I stay busy working through the housework. We are at the house infrequently and usually for only a day or two at a time, once I get through the mail and business, the house work is always waiting.
Saturday morning we met Ron and Regina at Little Drug in New Smyrna Beach for breakfast, then rode south to Titusville for a wander through the big flea market there. On the way back we stopped at the bar where we usually watch the shuttle launches, the vehicle assembly building and launch pad are across the bay.
Stopped at the Last Resort Bar - home of ice cold beer and killer women - where the USA‘s first female serial killer used to hang out. Aileen Wuornos’s killing spree ended with her arrest on 9 January, 1991 in the Last Resort (She was played by Charlize Theron in movie “Monster” 2003.)
Sunday afternoon we went to Bob and Wendy Stanton’s for Easter eating and fun. Their parties and gatherings include a large group and we have met most before. We had a wonderful afternoon/evening with them all. I always enjoy watching the ‘kids’ dye the hard boiled eggs.This is Bob and Wendy's daughter, Megan and her son Maddox with the egg dye.
Space Shuttle Discovery launched from Kennedy space Centre on Monday, 5 April at 6.21am. We were up early getting ready to leave. I walked out of the house to the middle of street and it was an easily visible glowing streak across the early morning sky. Amazing that I could hear the hum of its rockets from so far away.
It is delivering spare parts, supplies and science experiments to the International Space Station laboratories.
A thirteen day mission and It’s crew of seven included four women - that is a first!
After this mission, only three more shuttle launches remain before the space shuttle fleet is retired, even though we have seen many launches and landings - it will be sad knowing it may not happen again. As well has the huge impact of 32,000 people in the Cape Canaveral area who are directly or indirectly connected to the space program - they will lose their jobs!!
We loaded at the ports at Blount Island near Jacksonville - three military vehicles and delivered them the next morning in Fort Eustis, Virginia.
Wikepedia: Fort Eustis is the home to the Army Transportation Corps. The U.S. Army Transportation Museum is located on the grounds. A museum of Army vehicles and other transportation related equipment and memorabilia.
Easy delivery, just drive them off via a loading dock, then 10 kms to the Naval Weapons Station in Yorktown. A large facility that provides weapons and ammunition storage and loading facility for ships of the US Atlantic Fleet.
We picked up a cargo trailer and two generator/lighting trailers. Then 1600 kms to Gulfport, Mississippi to deliver at a Naval Base on Thursday morning. 120 kms to Mobile, Alabama and loaded and tarped drums of silico aluminate.
A quick 1500 kms to Chesterton, Indiana and delivered early Friday afternoon.
The next morning we loaded in Chicago, Illinois. Another plant closing and moving to Tennessee. Took a long time to load all the bits and pieces, and we had to tarp it. We had planned to get to Nashville in time to go out Saturday night but didn’t get there until 11pm.
Had some stuff to do Sunday morning around the truck, then at noon we walked from the truckstop over the Cumberland River bridge to downtown Nashville “The District“ of restaurants, bars and honky tonks.Ate lunch at Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge and listened to a band. Nice atmosphere and the band was good. Tootsies is one of Nashville’s most famous bars since 1960. Many artists got their start at Tootsie’s. There is never a cover charge at Nashville bars, the bands play for tips only. Almost every bar has a live band, just wander past the door and decide if you want to go in and listen for a while.
Revisited the Big River Grille and Brewery and ordered the sampler of their beers (again). Then we chose the one we liked best. (We had dinner there on the trip with Dave and Linda last October.)
We walked around the District and to the waterfront along the River. Spent an hour at the Charlie Daniels Museum on Second Avenue.Internet: Welcome into a walk through the life of one of the most down home, patriotic men in country music today. He's played everything from rock to jazz, folk to western swing and honky-tonk to award winning gospel songs. The Charlie Daniels museum is jam packed with memorabilia including thousands of photographs, guitars, tour merchandise, awards and all sorts of other memorable pieces of Charlie Daniels history.
On display is Charlie’s golden fiddle, the 911 commemorative guitar, his CMA, ACM, Living Legend, Dove and Grammy Awards, and gold and platinum records. Lots and lots or memorabilia.
Wikipedia: Charles Edward "Charlie" Daniels (born on October 28, 1936, is a musician known for his contributions to country and southern rock music. He is known primarily for his number one country hit “The Devil Went Down To Georgia“, and multiple other songs he has performed and written. Daniels has been active as a singer since the early 1950s. He still tours and fills venues at 73 years old.
Being a Sunday afternoon many of the bars and restaurants were closed, but Broadway was starting to pick up pace.Well, we had walked past Roberts Western World several times - now it was time to go in. Roberts Western World - Home of Traditional Country Music.
A band we had not heard before was playing: the Spaghetti Westerneers - five men and one young lady. As expected these were world class musicians and entertainers, performing a mix of old and really old country songs. Faron Young, Gene Autry, Slim Whitman, Marty Robbins, a little Elvis. (Thank you to my parents and grandparents for exposing me to their music - I could sing along with many tunes. Especially Marty Robbins!) Though, I left he yodeling to the very talented young lady performing!
Three fiddle players at once - then a visiting fiddler from Ireland did an impressive four fiddle rendition of Orange Blossom Special, very memorable.
(In the photo - it is still daylight!)
The old songs are ’stayers’ - been recorded many times over the years:
On 5 March 2009 broadcast, Chris Isaak and Stevie Nicks duetted on "Red River Valley"; Nicks recalled it was one of the first songs she'd ever sung, harmonizing with her grandfather when she was a child.
Trivia: The United States Postal Service recently unveiled the 2010 postage stamps and Gene Autry will receive a stamp as part of the "Cowboys of the Silver Screen" commemorative set. The four stamp set will feature cowboy movie stars William S. Hart, Tom Mix, Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers. The stamps will be sold at U.S. Post Offices and outlets beginning Saturday, April 17th.
Had 70 kms south to deliver Monday morning in Columbia, Tennessee. A beautiful town on the Duck River.
Wikipedia: In 2009, Hannah Montana, the Movie was filmed in downtown Columbia, at Maury County Airport, and a local dairy farm.
The town is the self-proclaimed "Mule capital of the world" and honours this fact with Mule Day, a large celebration held annually every April. A celebration of all things related to mules. It began in 1840 as "Breeder's Day", a meeting for mule breeders, it now attracts over 200,000 people and takes place over four days.
(I wanted to attend Mule Day, it was on over the weekend, but the main day was Saturday and we were still enroute.)
The machinery delivered OK, then we went 100 kms south to Decatur, Alabama and loaded a boom part to a big crane.Delivered that to Middletown, Connecticut on Wednesday 14 April.
Drove down to Randolph, New Jersey and loaded at a warehoused which stores overseas freight. Loaded three crated machines, they were big, so we had to use the big tarps to cover them completely.
An easy run down to North Carolina. An appointment had already been made for riggers required for delivery - and we ended up with twice as much time that we needed to run the trip. Delivered at 8am on the Friday morning.
100kms back to Charlotte and loaded a tri-lifter (a huge, heavy duty forklift thingy). I had to research - the mobile tri lifter works like a gantry, forklift and crane to provide the ultimate in flexible, cost-effective rigging. Specifically designed to move heavy loads in confined spaces.We loaded at a rigging company and a crew from there was leaving on the weekend to take delivery of it in Frackville, Pennsylvania on Monday.
Another easy run over the weekend, it only went 900kms. The weekend was cold, windy and not at all pleasant.
We bobtailed to a mall on Saturday afternoon to get some groceries, then to Frackville Sunday morning. Parked at our delivery and walked up and down the main street - it had steep hills. There were only two restaurants open, so we stopped for pizza and beer at an Italian restaurant. There wasn’t a TV signal either, so we watched DVD’s.
Delivered Monday morning at St Jude Polymer in Frackville. St Jude Polymer is a plastics recycling plant that closed this plant in January because sale of the plastic strapping made from recycled plastic drink bottles has declined and no longer profitable. 41 people out of a job. The rigging company was hired to move the plant equipment out.
Had the tri lifter off by 6.30am, then 300 kms to load in Alum Bank. The shipping company was Creative Pultrusions - we didn’t know what a ‘pultrusion’ was: Pultrusion, is the pulling of material, such as fiberglass and resin, through a shaped die. The product looked like channel steel, but was actually fibreglass. This was a ’hot’ load - needed ASAP. It was only one crate, and weighed one tonne (2100 lbs).
It was a quick, no time to waste trip south. 1900kms, delivered Wednesday morning in Lafayette, Louisiana. Then 2 kms away reloaded nine metal drums of hazmat. 1500 kms north and delivered them the next day near Chicago, Illinois at the Lemont Citgo Refinery.
Had two loads set up for after that and both changed, so we didn’t take them. The next morning we loaded in Fishers, Indiana (north of Indianapolis) a large diesel air compressor on a trailer.Delivered that 1500kms south Saturday morning in Jacksonville, Florida.
Got to Daytona Beach mid-afternoon. We had a busy few weeks, time for a break from the truck!
We caught up with Lis and Harvey and friends at Brian’s Barbeque in Deland for nickel beer night on Monday. Jim took the trailer to Orlando to get a broken rail welded. We need to replace the winch on the truck that is required to load the motorbike. We want to take it with us for the next trip.
Lots of stuff needs doing - we just work through the list! Weather is warm, storms last Sunday night - fine forecast all week for Daytona Beach.
(New! M&M’s with coconut centres!!! Yum.)
