Sunday, April 1, 2018

31 March 2018 - Ocala, FL - Perry, GA - Clemson, SC -Atlanta, GA - Mt. Pleasant/Charleston, SC

     The beginning of March found us back in Ocala and we were excited for our  Pensacola friends, Andy and Tony, to come by for a visit. We had a great lunch at the Crazy Cucumber as we caught up on all we 4 have seen and done in the past few months. 

     Bill found an opportunity to take off on his bike for 23 miles of saddle time, unsuccessfully trying to make up for so long with NO cycling time. That evening we enjoyed music at Circle Square and at 7:00, went next door for an evening of Eagles music by the tribute band, 7 Bridges. Love this community!

I've found a new interest!
     Wanted to have some "ground breaking" photos so friends, George and Donna, were our photogs and we took some fun pictures of our own personal ground breaking. 



In the front yard of our 'dirt'
     From there we went to an old car show where Bill met and bonded with a Model A and its owner; Happy Hour at the Lodge; dinner at The Club; and sliding in at the last second to enjoy an evening with The Kingston Trio. I sang along and didn't care if my tone deafness offended anyone. What a fun fun day! What's in store for us tomorrow??? Every morning is a new gift.

The Kingston Trio
   Another fun and filled to the brim day again. Bill and I took a class given by a wildlife photog on "What to Do With All Those Photos". He was a wonderful presenter and teacher and we left there inspired to get more organized. We fit in our 10K steps through the neighborhood and went to Meadowbrook, our church's First Wednesday service that more than met our expectations. It was a very meaningful time of soul-searching.

     Bill walked, exceeding his 10K steps while I sat on my backside in a 90 minute class with a brilliant instructor who made my brain cells stand at attention and hold hands. Her lecture was "Power and Fun With Words". I'm a real clock watcher but we went 5 minutes over and I NEVER looked at my watch. I wondered why she was letting us go so soon. Would love to tuck myself in her back pocket and absorb every word.

     While I attended to hair, nails, and took 2 Life Long Learning classes, Bill cycled 35 miles through OTOW seeing things and places he hadn't seen before. We left home at 9:15 AM and returned after 6:30 PM so it was an exciting day filled with 'saddle time' and learning. I attended an "Eye Health Awareness" class and one on "A Journey Through The Musical World of the Mountain Dulcimer". Besides a very informative lecture, the 'band' was comprised of 8 dulcimers, 1 violin, 2 acoustic guitars, and 1 electric guitar providing a very relaxing afternoon.  We absolutely love it here! 

     We embarked on another adventure, leaving Ocala for Perry, GA. We’re just one of more than 2600 coaches here for a week-long rally. Opportunities for fun and for learning were colossal. We're on our way to Stone Mountain for a couple of nights---love it there. This is what 2,904 RVs look like. There were 989 First Timers and we were numbered among them. This was a week well spent.



     We walked the downtown and historic area seeing beautiful old houses with azaleas bursting in a palate of colors, punctuated by Snow White dogwoods beginning to bloom against a background of clear blue cloudless sky. Perry is a beautifully quaint little Southern village.





     Our plans to spend a few days at Stone Mountain were cancelled by horrid weather so a few days later we drove to ATL to spend a short weekend with my brother, Bob, and our friend, Nancy. A little shopping and a lot of eating! They're always so much fun to be with. Bob keeps us laughing and Nancy and I always have our own Laugh Fest. "A good time was had by all!"

   
     Enroute to ATL, we stopped in Clemson, SC, to enjoy a meal with long time boating friends, Bob and Emily.


       Palm Sunday gave us the opportunity to visit with our daughter, Courtney, granddaughter, Alleigh, and their pet bunny, Sophie. She’s so soft and sweet. Now we want a bunny rabbit! They live in Traveler's Rest, SC, which is a little burb north of Greenville. It was SOOO cold there that day!!!
Palm Sunday
Our Grand Bunny, Sophie

     We're back in Charleston for several weeks and looking forward to returning to our Seacoast Church, visiting with friends, eating rich and well, and seeing clearly!

     As the month ended we celebrated our anniversary. 15 years ago I was lucky enough to marry my best friend and Kindred Spirit. Happy anniversary to my amazing and ever so patient husband. (We 'dated' for 5 years---if that's what it's still called--meaning separate domiciles) with premarital counselling from our pastor to make sure there were no land mines. So 20 years---so far so good and I just can't believe it's been that long. He's an incredibly long suffering man and I love you to pieces, Bill Bender!







     The last day of March found us strolling downtown Charleston not in search of restaurants or shopping but just relishing the gorgeous warm weather and splendid spring flowers.




















See you again in a month!

Bill and Laura
Charleston/Mt. Pleasant, SC




 











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