Hi Darlin',
As I've said many times before, one reason I hate to travel on Sundays is because it's harder to get services, so naturally, today I needed services. I woke up before my alarm, had breakfast, got everything packed, dumped my black water, said my good-byes, and was on the road before 8:45 this morning. I neglected to double-check my route on Truckrouter.com and regretted it. The first clue came when it tried to make me turn down a road with a 10'1" overhead clearance (not a chance!) so I kept going straight, and it looked like a pretty good route that led me straight to I-78, but two miles before that interchange, I had to go down a hill so steep and curvy that my truck brakes were literally smoking by the time I reached the bottom, even with fully functional trailer brakes (and I used the emergency switch on those a couple of times.) At the bottom was a one lane bridge with a 10 ton limit, but I've been over those before. I had to sit through a couple of those, though, to let my brakes cool off, because they were just about gone by the time I got to the bottom. I managed to make it over the bridge and to the highway, where things smoothed out a bit, until I blew a tire in Maryland. Grrr. Good thing I had my trusty impact wrench and Jiffy Jack ready to go, I managed to switch out the spare in less than twenty minutes. Got back on the road, but I wasn't real comfortable with the condition of my spare, so I called around and managed to find a place near my destination that had a tire the right size, though it was a bit expensive. I didn't want to take the chance of traveling another 300 miles tomorrow without a spare. I was particularly disappointed when I saw the tire that blew was only about 14 months old! I arrived at the tire place just after 4:00, and got that job started (I did most of the work, except for mounting the new tire on the rim), but they charged with nearly $400! And he claimed to give me $50 off when I pointed out the tire was already four years old, despite the fact he was selling it as "new." He also charged me a half hour of labor $72.50, rather than a mounting fee. So suffice to way, while I was grateful I was able to get a tire on a Sunday, I paid dearly for the privilege. The same tire on Simple Tire, my usual tire source, was $184, so yeah, not that happy a camper. I finally arrived at Lazy Acres in Lexington, VA just after 5:00, met my host David, got the horses tucked away in a nice paddock, and settled in for the night. I didn't need stalls or electric, so the charge was "only" $70, which I guess is the going rate, but seems a lot when compared to most of the types of campgrounds where I usually stay. Can't be helped though, I had to split the travel into two days, especially considering the circumstances! Tired, hot and ready for my shower and bed! Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hi Babe,
A pretty good night sleep, then I spent the day putting stuff away and packing and generally getting ready to head out tomorrow. Took down the portable electric fence and moved the boys over to a paddock for the night. I had to show them how to get water out of the waterer they have here, Flash was scared by it the last time we were here because it made a loud and sudden noise, but this time he figured it out. I bush hogged the area where they've been staying, tidying it up as best I could, plus a little extra along the fence-line just for good measure. Did a few loads of laundry as well, while I had the chance. The truck is all in place, I just have to drop it the rest of the way in the morning, and everything else I can do, I've done. I paced myself through the day, and was finished about 3:30, so I indulged in a little afternoon movie and popcorn just for fun. I think the horses are as ready to move on as I am, they're meeting me at the gate every time I walk over! I think Lola will miss the freedom here, though, she's been spending a lot of time wandering around the property, and seems to be good friend's with Meg's dog Sirabi. She won't get that at Biltmore, I'm sorry to say! But it's time to get back on the road, and I'm looking forward to it, as well as getting back in the saddle on my own horses! Too long in one place! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie,
Woke up to discover that Meg's mare has finally had her knobby foal! Cute, fuzzy little thing! Spent the day first going to chiropractic for my last session before I leave, a stop at Tractor Supply for feed and wormer, then spent most of the afternoon on the tractor mowing the paddocks. Finished up around 5:00, then settled down for the evening. Tomorrow is dedicated to getting ready to move out on Sunday. I don't like driving on Sundays because if anything goes wrong, services are hard to get, but I don't really have a choice this time. Fingers crossed it all goes well! Sorry to leave all the modern conveniences for primitive camping, but I couldn't ask for better weather right now. Anyway, shower and bed are not far off! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hey Darlin',
Not as good a night sleep, woke up with a bit of pain, likely because I've been doing some more physical chores, which doesn't bode well for next week when I really have to get busy! Not too bad, though, I'm just having to deal with it. My rug still smelled, so I decided to give it a complete wash down, let it dry, then sprayed it with some more serious odor remover, that seems to be working a bit better. Did a few light chores, ran into Frenchtown and got a propane tank filled, as well as filling up a couple of gas tanks for Meg's mower, had my chiropractic appointment, and settled down for a quiet evening, icing and heating my back, not sure which is doing more good these days. Lola looks great today! Getting geared up for moving on on Sunday, though! Ready to get back on the road again! Good night, babe! Love you!

Hi Babe,
Yay! Got a full eight hours of sleep last night, not waking up until after 7:00, with only the tiniest bit of pain. Of course, that meant I was compelled to do stuff, since I was feeling a bit better, so I climbed up to the attic and got out my carpet cleaner. The medication Lola's been on has been making her drink a lot more, and subsequently, to pee a lot more, and for the first time in her entire life with me, she's had accidents on the floor. Normally, I would keep the door open, but with nighttime temps in the 40's, I've had to close it, and unfortunately, this was the result. I did a little cleaning on the carpet, but didn't have time to be thorough, and I didn't have the right cleaning solution for the job, so I left it until later. I headed into town for my chiropractic appointment, and by then I was a little sore again from leaning over the carpet, but it improved after treatment. Then Lola and I went shopping at the Walmart before heading back. After getting all the stuff put away, I filled Meg's UTV tire with her fix-a-flat, and then ran around dragging her pastures until I reach three miles as instructed. I filled it with air and am hoping it will still be up in the morning. I came back in and started to do a thorough job cleaning the carpet, which led to vacuuming the rest of the floor, and also to pulling out the carpet remnant in the laundry room, because Lola is such a sloppy drinker and that carpet got soaked, so I cleaned that, then put them both outside to dry, since tomorrow will be a sunny day. Whew! That's more activity than I've done in awhile. Feels good, but of course, now I have a stitch in my side. I brought home a roll-on pain reliever my chiropractor says will take pain away immediately, and it did seem to have a positive effect when I put some on this afternoon, though it only lasted a couple of hours. I'm taking it to bed with me tonight so if I wake up in any pain in the morning, I'm hoping that will take care of it. Settled down for the evening, felt like I had a pretty productive day! Good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie,
Not quite as good a night sleep, woke up at 5:00 and stretching didn't help enough, so I broke down and took a couple of Aleve, which worked, though not as fast as I had hoped. They knocked me out though, I slept hard until my phone rang at 9:30. After breakfast and feeding the critters, I moved my hay from the pickup into the trailer, with four bales leftover in case the horses finish off the big round bale in the paddock, or as extras when I leave. I've made a reservation at a horse farm in Lexington, VA for a stopover on Sunday night, so I'll be leaving Sunday morning, arriving at Biltmore on Monday, assuming all goes well. Had another chiropractic appointment this afternoon, very glad he's only about 12 miles away, easy to get to. Didn't do much else today, though I'm going to have to get busy getting ready over the next few days. Relaxed for the evening, watched a movie and started a new binge series, Hart of Dixie. I had started a very violent series with Kevin Bacon, and decided I didn't need all that blood and gore in my head. Really tired of all this serial killer stuff. Anyway, finishing off my tea, having my shower and soon be off to bed! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hey Darlin',
So happy to report that I actually slept through the entire night! I went to bed before 11:00 and didn't wake up until 6:00! Can't remember the last time I slept that many hours in a row! Felt much more refreshed, was able to alleviate some of that early morning pain with stretching exercises, didn't take any painkillers, yay! Things improved as I got moving, too. I had to put the fireplace on for a bit this morning, it got down into the 40's this morning! Definitely getting to be time to head south! I headed out early to pick up some hay on the way to the chiropractor, hoping to get twelve bales but it turned out he only had seven. Went to my appointment, went through my baseline (not surprisingly, it's a mess), and got another adjustment. Found another honor system farm stand that had another five bales of hay that I picked up, they were smaller but greener, so a good compromise. Got back home, did a few chores, put some travel stuff away in the attic, and then settled down for the afternoon, not wanting to do too many strenuous things quite yet. Had a quiet evening as well, listening to the sound of the farrier working on Meg's herd of horses (she's been here since mid-afternoon!) Looking forward to another good sleep tonight, fingers crossed! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hi Babe,
Slept a few more hours last night than I have been, though I did have a couple of hours in the middle with too much pain to get comfortable, but at least the level has decreased enough that now the regular dose of painkillers worked, which is an improvement. But did feel a bit more energized today, thank goodness! Did laundry, a little housekeeping and had some more rest, though I'm hoping my more regular schedule might allow me to make it through the night tonight. Finished bingeing Haven, watched a few movies, did some reading, took care of a little business on my computer, and otherwise had a pleasant day. Gotta get busy this week, preparing to leave soon! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie,
Had another painful night despite icing my back and resting all day yesterday. Once again had to get out of bed to be more comfortable, and the pain pills didn't do much either. I headed out to my chiropractic appointment early just to start the process, and Dr, Fallon took me as soon as I arrived. He did numerous tests and x-rays to set a baseline, then finished with a manual adjustment. I have to admit, I felt a lot better by the time I left. When I got back to the farm, I finished filling the water tank in my truck, then spent the rest of the day resting, both icing and heating as instructed. I nodded off several times once I sat in my recliner, so that seemed to be a good indicator, but of course, the real test will be in bed tonight. I have another appointment on Monday that will hopefully indicate some progress. I hope chiropractic will solve the problem, I sure don't like the idea of having to go through traditional medicine, which seems to always resort to surgery or shots, but I have to do something! Anyway, I watched a few movies and I'm down to the last episode of Haven, and am reading as well. I'm hoping I'll be more energetic to get some other stuff done tomorrow, but recuperation and recovery has to come first! Had some rain come through in the afternoon, but otherwise, it looks like a beautiful week coming up, which should help me get stuff done before I leave. Good night, darlin'! Love you!

Hey Darlin',
Sorry to report that despite feeling much better after my massage and shower, I was only in bed about half an hour when some of the pain returned. Now it's like a stitch in my side, more than in my hip, so I supposed that might be an improvement. I took some aspirin, which didn't help a bit, then an hour later took three extra strength acetaminophen, then after doing several hours of heat, decided to change to ice for awhile. It was nearly 3:00 when I finally fell asleep, though the good news is that I ended up sleeping until after 9:00 a.m., which is by far the longest stretch of sleep I've managed in a long time. I was determined to stay in my recliner as long as possible today, so other than a few loads of laundry, that's exactly what I did. I continue to have residual pain, and I expect it to get worse once I go to bed, but I don't know what else to do. I made a chiropractic appointment for tomorrow, that's the last thing I can try before I'll have to go to full-on medical care, which won't happen until I get to Florida in November. I'm icing it before I go to bed, that seemed to help the most so far. Anyway, watched some movies and a few more Havens, and just had a lazy day. Lola's face is almost back to normal, though her lymph nodes are still swollen, though less so than yesterday. At least she's on the mend! Wish I could say the same! Good night, babe! Love you!