Friday - 29 Jan/16

Sunshine! We welcomed the big change from 2 days (almost 3") of rain.

"Jean's Back!" Our neighbour down the street and a fellow crafter had just pulled onto our street. They had returned from Canada where they had been for several days on personal business. Charlotte was overjoyed! She had to stop in and say; "Hi", before we departed for today's road trip.

I stopped in at the office to pay the electric bill for this month before we left the park. The office crew were quite busy with the arrival of today's mail.

Our road trip today was to the Images Art Show in New Smyrna Beach (in the historic downtown) which was beginning today. This is a "Juried Show" with  250 (or thereabouts) pre-judged participants.

A half hour out we made a stop at the Key West Lime Shoppe in Deland, FL. We needed a refill of items we bought the first time we stopped there a few weeks ago. The original (Kermit's) shop is in Key West, FL - this is the factory. It only took a few minutes for Charlotte to restock with large tins of Key West Lime Cookies and Peanuts. Yummy stuff!

In less than half an hour we arrived on Canal Street, the historic downtown area in New Smyrna Beach, FL.

The annual show was just starting and a few artists were still setting up their wares. The display tents covered several blocks. Some streets had a single row down the center with the wider streets having a row on both sides rows. The largest section had rows on both sides and another row down the center.

We usually just enjoy art shows. At our "age and stage" of life we do not need additional paintings. We have nearly a hundred already in storage in our basement at home. The motorhome doesn't quite lend itself to large canvases (grin). There was a lot of vibrant colours and interesting items in all types of media which including mixed (and mixed up - another grin).

After more than an hour of walking (today's substitute for our weekly flea market exercise) we returned to the car. It was now warm enough, due to the clear skies, to take the top off the Del Sol and enjoy the sunshine on the ride to our next destination.

Charlotte tried to coax it out of me; however I kept it a secret until our arrival at Jeremiah's. This landmark has been a mainstay in Mt. Dora since the 80's. The owner, Wayne, started the business when he was 19 and still runs it today. Jeremiah's prides itself on fresh home-style cooking and great service and good value. We can happily attest to these facts!

The eclectic interior décor alone is worth the visit.

 

Charlotte couldn't stop saying how great her Blackened Mahi tasted. I totally enjoyed my Liver and Onions. My portion was so large I couldn't even start the baked potato. It came home with us.

The last stop, another surprise for Charlotte before heading home, was the Mt. Dora Olive Oil Company.

Charlotte has always enjoyed sampling the wide variety of infused Gourmet Olive Oil and Balsamic flavours. It took a while; but she finally decided on a few flavours. Who thought Chocolate Balsamic could taste so good?

Correction! We made one more stop. "Sew What?" (The Sewing Room) in Umatilla, FL has unusual hours. It specializes in making long arm quilting available through an "in store" rental program. They setup a long arm sewing machine and quilters can then sew elaborate (or simple) stitch patterns onto their quilts. The size and bulk of large quilts make it impossible for normal sewing machines to stitch to the center of the quilts. We had stopped a number of times here only to find it closed. Today we decided to take a chance. To our surprise, it was open. Charlotte will be returning when her T-Shirt quilt is in the final stages to complete the quilting using the "long arm".

Finally, we made it back to the motorhome.

The Del Sol had been getting harder to start during the last few days. I carried my Jump Start Pak in the trunk and today I needed it. This morning it just "clicked"; but wouldn't start. I have been trying to figure out if it was a "Dead Spot" in the starter or a "Dead Cell" in the battery. We had to "Jump Start" it at every stop today. I now knew it was not the starter. The question now: was it a dead cell or just a poor connection to the battery. When we arrived back at the motorhome it was still bright enough to allow me to work on it for over an hour. I disconnected the battery, cleaned the terminals and the connectors, applied anti-corrosive to the posts and hooked all back up again.

I then pulled out my retractable extension cord from an RV compartment and hooked up my battery charger. I will know by tomorrow morning what the problem is. If the battery retains a charge it was a poor connection. If it looses it's charge it is a "dead cell" and I will be off to get a new battery.

Then it was the usual TV evening until bedtime.