“It was the best of summers, it was the worst…” I’ve already had poison ivy, the worst of summer since I’m highly allergic to it. I couldn’t get my blood glucose to go below 450, so my doctor put me in the hospital for two days. They brought my BG down, but up it went again when I took the prednisone, necessary to cure the poison ivy itself. The difference was that with insulin I could get my BG down while taking prednisone.
The best of summer for us is trailer camping. My BG has been a disaster all winter, not to mention during the poison ivy episode. My numbers are so good while camping! Our newspaper and postal service was stopped and the trailer packed. Off we went on Saturday–my husband, two Golden Retrievers and myself–to the Wayne National Forest in Southern Ohio, near the Kentucky border. More specifically, the Iron Ridge Campground in the Vesuvious area of the Wayne National Forest. It is a five hour drive for us, the day was beautiful (and hot}. Once there, everything in the trailer worked beautifully. Ah nature… I soon saw a brown striped lizard, a Monarch, and a dozen children who loved our dogs. Then Sunday–nothing worked except the trailer refrigerator! No electricity, no propane, nothing else worked. So we packed up and drove home. Well, it was a pretty drive (and hot) Once home, beer and chips never tasted better!
The current administration wants to drill for oil in the Wayne National Forest. We the people own that gorgeous forest; we must tell them No, No, No! Not now, not ever. During the ride home, I wrote the following poem:
Iron Ridge
I love Iron Ridge.
Trees rustle in my campsite.
I will sleep tonight.
Red iron, blue lakes, green leaves,
our National Treasure-site.
Hi Michael_Birch. My husband checked out the trailer today. Apparently the electrical problem was with the campground since it worked fine at home. However, there is some problem with using the propane that requires a trip to a trailer shop. Thanks for asking. Since it’s a new trailer, it took us by surprise.
We drove from Toronto, Ontario to Tofino, BC last summer - about 3,100 miles each way. The roads in Norther Manitoba & Saskatchewan were a real mess. When we arrived in Edmonton, the electrical on our trailer was all shot. Turns out the roads were so bumpy, it shook the wires right out of the breakers. As I was trying to figure out what was wrong, I got zapped with the 30A shore line - knocked me flat on my keister. My wife took one look at me on the floor and said “Whatever you just did - the air conditioner is working !!”
I miss my camper, it always presented me with an opportunity to hone my repair skills. Nothing like a travel trailer to whip those skills into shape, good mental exercise. I am lucky because I am a repair technician by trade.
I am being silly but I really do miss it, maybe one day I will take the plunge and buy a new camper, hopefully one that doesn’t require so much work.
My kids got a big RV not too long ago and love it—It allows them to travel with their foster babies from a very young age—also their old cat on a leash—hehe…And they are finding they love meeting communities of campers as they travel…
Oh yes, our dogs have always enjoyed their holidays. Our male dog loved the house with the decorative tree trunk in the middle acting as an indoor toilet (ahem support) and the beagle loved the old house on stilts underneath which she found a big bone and a ball. We took the cat away too this time, he loved, loved, loved being a farm cat and stomped around in a huff when we came back home.
We hire houses that are willing to accept dogs, works well for us and yes we enjoy our stays, kangaroos, possums, blue wrens and other wildlife within reach, as well as farm animals. But have to admit that when we saw the giant male kangaroo nibbling the top of a tree, standing on tippy toe to do so, we stayed indoors and our morning dog walks somewhat palled.
A giant kangaroo would be a sight to see! Deer and elk are about as exciting as I’ve seen in the wild. Once (when I was young and more stupid) I took a nap in a meadow and woke to see a deer stepping over me carefully.
Summer started alright, but has been going downhill for a few weeks. First I had a lower back issue that seems to have resolved since visiting my chiropractor. I also have been fighting with adhesive capsulitis - it has been very painful. Directly related to that has been a tendon issue in my thumb and wrists. So painful that I have had to shelf any cycling plans that I had this summer. I was going to compete in a Gran Fondo and do a team Triathlon with some family members. Argh! This disease is so frustrating sometimes. I went 33 years relatively complication free and now lots of things are happening that I am not used to. Frustration!!!
I empathize… started okay, but then I just had 3 basal cell lumps removed from my dominant right hand. Which means I am ineptly left handed for awhile…Onward is all we can do, isn’t it?..
Trudy’s stories and poems always make me happy and calm, even if there are “not nice” things happening in my life…If you haven’t gotten to know her before, it is worth taking a little time to check her out…Blessings…Judith in Portland…
