Ah, Sunday....

I wish I could say I slept well Saturday night but the mind would not slow down and being in a strange place made for a restless night.
But Sunday morning came as usual and we headed off to church at St. Leo and St. Raymond Parish, just about 1/4-1/2 mile away from where we are staying. We had gone there last year so I entered in anticipation. The minister of hospitality greeted us with a kiss. The parish is comprised mostly of black folk. The priest is also black. The choir was the youth choir. There was a visiting priest there to preach on behalf of a mission. This priest happened to be the one who was in on the ground floor of the establishing of the Rebuild Center where we would be working for the rest of the week.
The next two hours were filled with a hand clapin’, foot stompin’, body swayin’ music and Amens and Alleluias. The pastor was alive with the spirit as was every man, woman and child present. Such freedom of verbal and physical expression is a wonder to behold.
The music was fantastic. Us white folk who get antsy after 2 verses of a song have a lot to learn. The songs lasted up to 5-10 minutes. The keyboardist was totally into his work/praise. (I could see brother-in-law Len sitting there being just as passionate about the music – I wanted to hear more.) The teenagers were totally into their song/praise. The people would stand in praise. Get the feeling that there was a lot of praising going on? Right On !
One particular man stood through almost every song turned toward the choir with hands raised cheering them on. Turns out this guy is a MBA coach who was visiting his home parish and getting ready to conduct a basketball camp this coming week. You could see him cheering on his team like he was cheering on the choir. (I’ll try to remember to look up is name if I can get on to the internet.)
The celebrant also had no problem departing from the structure of the liturgy to inject his enthusiasm. He speaks with his words, his hands, his whole body.

There was a woman there who was celebrating her 88 birthday. Before the final blessing everyone sang Happy Birthday to her. I have never heard that version of Happy Birthday – it lasted 5 minutes.
If you’re ever in New Orleans consider going to St. Raymond and St. Leo the Great Parish for liturgy.
This parish really knows how to celebrate!!
As we were leaving I noticed a rug at the door. As you enter the church it reads; ‘Enter to Pray’ When you leave; ‘Leave to Serve’
Once again it was good to be there – witnessing the people giving a new meaning to the word Celebrate.
“Let the People of God say – Amen !!”

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to......

To New Orleans…….So there is this Mission Trip that a few of the Sisters of Notre Dame did last year to New Orleans and they decided to repeat the trip again this year. There is a day shelter open daily from 8-2. The shelter provides services like showers, laundry, legal advice, medical services, help in getting an ID, providing a mailing address, etc. If you are really interested I am sure I blogged about this last year. Okay, so Yes, I am once again on this mission trip with three sisters and a student from Notre Dame Academy.

We left Covington on Saturday morning. 5:15 a.m. was our target. We started the van exactly at 5:16. Pretty good. We had a seven passenger van from the convent. We each had a piece of luggage, there were a few snacks and the rest of any available space was filled with donations for the Center.

Merrily we rolled along. Homemade blueberry muffins for breakfast in the car. Yummm. We ate our packed lunch at a rest area in AL. Back in the car - and my turn to drive again.

Shortly after we left the rest area traffic slowed to a crawl, a 5mph stop and go crawl. This lasted for about 45 minutes before it broke loose. As I tried to accelerate the steering wheel began to vibrate like crazy – it stopped and it began again.

Time to pull over. There was an exit ahead. Exit 289. Ok, that will have to do. Oh, but wait, what is that over there by the lone gas station? Why, it’s a D.Q. (See, there is a God.) Pulled into a parking spot got out to walk around the car and, my goodness, the front left tire well is smoking. It’s not suppose to do that. The others said that it smelled awful. However, not being able to smell a thing, I didn’t notice that.

So…., the convent just signed on to a car service deal. A couple of 800 # phone calls later by Sister Ruth, our fearless leader, two hours sitting in the D.Q., milk shakes all around, and an unbelievable effort to coordinate things, we found out that; a) the car would have to be towed into Birmingham (45 minutes away), b) they would send a cab for us, from Birmingham (we reminded them that there were 5 of us and many things in the van) c) they would arrange a rental car for us ( reminded them that there were five of us and many things in the van). So we waited……..

Thing is that were we were did not seem to have a name. Come on, every D.Q. is in some town or another – apparently not. The cab could not fine us. The tow truck could not fine us. More phone calls. More waiting. Thank God we were not on the road somewhere. Heat index = well over 100.

Eventually our knights in shinning tow truck & cab arrive – okay, forget the shinning part. The cab was a very dirty van. Didn’t feel too comfortable sitting in it but we did because it was our ride to the car rental place at the Birmingham Airport – 45 minutes away.

Arrived at the car rental place. Talked to the person behind the desk. Our car was to be found in space # 42 – ah, 42, the answer to life, the universe and everything. Good Omen.

Well, a little white corolla was sitting under the # 42. Can’t be right! Back to the friendly lady behind the desk about a block away. Oh, was her reply, just press the panic button on the key. It will be sitting in the slot next to #42. Back to the garage. Presses the panic button – nothing happened! Oh, come on! Sister Ruth walked all over the garage looking for the van we were to rent. Finally, two rows over and 12 cars down….

However, it was a 5 passenger SUV. Oh, come on! So the next 5 hours we traveled with 5 adults in five seat belts. That was a little tight. Sister Claire took the middle hump seat in the back, God bless her. By the time we added all out things we were not only 5 people in 5 seat belts but each adult, except for the driver, had things sitting around their feet and on their laps.

Our 13 hour trip to New Orleans was finally over after 17 ½ hours. Needless to say we were (are) exhausted. Some wonderful sisters from the neighborhood brought some food over for us to get us through the night.

Bottom line is that it could have been a lot worst (of course it could have been a lot better). The van is now fixed and sitting in Birmingham waiting for us to pick it up on our way home. In the mean time there are still 5 adults in 5 seat belts. But we are in New Orleans. We go to the Center tomorrow to do what we came to do.

All’s well that ends well!

Amanda’s (NDA student) summary of the day goes something like this - we packed the van, we unpacked the van, we packed the van, we unpacked the van, we packed the cab, we unpacked the cab, we packed the SUV, we unpacked the SUV. And she is RIGHT!

The Tale of Two Passes

Nothing is simple – that has been one of my mantras for many years.

This past Thursday Jerry and I left for just one more fun trip. We headed down
to Red River Gorge for a couple days of camping with friends. We had been there
is April for our annual spring flower hunt weekend. At that time we got there
on a Wednesday, off season rates were still in effect until Friday night – off
season rates = $7.00. What a deal! And with my trusty Senior Citizen National
Park Pass the first two nights were only $3.50. On Friday the rates when up to
the in-season rate of $22. For a double site – but wait, with that same little
pass our rates (for being old) was $22./night. Yes!

This time we got there on Thursday, paid for three nights – same pass/same price
– total $33.– at least that is what you’d think. We were told by the campground
hosts that the pass wasn’t accepted there – mind you, the same campground,
actually the same site as the month before. We were told we could pick up a
Golden Age Card at the nearby information center at Gladie Creek. Well worth
our while- we’d still get ½ price. So, good friend, Karen and I head there
about a 40 minute drive through the Gorge. Nice scenery but I’m beginning to
dislike the narrow road in my old age. When we get to the Information Center we
were told in fact, that we did not need the Golden Age Card and that the NPP
(National Park Pass) card was accepted. A mistake had been made. Okay, that’s
cool. Saved myself $10. So when we get back to the camp site #1 campground
host stops by, apologizes and said that the #2 host had made a mistake. After a
very confusing conversation I wasn’t convinced that we had the right card so a
day later Jerry and I went back to the information center to get the Golden Age
Card which we were told could be used in places through the country where the
NPP was not accepted. When we get there for the 2nd time and after talking to 3
different people it was decided that the Golden Age Card no longer existed and
the program was absorbed into the NPP program. How totally crazy! Hopefully
our experienced help straighten things out a little so on one else will be as
confused as we were most of the weekend. But don’t get me wrong – the
campground hosts are really good, friendly and really hard working people. The
really do their best to make your stay an enjoyable one. Someday we want to be
campground host too!

The rest of the weekend looked something like: good friends & family, perfect
weather, good food, guy hike, girl walk/run, cold drinks, campfires, good fire
wood, marshmallows, nice neighbors, 2 very impressively large black snakes,
bees/wasps/ants in the camper, sunrises, stars at night, visit to the frog pond,
a few drops of rain one night, a couple of good hikes, mountain laurel, tulip
popular in bloom, lady slippers, clean outhouses, did I mention Good Friends?

Nothing is simple – but it’s all good!

Scratch one more...

… off the bucket list. Jerry has always wanted to see a space shuttle launch – and now we have. The adventure began Saturday morning when we left Covington about 6:00 a.m. Our intent was to drive most of the day and then camp somewhere probably in GA. This part of the trip was fairly uneventful. We ran in to a storm in GA that caused us to pull off the road for about 20 minutes. It was fast, furious and had a lot of lightning and thunder. I can’t remember that it was cold before the rain but it sure was after. I recall checking the weather down south before we left. High in the 80’s and lows in the 60s. Great camping weather, right? So after the rain highs were in the 50’s and lows in the upper 30s. Neither one of us packed cold weather campin’ clothes so we visited a Day’s Inn for the night. After doing the usual bed bug check we slept fairly well. We hit the road early on Sunday morning. We had talked to our friends Sheila and Eduardo, who we were staying with and they suggested we arrive after 5:00 p.m. That was great. We had some time to kill so we got off the expressway and hit some back roads. The Magnolia Trees were in bloom. The Spanish moss was fascinating. We followed RT. 1 down the coast – saw a lot of hotels/motels/souvenir shops and some water. We ended up at the National Sea Shore Park. There was an entrance fee – but I had my trusty little senior citizen National Park Pass in my wallet which allowed us both to get in free. (Yea, for being old.) We found a hiking trail and decided to walk it. This was our first introduction to the Florida Love Bug. For those of you (if there is anyone out there reading this) who don’t know the love bug flies and walks tail to tail with its mate. They don’t sting, they don’t bite but when there are thousands of them they can be very annoying. Literally you had to put your hand in front of your mouth if you wanted to talk to keep them from flying in. When we opened the car door to get in or out we ended up with a dozen or so pairs joining us for the ride. Not a good thing. It was like it was raining bugs! Also, our car became covered with the little things. Apparently the squished bug leaves an acid that removes the finish off your car. They are really tough to remove from the windshield also. Back to the walk - walk led us up a ramp in to the tops of the trees. This too was a challenge since I don’t ‘do’ heights very well. We then drove to Eduardo and Sheila’s wonderful beach house. When we got there the Love Bugs were there also, everywhere, heavier than before. We ran from the car in to the house. Apparently the bugs have never been this bad in the 20 some years that they had lived in Florida. Just our luck! They were so bad that we could not even walk to the beach, which is in their backyard. We went to supper about 2 miles from their home – no bugs. Ate a wonderful meal, watch the sunset and caught up with friends. What could be better? On Monday Jerry and I got up before dawn. Having said goodbye to our hosts the night before we drove off in search of the perfect shuttle launch. Eduardo had given us some ideas as to where to go to view the launch. There were so many people lining the roads, at the parks, in the streets – and this was 4 hours before the blast off time. We got to the city where we wanted to be. People were everywhere. We found a church that was charging $20.to park in their lot. Perfect – good cause, they sold snacks, had restrooms and were right across the street from a place where we could watch from which was behind a burnt out building but right on the water front. There were few people there. The owner of the building came out and said that we really shouldn’t be there because it was private property but they would allow us to stay anyway. Yea, owners! We were about 3 hours early so we saw the sunrise, fish jumping, birds diving and even dolphins passing by. What a treat! We watch the launch with a young couple from New England – he had a smart phone which kept us up to date with what was going on launch-wise. There was an older couple there from Cleveland – oh, wait – maybe we were the older couple. Then there was Betty Boop, Sleeping Beauty, Fiona all rolled in to this one woman who also worked for Disney in Japan and climbed Mt. Fiji – a very interesting young woman – and I do believe she was telling the truth, So the countdown happened but not before the clouds rolled in and clung so very close to the earth. 3-2-1- there is goes! There it went! – maybe 5 seconds worth of’ ooooo’. Of course from the distance you cannot see the shuttle or boosters or anything else that you might see on TV. So that was it! 5 seconds! Like a giant bottle rocket. I’m not saying that it was not worth the 2,000 mile trip. It was! But 5 seconds?! Back to the car, locked in traffic – but only for about 30-45 minutes. I think we were lucky there. Then we drove home. Spent the night I in a Red Roof Inn because it was in the 40s again. In the name of simplicity we had taken our Corolla. Only the two of us - we thought we could be comfortable and at the same time squeeze our camping gear in the trunk. It was an experiment. Worked fairly well. However,…..at some point the car started to fall apart – literally! Some gizmo (Jerry should be telling this end of the story)– maybe something like heavy cardboard that lies under the engine to protect it from dirt, fell off on one side and started flapping on the ground. Not good! Jerry and his bionic arm managed to crawl under the car – not a whole lot of room there folks! – and tie it up with some string that came from a piece of camping clothes line. With that secure feeling we headed back on to the expressway. Within 20 miles another piece of the car started flappin in the wind. This came from under the passenger side door. Totally unrelated to the first incident. All but one bolt apparently broke off. Jerry managed this time to break off this piece way too easily – who needs it anyway? It now is riding in the back of the car. A little closer to home the tire pressure light comes on. Wait – we had a slow leak a week or so ago but we got that fixed – apparently in our dreams. A little air held it until ½ block from home when the light came on again. Ah, but who cares? We made it home safe and sound and in time for Nephew Adam’s graduation. Life is good! Congratulations Adam.

Back in the Saddle Again

Ah, Progress! The last couple of months have been full of ups and downs. Some ups have been higher than others. Some downs have been lower than others.
It is a well know fact that Jerry completed the AT in October it is also well known that he tore a tendon about 2 weeks before his heroic finish. He had 2 surgeries and since the beginning of December we have been dealing with an unbelievable stubborn infection. Somehow that seems to be putting it mildly.
Jerry has gone from being unable to bend his arm for quite a long time to being able to bend it enough to feed himself. Two steps forward, one step backwards – is that the old saying? Let's just say it has been a looonng journey.
Even though the infection is still rearing its ugly head, great strides have been made. This past week while we were camping Jerry managed to split wood for the campfire. (Even though I told Jim that he was not allow to let Jerry do this – Jerry did. Thanks, Jim! Guess it’s just the motherliness in me wanting to be overly protective.) And some campfire we had! Even in the rain.
Yesterday, WooHoo!, Jerry got his old friend out of the garage and managed to ride his bike once again! I think the cry of triumph was heard throughout the whole neighborhood. It has been over a year since he had his wheels under him but the world is once again beginning to open up. Loveland Bike Trail here we come.
There is another change in Jerry but I don’t want to spoil the surprise for anyone who might see him – no he isn’t losing weight – after all, Sally, our wonderful niece and wound care nurse keeps saying ‘eat, eat, more protein to heal the arm’ – but it is a change that is truly noticeable.
YEA for splitting fire wood,
YEA for riding bikes,
YEA for friends, family, green, earth day and Easter !

It is Like Coming Home Again

This is the thought that Jerry and I both had at the same time when we saw the sign for Koomer Ridge Campground last week. It had been almost two years since we had been to the Red River Gorge area. Since Jerry was hiking the AT last year we missed out on our annual spring camping trip with friends that we been doing for almost 25 years – wait we can’t be that old!
We had planned to leave on Tuesday but woke up to wet, chilly weather. After checking the forecast for Slade KY I decided to wait until Wednesday. Jerry was anxious to get there but decided to wait also.
When we arrived on Wednesday the campground host said that Tuesday was a completely miserable day. Yea, for a good decision!
So we arrived on Wednesday. Our friend Jim pulled in right behind us. We settled in campsites next to each other.
The next few days were, sunny, windy, rainy, chilly – it’s hard to remember which days were what. There was a sunrise or two and at least one sunset that we saw. Looked for the space station a couple of times but it was just too cloudy to see it.
Jay came over on Thursday and the three men did their ‘guy hike’ thing. Seems like the Pinch-m-tight trail was true to its name – only Jim could make it through.
Thursday brought Joan and Dave. Friday brought Christy, Karen, Nick and 9 month old Ethan – go Ethan, your first of many camping trips! Saturday saw Christy, Joan and Dave leaving. Nick and Ethan also hit the road back home. Joanna and Mike came and later in the day Sheila arrived with Micah and Toby.
We made a trip towards Whitleton Arch by way of the lower trail – saw a lot of spring wild flowers. We took Ethan to see our favorite Frog Pond. This hike we later repeated with Sheila, Toy and Micah. The boys seemed to totally enjoy it. They ended up with wet feet but also a tadpole, salamander, and frog eggs in their net.
We enjoyed campfires, saw a few lightning bugs, had some good camp food, talked a lot, hiked some, played a little dominoes, laid in our sleeping bags and listened to the wind and rain, lightning and thunder, enjoyed the campground with very few people around, watched a guy with his leaf blower cleaning the campsites in a national forest – talk about job security, talked about going back in a week or two to watch the progression of the wild flowers.
It was good to be there and we are grateful for the opportunity to once again enjoy the wonders of nature so close to home.

And it's Good-bye Again - again

Once again Clair was Leavin’ On A Jet Plane. It was a good visit but after 2 ½ months back in the states the Ice is once again calling her name and she must answer (because she signed a contract to do).

She seems to enjoy her job in Antarctica as Solid Waste Manager, which includes Haz Mat control, and as Fire Marshal.

She hasn’t seen a summer season in a few years as she spends her winter on the Ice and then heads back to KY during our winter season. Crazy woman! I don’t know if I could go without seeing spring wildflowers for that long.

It was great to have her home if only for a bit. We’ll miss her. The dog will miss her. But it does a parent good to see their child doing what makes them happy – however crazy it might seem.