

Well, wanna guess what happened after that, well even if you don't I am going to tell you..... Yup the wind started picking up and there I am hanging on to the house with one arm and trying to use the hose to flush the gutters with the other arm which trust me ain't the easiest thing to do on a good day, but with gusts up to 40mph it does make things just a little more tense!!!! After a lot of hanging on and more than a little bit of language that cannot be written into this story the gutters were finally clean!!!!!! And then the real excitement came along!!!!! Another tornado hit up in Tennessee which is only about 10 miles from where I am. That story will follow this one..

The time of day was about 8:30PM when it really broke loose. We are all sitting there watching the local station which has preempted all the programming for this WEATHER EVENT!!!!

So there we are when we loose power and you (WELL NOT REALLY YOU) but use your imagination. Just imagine being in a tunnel and your hear a locomotive coming at you!!!!!! Yes folks what they say about these monsters is for real!!!!! Just give me a good old fashioned hurricane any day of the week!!!!!! at least you know where it is and what the wind speed is.. One of the last things we saw on the TV before losing power was 100mph winds in Athens, TN.

So the next morning we get up after finally going to bed some time around midnight when it calmed down... Schools have been cancelled, my daughter-in-law cannot get to work, my son finally decides to try and get to work and has to go all the back roads as the entrances and exits to Ringgold, Ga. are closed!!!! The biggest tornado of them all had a DIRECT HIT on Ringgold, Ga. and quite literally pretty much wiped out the town!!!! As of April 30 which is the day I am writing this we are still not able to get on I-75 and are still using the back roads to get around. I am trying to figure out when I will be able to leave and head west which at this time looks like about Tuesday evening May 3rd or Wednesday morning May 4th??

The attached pictures really do not tell the story here, but that is all there is. The statistics at this point in time for Ringgold are that the tornado hit on April 27th and was a category F-4 with winds of 190 mph!!!!!!!

Milage, a haircut and my air conditioning!!!!!!!

The trip started out quite uneventful which to my way of thinking and usually I do not think clearly even when I try to think clearly but clearly that is the way things are supposed to be done with an end result clearly in mind and that is clearly what I meant!!!!!!!

So as was stated previously the trip started out just fine, I actually made it to Deland with no problems and that made me feel even more confident about venturing further out there.......

BUTTTTTT then I left for Wildwood and things started happening. I am not sure if Miss Mabel was trying to tell me something as she is getting on up there in age and mileage but I still like her and try to take care of her... Anyway on the way to Wildwood unbeknownst (I think that is a word, anyway it sounded pretty good)the spring on my tail gate window broke, my air conditioning went out and Blue Boy started making funny noises in his rear end which I am sure some of you perverts will use your imagination to conjure up all sorts of IMMORAL and ILLICIT THOUGHTS!!!!!!! I arrived in Wildwood and stayed at a CHATEAU TO GO that was not mine, however I would give the accommodations a definite FIVE STARS!!!!I have included pictures of the chateau for your edification and perusal..... NOW HOW IS THAT FOR SOME BIG WORDS???

I am attaching some general information which you may or may not be interested in, but I will give to you anyway.

My starting mileage on this trip is 234,217, I got a haircut in wildwood and the only reason I bring this up is because I am not sure when I will get the next one????? I may end up looking like GRIZZLY ADAMS before this is over with??? I did fix the tailgate window, I did not get the air conditioning fixed,(maybe Oregon???), but for now I am up in Ringgold, Georgia doing some work and enjoying the company, but that will be the next story......
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Here we go again!!!!!!!

Well here we are "TOGETHER AGAIN"!!! I think there was a song by that name? and we really aren't together again because we never really were together again were we?? but then at my age I never really know whether I have "IT" together or is anything really together or are we all together or should we just get together??? This was so much easier back in the '60's because then everybody had it together or did we?? Ah the unattainable, unanswerable question of the day!!!!!

But I stray from my original epistle (How is that for a word), I looked it up in my FUNK & WAGNALL and it said I should use it here so I did!!!!!! So this is one of the parts where everybody OOOOOH'S and AHHHHHH'S. I will wait a minute while everybody does so!!!!!! Now don't you just feel SO MUCH BETTER????

OK, so now it is on to (what was I talking about)????? Oh yeah, it has been two years since I went in search of the meaning of life!!!!! I am not really sure why I keep looking, but I guess it gives me an excuse to go wander and wonder and proselytize about things that I know absolutely nothing about!!!!! and now that I have thoroughly confused myself about why I am even writing this other than I think (and that hurts every time I do it)!!!!!! I had movement or an epiphany or maybe it was just a headache(not sure which)and all these big words started showing up!!!!!!!

Now back to the news and what news is that you ask???? Well you don't need to ask because I am going to tell you anyway....... I am once again going on the road and seeing what has happened out there since I took a sabbatical. From time to time as before my rambling writings will appear here and you may partake or not or I may make a mistake or maybe even activate or participate and there might even be pictures. Now isn't that a scary thought??????

So I am finished with this first installment since this is only to warn you that I am once again out and about wandering, wondering, and talking to myself.
That seems to be the safest way to do things since no else will listen to me!!!!

I have no idea where I will be when you read this, but I am sure I will be somewhere out there!!!!!!!!
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