Bill and Cathy McArthur Spring/Summer/Fall 2009: 2

   Monday, May 11 , Cathy went to the gym. Bill went out for a 5 mile run and 4 mile walk, the last 3 miles on the beach. It was a cool morning, conducive to running, and Bill did the 5 miles with a 9:33 pace. Afterward, Bill finished off his packing for his trip to Florida to get the RV. Bill also phoned Alligator Alley Express to find out where to catch his private shuttle at the Fort Myers airport. He was given a number to call for their dispatcher after he landed. We left at about 2:00 PM and headed for the Atlantic City airport. Cathy dropped Bill at the terminal and headed home. Bill sailed through security, delayed only by his being profiled for a wand scan and pat down. The plane took off on time at 5:15 PM. There was a big weather front in the Southeast, which caused some turbulence as the plane picked its way around the towering thunderstorms. Bill took some photos of the interesting looking clouds as we passed by. We landed at Fort Myers a bit early. Bill only had carry-on luggage, so he phoned the shuttle dispatcher as he walked toward the ground transportation area. The dispatcher said that Bill and his confirmation number were not in the database and had no better advice than "Catch a cab." Bill walked outside and caught a cab for $70 plus $10 tip. He sat up front and had an interesting conversation with the driver. He reached Rock Creek RV Resort at about 9:30 PM and ate a couple of Power Bars for dinner. He turned in early, after talking with Cathy.

   Tuesday started before 6:00 AM for Bill. He spent some time Windexing the windows and mirrors inside and out. When he stowed the power cord, he found a small wasp nest in the compartment. A shot from the ant spray solved the problem. Bill was on the road at 7:14 AM and drove to Starbucks for a cappuccino and oatmeal for breakfast, accompanied by a NY Times. Soon, Bill was heading north on I75, cruising at 75 mph most of the time. Somewhere north of Tampa, Bill drove through many miles of lovebugs, many of which got smooshed on the windshield and other forward parts of the RV. Bill ran out of windshield fluid and had to pull into a rest area, where he mixed some dish detergent with water to make his own windshield fluid. The next chance, Bill bought some windshield fluid at a fueling stop. The RV got terrible gas mileage at 75 mph, so Bill stopped every 200 miles or so. Bill stopped at a Publix just north of Gainesville, FL to buy a sub for lunch. When he came out to the RV, he saw that the bike rack had broken at a weld and one of the bikes was only a few inches off of the road. He rearranged the bikes to temporarily fix the problem. He stopped at the Points South KOA in Low Country, South Carolina for the night. The campground had a pizza restaurant and coffee shop inside the office, so Bill had a pizza and cappuccino for dinner. He set up the computer and discovered that he had lost the mouse on the airplane when he got out a pen to do a crossword puzzle. He was able to get online and do some things online, including a crossword puzzle, but couldn't get his email. He talked with Cathy before turning in after a shower in the RV.

   Wednesday, Bill was up before 6:00 AM and on the road at first light. He stopped at a Cracker Barrel for breakfast and bolted down a bowl of oatmeal and one cup of coffee before getting back on the road. He made very good time and was at Emporia, VA around noon. Bill decided to try to get to the Cape May/Lewes ferry in time to ride on home that evening. He waited until he got across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel to stop at a Food Lion for a banana for lunch. When he got to the ferry toll booth a bit after 5:00 PM, he found that he would have to wait for the 7:45 PM ferry. He parked as the solo vehicle in the whole parking lot. Bill walked to an Italian restaurant in Lewes and bought a sub and a couple of bottles of Gatorade. He carried his food back to the RV and ate while he read the USA Today he bought that morning. When he drove the RV onto the ferry, Bill stayed on board the RV and did a crossword puzzle and browsed the Internet on the iPhone to pass the time. Finally, Bill arrived home at 9:30 PM. Cathy and Bill were very happy to be reunited, especially at home. Bill plugged the RV into shore power. Later, we viewed the two hour finale of "Lost" and retired for the night.

   Thursday, Cathy went to the gym after we spent some time unloading the RV. Bill drove to ACE Hardware to buy two gallons of Simple Green. Bill spent some time removing our "fish eye" mirrors from the XTerra so that it could pass inspection (it had failed for Cathy on Wednesday). Cathy and Bill did a quick stop at the dentists to let our dentist John take a look at the tooth which lost a filling on Wednesday evening while Bill was on the ferry. Bill spent quite some time scrubbing the RV and got all of the lovebug corpses off of it. He wore a wetsuit due to the gusty wind and the amount of spray he would get on him. We went to dinner at Harborview Restaurant and enjoyed the view from our window table. Bill viewed "24" on DVR after dinner.

   Friday morning was cloudy and calm. Bill took a 9.5 mile kayak paddle to the concrete ship. He trolled a lure, but didn't catch any fish. Cathy went to the gym and walked 4 miles afterward. After lunch, we tackled the mice infested shed. Wearing gloves, we took everything out of the shed. Bill found a couple of dead mice and one live one as he worked inside. Cathy worked outside. Both of our deck umbrellas were destroyed by nesting mice. There were piles of mouse feces all over. We cleaned off all of the items that were in the shed. Bill used Clorox and water to disinfect the shed floor after wearing a surgical mask while sweeping it out. Then Bill thoroughly hosed out the shed with the power nozzle on the hose. Meanwhile, Cathy had carried all of the deck furniture up to the deck. Bill brought the hose up and we washed the windows and all of the furniture in a two person assembly line. We ate left over quiche for dinner. We viewed "Next" after dinner.

   Saturday morning was lovely on the Bay. Bill had arisen at 5:00 AM in order to be ready for a 9:00 AM 10K in the Great Cape May Footrace. At about 7:30 AM, we drove into Cape May and found that it was foggy there. Bill registered for the run and then we walked for a bit on the promenade. Cathy went to the gym. Bill enjoyed running the 10K with a 9:35 pace. He got a chance to talk with Joe and Maria Link and various other runners and groupies. Cathy rejoined the group at about 11:00 AM. Cathy and Bill went to Avalon Coffee to get Bill a cappuccino and then we headed home for lunch. After lunch, we went out shopping at Bed, Bath, and Beyond for outdoor shower curtain, at Lowes for a market umbrella, an outdoor table and 4 stack chairs, and Wal-Mart for an offset umbrella. We stowed everything under the house when we got home because a weather front was expected overnight. Bill battened down the deck. Bill unloaded and set up the grill. We had a feast for dinner with Stone Crab Claws we had brought from Ruth Ann and Harry in the Keys and grilled burgers and fries. We watched "Quantum of Solace" on DVD during and after dinner - very good action movie with a great Bond girl.

   Sunday was a bleak, windy, rainy day. Cathy went to the gym and did some shopping. Bill worked on his journal and on speeding up Cathy's computer. He also spent a lot of time on the Times crossword puzzle, but finally got it done. We had grilled chicken and vegetables for dinner and watched "The Wrestler" on DVD - very realistic, very sad.

        Bill and Cathy