Well, we finally managed to make our paths cross again with our full-timing buddies from Minnesota! As my avid blog readers will recall, we met Mark & Judy on our first trip to South Dakota, and then met up again when we were in Oregon and they were over the border in the great state of Washington. We then briefly met up again with Judy when we were in Minnesota for a wedding and she happened to be in the area visiting family. We've kept in touch with this dynamic duo via phone calls and texts and it felt good to have somebody else out there doing this crazy full-timing thing.
We both sold our homes and hit the road at the same time in 2021 but have done the traveling thing a little differently. During the winter months we have tended to bop around primarily in South Carolina and surrounding areas on the East Coast while not staying in one place very long. This is in large part because we have to be within striking distance of Fenway Park for Opening Day, and we don't want to overcommit to an area in case we don't like it. Mark and Judy tend to go to a destination for the winter and stay put. Last year they wintered in Arizona and this year, since they had ended their summer in Maine, they decided to change it up and landed in the Gulf Shores of Alabama. Well, after numerous phone calls and comparing schedules and non-negotiable reservations (vs negotiable ones), our buds decided to lengthen their time in the Gulf Shores so that we could detour our route and meet up. Judy hit the jackpot when she found us a campground that not only had availability but room for both their big Class-A RV and our travel trailer.... AKA - we made a 10 day reunion happen!
What a wonderful time together! We went and visited the U.S.S. Alabama which was pretty impressive (and fun to have my Navy man with us to put things in perspective). It was a little mind-boggling for Mark and Judy and I to be lumbering to get through the doorways in the ship as Karl (the tallest of our crew) smoothly and seamlessly zipped through...guess there's something to be said for the ole saying "practice makes perfect"!
We visited the infamous Flora-Bama Lounge which is located literally on the town lines of Orange Beach, AL & Perdido Key, FL. We went on some nice walks and hikes and got to stick our toes in the Gulf and into that amazingly soft and incredibly white sand. We went to a Ballyhoo Festival with Native American dancing, and also a Blues & BBQ fesitival where we sampled more (delicious) ribs and brisket than I ever thought humanly possible. We had enjoyable dinners at each others "houses" as well as while out and about. But most of all we commiserated and laughed and enjoyed each others company.
Good times. Good conversations. Good camaraderie. Good PEEPS (Editor's Note: that's my endearment for good people)!
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