Back from the Natchez

    When we left Minnesota the weather was cold and spring hadn't arrived yet.  Nothing was growing in the fields (actually it was below freezing the night before we left and we were worried about our water tanks freezing).  By the time we got to southern Mississippi the corn was thigh high and the weather was in the 90's.
   We stopped at many battlefields, the homes of two presidents (Lincoln and Jackson), one king (Elvis), and Sam Clemons.  We drove all but 15 miles of the longest National park(way) in the country.   We spent time in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and  Missouri.   We crossed a lot of very flooded rivers, including the Mississippi several times, but were gone long enough to see the waters recede as we drive north again.  So many rivers that I have confused a couple.  The two major rivers which come together in Paducah are the Ohio and the Tennessee (not the Illinios).  I will have to correct that in my earlier post.
    We saw a lot of empty store fronts, old cars, worn clothing, hitch hikers, homeless folks with grocery carts, dilapidated  neighborhoods - the economic downturn really hurt the South.  We saw so much tornado damage in the wide swath of twisted and downed trees as well as the bright blue of tarps covering gaps in the roofs of houses still standing.  We saw hundreds of homes and businesses under water or under mud due to the flooding.  Almost all of the campgrounds we visited had workers and families living full time in their campers -  because they were flooded out, lost their home, or because they have to follow the available work.
    On the flip side we saw many families having fun together.  A family of nine shared our space on the deck of the Mark Twain riverboat.  The oldest boy was 10.  He had three sisters and three brothers.  All well behaved, busy, cheerful kids who made me miss our grandsons.  In another campground we met a little girl who never sat down except on her bicycle as she rode around saying hi to everyone.  Last night dozens of families gathered around campfires (and beer) to celebrate the end of a successful NASCAR trial.  They weren't rowdy, just a bunch of Americans having a good time.
   Bin Laden was caught and killed while we were on the road.  The DOW went up and down and up again.  Some Republicans joined the Presidential race, some dropped out.  Summer came to Minnesota and went again.  Farmers got their crops planted and the corn is ankle high. Seems like we have been gone a long time.
   Things went well for us with the new RV except for this last morning when we discovered that the battery in our car was dead.  We need to have battery power to run the machine that provides auxiliary braking for the car.  It was quite the chore to unhitch the car, turn the RV around so that we could use the engine to jump start the car and then drive the car around the back of the RV to hitch it up again.  By the time we got to our first rest stop the battery was dead again so we gave up and drove home on the flat Iowa roads without brakes on the car.  Not a real problem since the RV vastly outweighs the car.  One more thing for us to look into before we hit the road again.
   This was a short trip for us, but a good break-in for the RV.  I am happy to be heading home to see my dear family.  I also know that we will be back on the road in late July for a trip to the Black Hills with my brother.  I love to travel with friends.  We missed having any of you along this time.  I am so happy that you could join us through the blog, however.  Thanks for your comments.  Hope you will join us again soon.