The Conquistador's Picture Of The Day

[a9127]

These are cookies my friend made for the Indy Pride Festival last week. They are selling them all this month. And they’re really good!

[a9127]

My wife and I are all ready to head out on vacation. We will be leaving after the July 4th holiday and returning in August. We will be pulling the RV shown a few posts above.

Needed a truck big enough to pull it. Think I found one. Saved money too.

Told my wife "Let's make our first stop Franklin Tennessee and go visit Miley, Hayley, and Taylor." You can see what her reaction was.

But I have learned a lot about RV's in just a few short months. Especially how to empty the waste tanks...

[a9127]

OK. One more “retro” post and I’m through. This was the “Visible V8” model kit. As far as I know they are still made. My dad got me one for my 6th or 7th birthday. We worked on it together in his home office/den in the evening and made good progress. It was fun and I learned a lot from it as well. As we got close to completion, I became “impatient” (Me? Imagine that… ) and tried to finish it one day by myself while my dad was at work.

I fucked it up of course. Even with my dad’s and uncle’s (of the dark green ’69 Chevelle 396 fame) knowledge and expertise it could not be saved so I was left with only one working cylinder. At least it sort of “looked” like an engine and sat in my room until my mom threw it away while cleaning.

[ila]

Originally Posted by a9127

OK. One more “retro” post and I’m through. This was the “Visible V8” model kit.

I also had one of those. I found it quite interesting to put together. The only thing that beat it was when I got to tear down a real V8 and later put it together again. As an added bonus I was paid to do it (my job). I will say the real one was much easier to put together than the model.

[a9127]

Grisly bit of US history. As we head home, stopped to see “Ft. Smith” in Arkansas. Once the “Outpost” of the United States and Seat of Justice for the Western territories (many taken from Mexico and Native Americans) not yet admitted as states.

Was walking around checking out the cannons when a white “stage” over in the corner of the grounds caught my eye. First thought was “Did they have bands play back then?”

Upon closer inspection the “stage” was actually large gallows with a “trap door” capable of hanging up to six condemned criminals at a time.

Judge Parker, portrayed in Western novels and films as a "Hanging Judge," also had his courthouse at Ft. Smith. Parker had to govern a territory the size of several “states” and was known for his contributions in rehabilitating offenders, reforming the criminal justice system, and advocating the rights of the Indian nations.

While fictitious, the Clint Eastwood movie “Hang ‘em High” depicts a Federal judge in a similar situation with Clint as his Deputy. Of course the “hanging scene” in the movie is much more prolonged and dramatic. The testing of the gallows with sandbags…

Tomorrow we will have to decide if we want to head up through Tennessee and look for where the Paramore video for “Ain’t It Fun” was shot and see where they all gathered in the middle of the road for a group picture. I think I can find both places now. Looking forward to it. Hayley…

If we don’t do that then we will head on to Myrtle Beach and drive up the East coast. My wife has never been to NYC so that is something to think about. Also see the old neighborhood where we used to live.

[a9127]

If we successfully complete this trip, we have Chad and Tara of “Changing Lanes” to thank. Never having done anything like this before we watched their videos on YouTube over and over learning a lot. It was my wife who sold me on the “5th wheel” concept. I was dead set on a “Class A” which would have been like driving a tour bus everywhere.

Chad’s advice on selecting a truck big enough, and his weight calculations were very useful to me. He was a good “teacher.” So much that we ended up buying virtually the same rig as them. A “Momentum 397” Toy Hauler and Ford F-350 Diesel “Dually.”

As I said in another post, my wife is actually better driving this than me although I have “chilled out” considerably since we started. We are glad we bought a “Toy Hauler” since we can take my Harley along and of course like Chad, I use the “garage” as an office. Being able to “detach” has been a great advantage visiting relatives and going to see tourist attractions. No scenes like in the “Long Long Trailer” where Desi Arnaz backs into the house or gets stuck in the mud.

Here’s a picture of Chad and Tara’s setup. If you are thinking of getting started, their videos are quite helpful.

[a9127]

And this is where we live in Zionsville. That's my "office" on the right. Should be back home late tonight. My nieces start school on August 7th. In Michigan we didn't start school until after Labor Day.

We have a place North of here where we will be storing our RV. Right now we are in Franklin, Tennessee. Going to do some sightseeing and shopping while we get the RV checked out then head back home later. It's been fun...