Tonight Laser light show (08/29)

What a beautiful morning.  It is so nice out that we eat our breakfast outside looking at the lake.  It is a pretty lazy morning, not sure what we want to do today.  First on the agenda is finding a grocery store, we have no food to speak of left.  We have not gone shopping for some time.  We get directions to a Kroger grocery store.  Like most of the south the directions we are given are not as easy as they sounded.  The road system is horrible  to follow after 3 attempts we finally find the store, it is now 1 pm.  Grocery shopping wears me out, prices are high an it is so hard to decide what will fit in the fridge and pantry.

Well at least that is out of the way.  We head back to Stone Mt for lunch, but once here neither one of us is hungry so we opt for a nap.  Now it is dinner time, baby back ribs an salad, very good.  Joe is a good cook. After dinner we visit with neighbors then head over to the shuttle stop to go to the laser light show.  It is held over at the amusement part of the park.  We haven't been over here yet so this is a good chance for us to look around and see if there is anything we might like to do here.  You pay one price and all attractions are included.  The laser light show is free unless you want the deluxe package that includes a buffet dinner.  We just brought our blanket and sat on the lawn with hundreds of other campers.

Stone Mt, theses are three generals in the
Confederate army

This is Stone Mt that the park is named for

This was a really cool light and fireworks show.  At the end they did a salute to labor day with thousands of fireworks going off at once for about 20 minutes.  Best fireworks show I have ever seen!

After the show we climb aboard the shuttle again, standing room only.  It was a very interesting ride back to the campground trying not to fall over.  Now time for a beer and enjoy the night and then to bed!!!!!

Atlanta here we come (08/28)

We are up early go leave for Atlanta, we
gain an hour going to Georgia and we don't want to hit rush hour traffic.  It is a little tough maneuvering   through the streets of Huntsville in morning traffic.  Finally we are out on open road and away from so munch traffic.  It is over 200 miles to Atlanta so not to bad of a drive.  We pass through many small towns an some big ones.  Way to many stop lights as we are not on an interstate.

On the way I receive bad news, my dad has passed away this morning.  We have been expecting this call all week knowing he was not doing very good and not expected to make it through the week.  Even when you know it is coming it makes it very hard when it happens.  I went to see him before we started our trip and had already said my goodbyes.  He was a wonderful father and I will miss him very much.



















We have now reached Atlanta and are going to Stone Mt. St. Park.  This is where we will be staying for this week.  It is an OK park.  Our spot doesn't have much room and very uneven. It took about 4 or 5 tries to get it up on a set of 4 blocks to level it out.  We do have a nice view of a small part of the lake and fellow campers are not to close.  By the time we get all set up we both are worn out, physically and emotionally!  This has been a very tough day for us.  I know tomorrow will be better!!!!!!!!!
Here is the view from our camp site.

Visiting the past (08/27)

Joe is finally back from getting the oil changed, now off to have lunch with Joe's mom and brother at Brookdale.  After lunch some old acquaintances come by to see Joe.  It was a nice visit.  Joe hasn't seen Butch Powers since around high school.

Now we are off to the Mills.  This is an old flour mill warehouse, three stories high and has been turned into an art center.  We covered all three floors, they had some pretty weird stuff in there.  The coolest thing they had was guitars made out of cigar boxes.  They had great sound.  Afterwards we went by the Huntsville hospital to see where Jerry works.  This hospital has grown from a small town hospital to a huge metropolis that covers several miles of land.  Then we drove by the house they first lived in on Horton Ave and over to Big Springs Park.  When Joe was a teenager they used to be able to go into a cave over by Horton Ave and walk underground all the way to Big Springs Park in downtown Huntsville.  He says there used to be a wooden square dance floor at the entrance to the cave at Big Springs Park.  The cave is still there but closed off and the park is being renovated.  It is getting to be late afternoon so off to Mom's we go.  We get pizza and eat at her apt.
It was such a great visit with them.  We have stayed away much to long.  It is time for us to go and we will miss them greatly but will be back in Oct.

Family (08/26)

Sometimes you don't realize the importance of family until you see them again after a long time.  Then you realize how much you missed them.  This is how I feel at seeing Joe's mom, Carol and his brother Jerry.  They both look great and are doing great.  Mom is now 90 and is in an independent living facility.  She has a few health issues but otherwise is still a active loving person who I am so blessed to call MOM!!!  I wish Joe's other brother, Jim, could have joined us.  It would have been nice to see all three brothers together again.  The last time was about 13 years ago at Joe's fathers funeral.
We joined mom and Jerry for lunch at Brookdale where mom lives.  The food was pretty good.  She has a lovely one bedroom apt there with a nice balcony.   It has been so much fun catching up on everything with them.  Tomorrow is our last day here and I will be sad to leave, but we will be back again.
We went by the house Joe grew up in, it still looks good.  All the homes here are older and very will kept up with huge yards.  Joe was reminiscing about having to mow that big yard.  The family owed the house for 65 years and just recently sold it. A lot of memories there of our joining them every couple of years for Christmas or spending some time with them in the summer.
I have been very nostalgic about the past lately.  Guess getting old does that to you.  I have been missing my family some but will be home before you know it.

Joe has to have the truck into the dealer at 7am in the morning for an oil change and tire rotation.  Hope it doesn't take long.  Not sure what else we have planned but I am sure we will have a good time.

Time to say goodbye and hello (08/24-08/25)

Everyone around us is getting ready to leave.  It is sad to think they will all be gone soon and only Joe and I will be left.  

We go over and help them all load up.  This is a big job as Jay and Dave bring everything, even a full size beer fridge.  (Tracy I know you would like that).  So by 12 pm they are all gone.  We decided to take a day off and not hurry and get caught in all the traffic leaving today. Once everyone is gone we just sit and enjoy the rest of the day.  

After dinner and a movie we went for a walk around the camp grounds and discovered we were not the only ones that stayed.  There are about 12 tents, motor homes, and fifth wheels left.  But we are pretty spread out.  We take our chairs to the guard rail and sit and just take this week all in.  We watch the sun set and then it starts to get a little cool out so in we go.

Time to start getting our stuff together for leaving in the morning.  As always it is done pretty quick.  We have packing down.  This way we don't have to get up early in the morning to leave.  We are still up by 6:30 and finally on the road by 9.  We are headed to Huntsville to see Joe's Mon and brother Jerry.  It is about 350 mile drive.  We haven't seen them in about 13 years so we are excited.

We pull into the Space and Rocket Center RV park about 2:30.  It takes us about one hour to get fulling set up then we wait for a call to meet up with them.  We are going to the independent living center that Joe's Mom lives in.  It was so great to see them again.  The only thing that would of made it better is if Joe's brother Jim could of been there, but he couldn't make it at this time.  He lives in W Virginia.  After visiting with Mom we go over to Jerry's house for a while and have a good time catching up on each others lives. Then to Popeye's chicken for a late dinner.  I was ready for bed when we got home.  But like always I can't go to sleep with out reading a little of the Outlanders series.  Tomorrow we will join Mom and Jerry for lunch at 11:00.  Then need to get laundry done and do some cleaning if time permits.

The big race (08/23)

Joe went and did the band and fan thing today while I didn't do anything.  It was nice to have quite for a while.  Here are some of his pictures from the day.
The picture on the right is where we are camped top right hand corner, we are in front of the grey motor home.

 The bands

After watching qualifying he comes home for dinner and to get ready to go to the pre-race show, which head lines Wynonna Judd.  We have never seen her perform in person before so I am a little excited.  We get there just as she starts.  It was fun to watch her.  She only performed for about 40 minutes then it was time for the rest of the pre-race.

I want to ride in this cart!!!!!!

Now comes the driver introductions.  I laughed when Kyle Busch was introduced and the crowded boo'd him and all he said was I can't hear you!!!!!!!  JJ Yaley had the best introduction, him and his daughter came out looking like hippies and his little girl introduced him, it was great.  They were to far away to get a pic.

Finally we heard Gentleman start your engine's and the crown went crazy!!!!!!  You have to wear ear plugs or you will be hearing in-pared by the end of the race.  They don't call this track Thunder in the Valley for nothing.  It is so loud even with ear plugs.  This is a 500 lap race and I am a little worried about how long it will take.  Luckily there weren't many yellow, unfortunately one of the big yellow's involved Dale Jr.  Kevin Harvick hit Denny Hamlin who then spun down the track and back up collecting Dale Jr, taking the whole driver side sheet metal off of Dale's car, he is out for the night.  I was not happy!!!!! So now I am focusing on Kyle Larson.  He gets close to the front but ends up finishing 12 th.  I would of been happy Brad Keselowski or Kevin Harvick winning the race, anyone except Joey Logano.  I am not a big fan of Logano's and of course he ran away with the race once he got out front no one could catch him.  What an exciting race!!!!  We are planning on coming back next year.

We waited a while to let the stands clear out before we left the stands.  As it was we still got stuck in the crowd trying to get across the red bridge.  Talk about a press of humanity.  At least everyone was in a good mood and it was fun joking with others around us.  I must be really used to trudging up this hill because I am passing a lot of people and before you know it I am back at the fifth wheel.  We fix drinks and grab some dollars and head over to party central.  Our neighbors and great people and a lot of fun.  There is Jay and Vicky, Jack and Marsha, Kim and Dave, and Cat and Travis.  All but Cat and Travis are from Ohio, Cat and Travis are from here.
We play left, right, and center until the wee hours of the morning.  The last hand I finally won, I took home over $20.

Friday is the Nation Wide race (08/22)

We wake to cloudy skies again this morning, we are really hoping it doesn't rain again.  I cooked pancakes and bacon for breakfast this morning.  I haven't done that in a long time, sure was good.  It has been a lazy morning still a little tired from last night.  It is about 10 am and we go shopping again looking for my elusive Dale Jr Shirt.

Today we went to the vendors across the street, a little cheaper prices and a lot of older t-shirts.  We even found one for Dale Earnhardt Sr.  Joe was going to get it but it was pretty faded across the shoulders so he passed on it.  I did get a Dale Jr flag to hang off our awning, it looks great.  Still no Jr t-shirt that I like but I did find a nice Bristol shirt at a good price so got it instead.  After a couple glasses of Lemonade we decide to call it a day and get a nap in before the races tonight.  On the way back I decided to look at Dale Jr's merchandise in the big hauler area.  Wouldn't you know it, they had the perfect shirt for me.  Now I can trudge back up the hill a happy camper.

 OK it is race time! Kyle Busch is on the pole and gets a lot of boo's from the crowd!!!  My pick for the night is Kyle Larson and he starts 3 rd.  There are a lot of good drivers in this race, it should be a good one.
Chase Elliot, son of Bill Elliot, is pretty fast, then there is Kevin Harvick.  There are a few second or third generations racing tonight, Jeffrey Earnhardt, an Kevin Swindell, son of Sammy Swindell, Chad Boat, son of Billy Boat and I already mentioned Chase Elliot, just to name a few.

The race is off to a good start, the racing is very competitive and fast!  Ryan Blaney did a slide job on Kyle Larson and stuffed him into the wall.  Then on the last lap Chase Elliot hit and lifted the back of Kyle Bushes car and Ryan Blaney passed them and won the race.  WOW what excitement!!!!!  As the saying goes "IT'S BRISTOL BABY"!!!!!!!!!  The race was less than 2 hours long and the rain held off, well sort of held off, it
did rain for about 20 minutes before the race started but then cleared up and turned into a beautiful night.

Now to trudge up that hill again.  Along with the hill I have to climb several times a day we are in row 17 and have to go down more that 20 rows to our seat.  After going up and down those stairs my legs should be in good shape.  No party tonight just bed!!!!!!!

Truck race rained out (8/21)

Wed night we went to the modified race and truck race.  At least we got to see the modified race before the rain came.  The truck race was rained out to be rescheduled for Thursday at 10 am.

The modified's were so fast and fun to watch.  They had to many yellows but it was still a great race.  I as all excited for the truck race when it started raining.  We had to walk back the 1/2 mile to the fifth wheel in the rain up a big hill.  I know before this week is over I will have done this hill to many times.  Made it an early night so I would be fresh and ready for the 10 am race.

The modified's

Now it is time for the truck race.  It is cloudy skies and muggy, muggy, muggy!  There are more people in the stands than I expected for a morning race.  There were a lot of complaints from people who had to work this morning and miss the race.  I was disappointed because I missed the Derek Bentley concert last night.  I thought it was canceled along with the race, but it was still held about 11:30, I was already in bed.  I could hear a little of it through my open window.
View of the track this morning at 8 am, very foggy!!

Driver introductions done and the race is underway.  It is 300 exciting laps.

 

Brad Keselowski wins the race beating Darrell Wallace Jr.  The crowd went crazy!!!!  Kyle Bush was the favored to win and came in 24th.  The crowd would of been happy with any winner as long as it wasn't Kyle Bush.

Now it get out of here, it takes some time to get back through the gates, now it is time for shirt shopping.  I am looking for a nice Dale JR shirt that is not to busy with pictures.  I bought a nice Bristol sweatshirt last night and was glad I did when I had to walk home in the rain.

OK we have been looking everywhere and I can't find a shirt that I like.  Joe did find a Bristol shirt that he really liked, so at least one of us is happy.  There are more vendors across the street but right now I am hot, hungry and tired.  Back to the fifth wheel we climb.  Have lunch and a nap.

Tonight we partied with the neighbors again, Jay provided us with hot wings to eat, they were delicious and then we played left right and center again, didn't win anything tonight but had a really fun time.  It is after midnight and time for bed!!!!!!