Uss Alabama

Here is a shot of the USS Alabama that we toured today. I spent a little of 2 hrs walking the ship. Thelma waited in the soda shop for me. I can not believe how big this thing is. When it was in battle it had 5500 men on board. I will try and get the pictues uploaded in the morning we are going to go to Mickey Ds for breakfast and I can use their WiFi. We will be leaving here for Florida in the AM sometime. We had a good day. We stopped in Fairhope, Al and saw some beautiful flowers. They are on a different album. I will post a link to all of my pictures next week sometime. I think I have about 5 albums from down here. Will probably have more as we are going to Pensacola Naval Museum next week. Hope the weather is good. I think it will be in the high sixties toward the end of the week. That would be nice. Thats about it for tonight Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Pretty nice day

This morning we went to Ryans for breakfast. They have a buffet on Sat and Sun. Morning's. It was good Might be the last time we can do that as we don't know where the next one is. Then later we went to a Moc couple and saw some things he had done to their trailer. They have the same model we do. Theirs is just a tad older. Same year. We were there a couple of hours and then headed back to the trailer. On the way we stopped a WalMart for some groceries. This evening we went to church here. It was at 7:00. Then stopped at Bruno's groceries to get some country crock as walmart did not have the small ones we like that fit in our fridge better. Now have the Olympics on. Canada beat the Us in the skating thing called pursuit I think. Well tomorrow we are going to the battleship and sub. Going to set the alarm or we will not get up in time. So later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Lazy Day

We did not do much of anything today other than to meet some Montana owners for lunch. Three of us had the seafood buffet and the other ones ordered from the menu. After we were done eating we sat around and talked probably for about an hour and half or more. When they started running the vacuum cleaner almost next to us we thought maybe we should leave. So we went outside and talked a little more and then we all headed home. Our little group here in the campground is going to get smaller. One couple is leaving for In in the morning. Heading for Logansport. They will come down to SC for the retiree rally toward the end of March. Guess that's about it for tonight Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Dolphin Cruise

Today we took the Dolphin cruise. I took about a hundred pictures. Only put 84 on the web site here

It was a fun trip. I would recomend this to anybody. There were two boats that went out and when one would spot the ddophins they would tell the other one and then the two boats would get about 30 yards apart and then speed up. The dolphins would jump and roll in the waves. It was so neat. Thelma and I both enjoyed it. Tomorrow for lunch we are meeting a couple of Moontana owners for lunch. The one couple we met a couple of weeks ago. The other couple just got back to the park. So should be a good time. I also posted some other pictures in the Gulf shores album. The state park we are going to is at Niceville Fl. Not a real big campground. Meeting some friends there for 10 days. We leave then and head east and north to Mrytle Beach Thats about it for tonight. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Laundry Day

We got the laundry done today. We tried a different one over in orange beach. Much cleaner and the washers worked. We had a couple of rugs to do and the one we had been using washers did not work. We first went to the waffle house to have breakfast. Their is a lady there that is from Jersy and she sound like it. She is so funny. We have been there a couple of times to eat breakfast. We came home and ate lunch and sat around. This evening we went to Bingo. Thelma won twice and I won once. First time I have won since we have been here. Got a small package of M&Ms. Thelma got a washcloth and 4 valentine cups. You are supposed to bring a dollar gift. Can't see where a washcloth would cost a dollar. Oh well this was the last night for us as next week we will be in Fl. We will be leaving here on Mon. Not sure what time. It is about two hrs to get where we are going. Check in is 3:oo We will have plenty of time to get there. Can't think of much else tonight . Tomorrow we go on Dolphin cruise. That should be fun. Hope to get a lot of pictures. Later all Ron and Thelma

Boring day

We did not do much today. Went to outlet place and Thelma bought a pair of shape ups from scechers. We also went to Lamberts home of the throwed rolls. We then came home and laid around. Later we took Eli and drove over to orange Beach to find a laundromat. We found it so tomorrow we do the weekly thing. Thursday we do the dolphin cruise. That should be good. Think the weather is supposed to be halfway decent. Would still like to get over to the USS Alabama. Running out of time. Maybe sometime we will come back down here but not next year. And I will make reservations at a regular campground that has cable and wifi. Guess that's about it for tonight. Later All Ron Thelma and Eli

Tank fixed.

Today we got the grey tank fixed. It was leaking on the bottom where it had been repaired before. They asked if we had ever had it fixed and I said no. We bought this new and never had the belly off. So it came from the factory like that. Boy what a cheap outfit Montana is. I bought a new trailer with a bad tank. Oh well at least it is fixed and they didn't take me to the bank. I was surprised at what they charged. They came around 10:30 or so and left around 1:00 Maybe a little before. They got a 2X4 and had it cut to fit under the tank from frame to frame to help keep the stress off of it when full. That should help. I took some pictures but they are on the other camera and it is in the truck. After lunch we went to McDs and I uploaded pictures from The fort and some other ones. Also put two new videos on the web sight. Added pictures to Gulf Shore album and Fort Gaines is the new one. The place we went to beside the fort is the Estuarium. WWW.sealabestuaruim.org Check it out. It was pretty neat. Would have liked to stay longer but can only do so much in one day. We stopped at the post office this afternoon and picked up our mail. That will be the last one we get here. Then stopped at Wally World to get a few things and get some cash. You can use your debit card and get cash back. That works good. Tomorrow think we are going to fairhope and see some flowers. Not sure what else. Fri we are going to see dolphins. That is supposed to be a pretty good day as far as weather goes. We are going to go to Lamberts yet one more time. Not sure when. Told Thelma if it rains we will go there. That's about it for tonight Later All Ron Thelma and Eli

Doing some tuorist thing

Today we went out to Dauphin Island to see Fort Gaines which was a civil war Fort. We took the ferry over and back We had kinda planned on driving around the long way but it was 1 1/2 hrs so decided to take the ferry. It was probably the best day we have had here. It was in the upper 60's Just what we have been waiting on. You can see by the first picture how nice it was.

We had a great time walking the fort. After that we went to the ecotaruim. Will put a link on that when I find the paper for it. It was pretty good. not sure it was worth the price. We need to get to see the Dolphins yet. Want to do that next week. Tomorrow the guy comes to fix the tank. At least we hope so. Thelma did real well on walking the Fort. I will try and get all the pictures uploaded tomorrow sometime. Depends on when the guy gets here and when I can get away for some wifi. That's about it for tonight.

Later all Ron Thelma and Eli who had to stay home most of the day.

What a bueatiful day

Today was a bueatiful day. We deceided to go to the Zoo. It is not a real big zoo but it was neat. They had quite a few animals. Tiger's lion's bear's leapord's I am trying to upload two pictures. The rest are on the picassa web site We had a good day for once. The weather is supposed to be good tomorrow so think we are going to another fort at DAuphin Island. It is from the cival war era.

Just went to church and came to Mickey Ds to use the wifi. When I want to upload pictures I use the wifi somewhere. Thats about it for tonight Later Ron Thelma and Eli

Missed yesterday

I missed doing the post last night. Watched to muck Oliympics I guess. I check my email and then went to bed.

Yesterday Eli got groomed so Thelma and I did some shopping and sightseeing. We drove down close to the Fl line. There is a bridge there where underneath people were fishing. This bird was waiting for somebody to give him something to eat. A lady there told me he was on welfare cause he is always begging. I took quite a few of him. Not sure what he is. I don't know my birds that well. We finally picked up Eli about noon. He really looked good. She did a good job on him. He was happy to see us. What was really funny was this lady had a Standard Black and one White poodle just like Julia who does Eli in Ft Wayne does. What are the chances of that. In the afternoon we went to the PO to pick up our mail but it wasn't there yet. So have to pick it up on Mon They do not do General Delivery on Sat. And only after 1:30 during the week. We are waiting on the guy to come look at the holding tank. He called yesterday and is supposed to come out this morning and look at it and see what is wrong. Hope he gets here. That's about it for now If anything interesting happens will post this evening. Later Ron Thelma and Eli

No Fixey

Well the guy did not show up today. I finally got ahold of somebody and he told me the guy was sick. Did not call or anything. Boy what a bunch of idiots. They don't seem to care down here. So Monday he is coming out. We sat around all day waiting. Could have done something as it was pretty nice out. One of the best we have had. Tomorrow Eli gets groomed so think after that we might just go to the Zoo here. I am anxious to see it. I remember animal planet doing a show on the little zoo that could when Ivan hit here. They moved the animals quite a way inland if I remember right. If the weather is nice Sat we will do something else. Not sure what yet. I want to do the dolphin tour and try to get to the USS Alabama. They did some more burning here today. Mostly where they were yesterday. Evidently they did not get a good burn. Sure makes it smoky. Guess that's about it for tonight. Later Ron Thelma and Eli

Today was and interesting day. This morning as we were leaving the campground there was some firetrucks and grass fire buggies. They were getting ready for a controlled burn. I took a few pictures of the smoke. It really smelled. We went into town and had doughnuts at daylight donut shop. Then went to WalMart. We then came back and got ready for the potluck. It was good. Brats and Hot dogs with Baked Beans Potato salad Mac and Cheese chips Veggie tray. We ate good. After that we went to the laundry and did the weekly thing. This evening we played bingo with the bunch. One couple is leaving Fri morning We will miss them. We have enjoyed to friendship with the people down here. We might come back here next year for a month before moving to Texas. That is a long way away. Tomorrow the guy comes to look at the holding tank. About a week and half ago Thelma was taking a shower and said the water wasn't going down. I hadn't emptied the grey tank for a while so it was too full. When I went out to empty it water was running out the bottom. So something is leaking. Have just been letting it run out into drain since we have full hookups. That is nice. Guess that is for tonight. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Fat Tuesday parades

Today was parade day. We went this morning to the one in Gulf Shores and Then stopped at the trailer and let Eli out. Then on to Orange Beach for their parade. After that stopped and picked up Eli and went to the Boat parade That was not very good. Talked to someone there where we were parked and he said it was too cold. It was. We still got a few beads there. We got a whole slew of them in GS parade. Here is the link to the pictures I took today. Also the ones from last Sat night are there too . Look for the Mardi Gras night time album. This is a big deal down here. The kids get out of school for the parades. Using Mc Ds wifi to upload pictures and do blog. Guess that's about it for tonight. Tomorrow we are having a potluck with some friends One couple is leaving this weekend. They are from Mo. Not sure if they are heading back or just moving on. Later Ron Thelma and Eli

Sunny day

Today was a sunny afternoon. It had rained most of the night and into the early morning. We got up and went to Cracker Barrel for bkfast. The food was good but the service was terrible. We had to ask one of the other waitress' to get us some jelly. Ours had disappeared. I just hate that and she was not very friendly or plentifull with the coffee. Now that will not get you a very big tip. I should have said something when we left but they never asked how it was. On the way back I stopped and got some fuel as it was cheaper up at foley than it is in GS. We then stopped at Walgreens and picked up some valentines candy. It was 50% off. Thats my kinda price. Thelma bought us some sweatshirts that say Gulf Shores on them. We came home and made some calls. I finaly have someone to come out and look at my grey holding tank. Thurs. Thelma made and apppointment to have Eli groomed Fri. He is starting to smell like dog. Can't figure that out. Tomorrow are the parades so need to get up early in the morning and go into GS> We will park at the grocery lot and watch it from there. We will eat breakfast at the BK. We will go in about 8:00 If you don't get there early you can't get front row seats. Course you stand when the parade starts so you can catch the beads etc. Guess that's about it for tonight Later
Ron Thelma and Eli

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY

Here is a cute picture that I took the other day of two pelicans swimming together. Just like a couple of love birds. They were away from the other pelicans. I saved it for today. It has finally gotten sunny down here. We went to the tanger outlet mall today. I got a couple of pair of shoes bought one got one half price One is a dress type the other is walking shoe. I will go over later to the activities center and upload the pictures from the parade last night. We have two more next Tuesday One in Gulf Shores the other in Orange beach where we were last night. Then later in the afternoon is a boat parade on the waterway. Will just get pictures for that one. Have the race on but it is stopped for repair to the track. We are expecting rain tonight. They have a weather advisory for tonight on TV. Not sure for what. Well That is about it for today. Unless something else happens Later Ron Thelma and Eli

Madi Gras parades

Decided to do another update. We went to a parade in Orange Beach this evening it was a night parade. I took a bunch of pictures. I will probably put them on the website tomorrow sometime. Need to use wifi to upload them as it takes to much bandwidth with the air card. They throw beads like crazy. I called a couple here at the campground and they came over and had a ball. Since this was our first one I had no idea what to expect. It was fun. We got a bunch most are alike. That's about it for tonight Later Ron Thelma and Eli

S

WE HAVE SUNSHINE AGAIN GEE IS IT EVER NICE I can't get this thing to print little. Now it did and don't know what I did. I am going to post some pictures as I am on wifi here in the park. Have to go to the activities center to do that . When they get everything done here it will be park wide. The first one is a palm tree that I took over at the marina. The second one is a bird that I don't know

what it is. We are going to a madi gra parade this evening. In fact I think there might be two of them. "If the pictures are good I will post some of them Later Ron Thelma and Eli

ht be two of them

Short one tonight.

This will be a short one Watching the opening ceremonies from Vancouver. We got 2 inches of rain last night and today. Not sure when it started but if rained about half the day. It is 36 now. Sure not the weather we expected. hope it warms up some We have a lot of things to do. Tomorrow I will add a picture of some pelicans that I took today. A whole flock of them That's it for tonight Later Ron Thelma and Eli

It MIGHT snow

I don't believe that down here when they think they might get snow they call of school. We had the radio on this afternoon when we were driving and they were canceling schools since it might snow. Down here an inch or more is big big time stuff. They are getting trucks loaded with sand. Dont know if they have anykind of plows or not. But we think it is really funny. I wonder if they bought out the grocery stores of bread and milk like they do up north. This morning we went to a expo thingy over in orange beach. It was kinda neat. Got some free things and beads. hurah. It was for trying to get people to use the condos and stuff like that. It was pretty interesting. The place they had it was a condo building with three sections. A three bedroom unit with 3 baths and kitchen living dining room was only 2000 a month. It had two inside pools workout rooms 2 of them that we saw. I guess it would be okay if you had the money. The lady at the welcome center that we stopped at on the way back to the trailer said it is high dollar. Guess so. We have had a little sleet here late this afternoon . We went into the post office and picked up a package that Gary sent with mail, dog treats for eli that he bought and dog food that we forgot plus some snacks that we forgot. They arrived today. He mailed it Monday afternoon so that wasn't too bad. The weather here has been the worst in years. Talked to Barb Blomback this afternoon and she said it has not been good in Fl either. They are moving I think tomorrow someplace north of where they are. She said they are not coming to Fl next year. It has not been good each time they have been down here. I said at least we don't have to shovel snow. Well That's about it for tonight Don't know what we will do tomorrow. Which I had my sled here. Ha Later Ron Thelma andEli

Am trying something tonight we went with another couple out to eat at seafood resturant this afternoon. They have a Montana like we do. Same layout, ours is just a little diferrent. Any way we had a good visit. Then we went to another place for dessert. I had cheesecake. We had another long visit. It sure was a nice day She has a blog on geneology here Think I got it to work. Boy I getting smarter all the time. This morning we went and did laundry. We had quite a bit to do. Sure glad we are down here instead of up north. School was canceled today. They are talking snow down here. Probably north of I 10. And we came down for the warmer weather This is the coldest they have had in a while. If they get snow here everything will be at a standstill. That's about it for tonight Tomorrow we will go see if we have a package from the Fort. That's about it for tonight. More tomorrow. Later Ron Thelma and Eli

Web album

http://picasaweb.google.com/home
Here is the link to all our pictures. Will put more in here later this evening. Added some more pictures this afternoon. This noon we went to a hot dog roast here in the campground. Everybody brings their own dogs and buns and whatever else they want. We took some chips. After that we went to the activities center and saw a slide show on what Ivan did here to the state park. Boy was that a mess. They are still doing the grocery laundomat Nature center pool house. It is a slow progression. They were supposed to be done the first of march but it won't be done by then. I also uploaded some pictures while we were there as there is wifi there. I found out from the naturlist that the nest are osprys. They have jsut come back I think This is the first week we have seen anything there. We have watched the nest since we have been here. It is going to be cold here tonight. At least we don't have the snow they are having in the Fort now. Talked to Gene B and he said it was getting bad. Some of the schools were closed today and some closed tomorrow already and 2 hr delays. Thats about it for tonight. Tomorrow is laundry day. We were going to do it this morning but it was so busy so deceide to wait till tomorrow morning. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Here is a nest across the road from the park. This looks almost like an eagle. We didn't do much today were going to go to the island and the USS Alabama. Well when we got to the ferry there was delay. It was going to be 2 hrs which would have been close to noon when we got there so deceided to go another day. We did stop at a beach area where there is a bunch of sand dunes. We walked a little on the beach and picked up some sea shells. I took some pictures and will put them up on the pictures site in a day or two. I took the above picture on the way back. We also went to the post office to mail a letter. Really exciting day. I used a 300 mm lens to take the picture but still can't tell for sure what it is. I will ask around the nature center and see if they know what it is. That's about it for tonight Later All Ron Thelma and Eli who is in bed already.

Good day for us Not for the colts

This afternoon we had a potluck get together with some people we met here. One couple deep fried catfish chunks. Boy was it good. Everybody brought some dishes to pass. Thelma made agrautin potatoes. They were really good. We also had baked beans apple salad macaroni salad cauliflower with italian dressing on it. We baked some valentine cookies this morning to take. Oh they deep fried some biscuts like we do when we do a turkey. We sat around for about 4 hrs or so. Then decided it was time to let Eli out. We took him and went into town to get a paper. Usually we get it when we go out for breakfast but since we were going to have the potluck just ate ceral here. Forgot about the paper. Only get it on Sundays. The news down here doesn't interest me that much. Well the colts didn't make it. When Manning threw the interception that did it. We changed the station. Not sure if they thought they had it in the bag or if NO wanted it more. Oh well always next year. Thelma saysthey pay them too much. Here is a picture of part of the group Thats about it for tonight. We plan to go over to Mobile tomorrow and see the ship. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Laid back day

About the only thing we did today was take a drive over to orange beach. Wanted to find the place that has dolphin trips. We found the place just have to have a nice day. This evening we went to the Lutheran church here in GS. If I had to go to this church every week I would find a different one real quick. They are not friendly at all. We thought about going to one of the other ones. One has a service at 3:00 on Sat Afternoon. That is too early I think. Well We only have a few more weeks till we go to Fl. Guess that's about it for tonight. Later All Ron Thelma and Eli

Short Video

http://picasaweb.google.com/ronstan67/MovieSFromCamera?feat=directlink

Here is a video I took with the camera. Short but you get the idea of the wind and waves.

I went up to the activeities center to upload the video and some other pictures There are a few new ones in the Gulf Shores Album. We did not do much today. Went to Walmart and Post office to mail some cards. Alsot went to another grocery in GS. They had oranges on sale. Can't believe two weeks are gone here already. Have three more to go and then we leave. We need to do some sightseeing here pretty quick. I think maybe Monday we will go to the Alabama Battleship. At least that is the plan. They are forcasting rain on Tues. We had alomost 2 inches last night. It was pretty windy at first but then died down and just rained. That's about it for tonight. Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Another windy night

Just got home a little while ago from Longhorn Steakhouse. It was good but would rather go to Logans where I can get peanuts. This morning we went over to the nature center and watched a video on Hurricane Ivan which hit here in Sept of 2004. It was real interesting. Next week they are going to show a slide show at the acivities building on the Ivan. That should be neat also. This afternoon we went to the Museam in Gulf Shores and looked at some of the clippings and newspaper write ups. They also had a videao running of Katrina. They did not hit here. They also have one of Ivan but the lady that runs the place was on the phone and never came in to change it. Oh forgot that this morning after the video we went to the beach and I walked down and shot some video with my camera. I can shoot 20 minutes of video with this camera. I have the video on the puter but have to upload. Need wifi to tdo that. Maybe tomorrow. See what it is like in the morning. We are expecting a lot of rain. 2-4 in. Tomorrow might be a lazy day. Guess I don't know much more now. Later all. Ron Thelma and Eli

We get our mail at General Delivery. We are having our mail Fowarded to Gary and then he calls when we get some and we deceide what to send. he then sends it to Gulf Shores general delivery

Another day gone

Today we went to the post office and picked up mail. Gary had sent it last Sat. Not sure when it arrived. Had a bunch of tax stuff so got started on that. Still neeed some sent. Then we stopped at walmart for some fuel and groceries. The truck eats too you know. The Mobile Suites is a brand of trailer that is a higher class than the Montana. Do a search for them on google. The Medium Duty freightliner is between a pickup and big semi. International makes a chassis that a guy in Texas uses for the same thing. The fort we went to was Fort Morgan. There is a couple of Forts over in Mobile that we want to see. Hope we don't run out of time. This evening we went and played bingo. Every body brings a $1.00 gift and then you can play. Thelma got a package of chips. We are expecting 3-4 inches of rain tonight. Might need a pontoon Tomorrow. We are going to the nature center tomorrow morning to see a video on the Hurricane Ivan that came through here. Should be interesting. Thats about it for tonight Later all Ron Thelma and Eli

Visiting Day

This afternoon we went to OCharleys and met a couple of people from the MOC. Montana owners. We had a very good visit. Spent about 2 1/2 hrs there. Really enjoyable. We left there and stopped at the campground where one of the couples is staying. They have a Mobile Suite trailer that they pull with a Freightliner MDT. Really nice unit. The trailer is bueatiful. She had it built the way she wanted. It is laid out real neat. We stayed there for about half an hour and then came back here to let the boy out. He was glad to see us. We had an excellent meal. Didn't have peanuts though. Think that is a Logans Steak house thing. Well that's about it for tonight. Tomorrow is another day. We need to go to the Post Office and try and get our mail. Don't know if it has arrived yet or not. Gary sent it on Sat. Hope it gets here.
Later All Ron Thelma and Eli

Laundry Day

This morning we went to Mickey D's and had breakfast. Then went to the laundromat. Think it took about 2 hrs. It was pretty crowded when we got there. It was thinning out when we left. A lot of northerner's in there. Talked to some people from Dayton,Ohio. I went this afternoon to the nature center at the park and uploaded the pictures I have taken so far. When you go to the site look for the gulf shore one also uploaded is Fort Morgan. Hope to get some more in soon. The weather is just not cooperating. Tomorrow we are meeting some Montana owners for lunch at O'Charleys in Foley. Not sure what else we will do. Not much else new.
Here is the link http://picasaweb.google.com/ronstan67/GULFSHORESAL?feat=directlink

Enjoy More to come later Ron Thelma and My Buddy Eli