RVing With a Purpose

Sunday, June 2, 2019

We have had nothing but hot, dry days since arriving in Tuscaloosa. It is definitely summer in Alabama. It came a little early this year but it appears it is here to stay. We actually have some areas of the state that are already having drought problems. It may be a long, hot, dry summer.

Friday we spent with Anne’s brothers at her Dad’s office and warehouse and started the process of emptying many years of accumulated “stuff”. There are all sorts of tools (working and nonworking, old and not quite so old) and construction materials in the warehouse. We each found a few items we thought we could use or just wanted for the memory. We then did a sort of inventory of what’s there and agreed to call the trades program for the schools – carpentry, plumbing, electrical, etc. – and offered to give them what they could use for their programs. Hopefully they will be able to use some of the tools and lots of the materials and supplies.

After lunch we decided to escape the heat and return to Anne’s Mom’s house to work on items there. Again progress was made. All day Saturday was spent working at the house. There were times of laughter and of tears. We did finally decided on a realtor and all three of us signed the listing contract on the house. Now, to just get all the stuff out.

Today, Max and Anne went back to Blount County to go to church and check on the Aunts. We saw a really nice sunrise this morning. Our worship service was again a great service of music and teaching as we remembered the ascension of Jesus. Great day at Lester Memorial.

Unfortunately, Helen seems to have developed a summer cold and Jean’s bad hand is looking really bad again. We will be talking to the nurse practitioner in the morning and keeping a closer check on the ladies for a few days. We then had lunch and checked on the houses on the mountain. We returned to Tuscaloosa to meet with an antiques dealer late this afternoon. We still haven’t got our walking in today, but that is next on the agenda. Another long day. Hope everyone has had a great weekend.

Thursday, May 30, 2019

We finished our service visit to the Tiffin Service Center yesterday afternoon a little too late to drive to Tuscaloosa.  After a visit to check-out (where we were surprised to find out that, once again, we owed nothing for the work) we got Fred mostly ready to roll and then walked around the campground talking to the people we had met during this visit. It’s always fun to meet new people and talk about NOMADS, RVing and Alabama.

This morning, after a before-the-heat walk, we made the short trip to Tuscaloosa where we will be for the next few days working on estate and real estate business with Anne’s brothers.  And, yes, we have already been to Cook Out for a shake.

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Things are moving faster than we expected here at the Tiffin Service Center. We got a call just after lunch to go to an express bay as soon as we could. We were in the bay less than an hour with a new air conditioner installed and tested. We have to go to a chassis bay tomorrow to try to track down a loose wire in the dash.

Saturday, May 25, 2019

It has been a very busy week. Also a very hot week. Close to record highs each day. We are 10 or more degrees above normal for this time of year every day.

We hit the ground running after the long day of driving last Friday. On Saturday Max worked on the drive way that had washed a little due to all the recent rains. After that he was on the bush hog until about 7:30 Saturday evening with a little break for lunch and lots of breaks for water. Anne worked on laundry and started the process of emptying closets in preparation for selling the house. Sunday we met dear friends Barry and Donna for breakfast before church and then went to church and Sunday School. We heard a great message from Pastor Harvey. During the Sunday School hour the Director of Kids International Mission, the children’s home and school in the Philippines our church supports, spoke to everyone about the work being done and needing to be done in the Philippians. It was a wonderful time. After church we headed to the nursing home to visit with Aunt Jean and Aunt Helen. They seemed very happy to see us and we had a good visit. Randy and Debra, Max’s brother and his wife, arrived Sunday afternoon. They came with materials and tools for working on Max’s grandparent’s house.

Monday morning we started bright and early working on what we all call “Granny’s house”. It’s a farm house that is now over 100 years old. Therefore, it always needs work. This time we worked to cover the fascia boards with metal, replace some of the masonite siding with cement board and replace the ceiling and lighting in the kitchen. We worked twelve hour days more like Constructors for Christ projects than our NOMADS schedule. We were able to complete all our tasks late Thursday. It was a hard week but we got it done plus some additional items that came up like getting our air conditioner repaired, repairing a toilet at our house and two at Helen’s. Debra and Anne also began work on cleaning out some of the items we quickly moved to Helen’s when Jean had to go to the nursing home. They also put together some birthing kits for our mission team to take to the Philippines next week. We then took Friday for all four of us to visit with the Aunts, friends, and run a few errands.

That brings us to today. Randy and Debra left around 9:00 heading back to South Carolina and we left shortly after that heading to Red Bay, AL. This evening we are again parked in the Tiffin Service Center campground in Red Bay. Our rear air conditioner is not working properly (remember how hot it is?) Fortunately, the problem developed now because our two year warranty expires June 7. Hopefully we can get it replaced early next week. Maybe we can get a little rest while we are here.