Now OPEN: Tower View Stay & Go (or: How I spent my summer vacation)

Click any picture to enlarge it.

Tower View

Right in the shadow of Ypsilanti’s famous water tower is the Tower View Stay & Go. Tower View is centrally located to all the great things to see and do in eastern Washtenaw County— just seconds away Eastern Michigan University and only a few minutes away from Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan. It is easy walking distance from EMU, Downtown, and historic Depot Town.

Kitchen & Dinning

Entrance

Joe

Tower View Stay & Go is similar to a B&B, except it’s a lot more fun with a lot more options! Want to have a special meal or gathering, ask Joe. Want a ride to the Big House? No problem! Maybe you’re coming to town for a sporting event. Joe specializes in entertaining groups. Stay here and invite your friends to a gathering. Most folks would rather eat at Joe’s than go out! It’s clean, the food is good, and you’ll feel right at home!

Kitchen

The basic package is pet friendly, has WiFi, and off street parking; includes rides to special events, and there is plenty of room to relax. Your visit and having fun while here are what is important! So if you need any special arrangements, meal plans, or entertainment ideas, let Joe know.

TV Room

Access to and from all major roads and expressways. And if you are attending an event at EMU, it’s just across the street. Tower View Stay & Go is also conveniently located to the many area hospitals. So whatever the reason you are visiting Ypsilanti or Ann Arbor, tell Joe what you need— and you’ll see why we can’t just call this a bed and breakfast!

Window Bench

Bedroom

Sears Saga With A Happy Ending

Smokey made a bad, bad noise!

Fueled up and ready to go

0430 Monday 07.05.10
Woke and got ready to leave Knoxville. O’ Smokey is fully fueled, fluids and air all checked, and everything packed but my toothbrush and laptop.

0445
Underway

0600 Jelico Mountain, TN
O’ Smokey running good. Didn’t even need to downshift on the steepest grade. Engine temp nominal. Just starting to get light.

0730 Berea, KY
O’ Smokey made a bad bad noise! Losing power. Something must have let go. Luckily, I’m right at an exit. Coast down the ramp and into a gas station.

0745
Checked oil. Oil gone! Filled oil. It’s not leaking out. Doesn’t want to start. Decide to have breakfast at restaurant next door.

0845
Started diesel. Still not leaking. Bad noise is gone. Decide to try going again.

0900
Didn’t get far. Bad bad noise is back! Made it from gas station across the street to the Days Inn motel.

Broke down right at an exit

0915
Called Joe Golder. Joe says sit tight and he’ll drive down and tow me to Ypsi with his van. Needs to take care of a couple things first.

0930
Forecast is for record heat around 100°, Decide to rent a motel room at Dasy Inn and keep cool. Also has complimentary WiFi.

1100
Joe called. Oil change guy says he has the wrong tire on the back left. Got to go back to Sears.

1300 Sears is glad tire mistake was caught and no one got hurt! Put the right tire on the left rear and gave Joe a coupon for a free oil change for his inconvenience.

1500
Joe and his 3 dogs are on the road. Estimates it’s a 6 hour drive. It’s hot out. I’m glad to be in a room with an air conditioner.

Joe & dogs & cramped motel room

2100
Joe called. Was passing a truck. Sears didn’t tighten the lug nuts and the wheel with the new tire came off just north of Lexington, KY, about 40 miles north. Brakes and hub are wrecked bad. Joe & dogs shaken but OK. KY Dept of Safety vehicle found the tire— actually caught it on video bouncing south on the northbound lane. Joe is Having van towed to Sears in Lexington.

2110
Joe called and wants to know if motel is pet friendly.

2120
I called Joe and told him motel is pet friendly. Ky Dept of Safety vehicle is bringing Joe and 3 dogs to the motel.

2200
Joe and 3 dogs arrive thanks to some assistance from Michael Martin of the KY Dept. of Transportation. It’s cozy: Me & Joe, 3 dogs, and 1 bed. AC works good.

Axle fixed with temporary wheel

0800
Sears has 3 managers working on Joe’s van: manager in A2 is expediting the insurance claim, 1 manager is ordering parts from the Lexington store, another is on the repair work. Sears tells Joe to keep all receipts for towing, motel, meals, taxis, etc.

0830 Tues 07.06.10 Days Inn, Berea, KY
Motel has complimentary breakfast.

1130
Decide we need a room for the day. Move to room with 2 beds.

1300
Sears has the parts.

1630
Walked to a nice restaurant for dinner. Good food. Dry county.

1700
Sears called. Van is ready. Can’t match rim. Will use a temporary rim and get new rims back in A2.

O'Smokey hooked up and ready to be towed to MI

1800
Joe took a taxi to Lexington Sears to get van.

1930
Joe is back. I have the tow bar ready on the front of my little pick up. We’re hooked up and ready to roll. Van doesn’t have AC. We are going to wait until dark to travel so the dogs won’t be too hot.

2050 I-75 Northbound
Cool enough to drive. On the road in Joe’s van with O’ Smokey in tow.

0100 Wed 07.07.10 Cincinnati, OH
Unbelievable middle of the night stop and stop traffic jam!

0200 North of Cincinnati
Looked like traffic was moving again— then a couple minutes later it’s jammed up again. Dang. Could have gotten on an alternate route.

0300 Dayton, OH
Traffic finally moving again. Longest traffic jam I can remember— and in the middle of the night. Nothing bad— just miles and miles of construction. Obama buck at work!

Been thinking I should bike more. Careful what you wish for!

0500 Ypsilanti, MI
Arrived safe and sound at Joe’s place.

1100 Fri 07.09.10 Ann Arbor, MI
Sears reimbursed Joe for all his expenses related to the wheel coming off. They also ordered some rims to replace his custom rim that can’t replaced.

1800 07.25.10 Ypsilanti, MI
Joe’s rims arrived and Sears has installed them. Joe likes them better then the ones he had before. A story with a happy ending. Ain’t that nice? Interesting to have dealt with a corporation that didn’t make you hire a lawyer to get them to do what’s right. Good for Sears.

A couple weeks after Joe's misadventure, Sears replaced the busted wheel with 4 new rims.

Summer Tour 10′: Knoxville

Summer Tour

O' Smokey: 81' VW diesel— so far so good.

1st Destination: Knoxville

Timed my arrival in Knoxville to coincide with my cousin Mark’s annual 4th of July block party. This is the 10th. I’ve been invited every year. About time I made one.

Travel: Ol’ Smokey

Drove one of the back ways over the mountains— up through Boone and over to Johnson City. It was pretty and pleasant and took about as long as going the expressway with a lot less traffic.

The primary motivation for the route is that my 81′ VW pick up is not a good mountain climber. Beyond a certain grade, I must just drop down to 2nd gear and burn a lot of oil and I didn’t want to get run over by a semi-truck on the main route.

Music: Karaoke

Chicken Wing Cook-Off: 1st & 2nd Place

At my cousin Mark’s house in Knoxville, I learned that they weren’t having a band this year. Instead, the plan was to try karaoke. He showed me a tiny home karaoke machine that they planned to use.

I said ‘No. That won’t do.” Told Mark we needed a PA and volunteered to handle it. The PA came from All Occasions Rental and I used my own karaoke software and 10k songs left over from my American Legion project in Sanford a couple years ago.

The weather was perfect and the karaoke was a big hit. Everyone liked it better than having a band.

Folks arriving for fireworks

Charleston, SC

03.15.10

The Folly Beach Flaming

Folly Flamingo

Took a trip to Charleston— actually, all the way to the ocean to an island called Folly Beach. I’ve been to Charleston before, but it was always by sea. This was my first trip coming by land. OK, I would still rather sail there, but if you’re driving, it’s an easy place to get around.

Folly Beach Island reminds me of the Florida Keys about 1970. The place is on the up swing, but it’s also old, with many old cottages and businesses. Nothing looks new, even the newer businesses are styled to look as though they’ve been there for a long time.

Entrance Gate at Folly Flamingo

There are not much in the way of franchise operations— even the Holiday Inn was bought back and turned into a non-franchise hotel. The central business district is essentially a single street that leads from the island to the mainland known as (you might guess), Folly Road.

I stayed at a cute place named the Folly Flamingo. Basically, it’s two nice units with an extra cabana outside. I stayed in the smaller of the two units, which still features a nice great room and a large bedroom with a king-sized bed.

The Folly Flamingo is a half block from the main business district with an assortment of eateries and choices for night life. And it is also one block from the ocean. The town has little trails that cut through to the beach so you don’t even need to walk down to the next corner.

Courtyard and entrance.

Folly Beach is the kind of place that you can easily walk or bicycle everywhere you want to go. It’s a lot like Traverse City in that regard, but a lot more quaint.

A nice feature of the Folly Flamingo was the shaded courtyard. Even the balcony off my second story bedroom had shade. It has a very tropical feel.

The owner of the Folly Flamingo is Janet Crouch. Janet gave me tours of Folly and Charleston. Then we shared meals cooked in her wok and lots of conversation.

If you are interested in trying something different than Florida, you might like Folly Beach. It’s got that old Keys feel and the winters are generally quite mild. Everyone I met was friendly and seemed generally delighted to be at Folly Beach. Get more info at: FollyFlamingo.com

Spiral stairs to bedroom.

And if you do go to Folly Beach, check out the Folly Flamingo! You might like it there as well.

Writing

My visit to Folly Beach was also a return to writing. When I got back to Sanford on November 22, I forced myself to stop writing until I got my Prairie Schooner resurrected and helped Todd hand off his house to the new owner.

Well, anyone familiar with that sago knows that the house here in Sanford has been under contract since late September. Todd and I finally let the new owner move in, even though no one knows yet when the sale will be completed.

Morning sun shined through the window over the bed.

So now the schooner is ready to roll and I’m ready to get back to writing. Folly Beach was a great place to write. Most of the time, I just left my computer out, and in morning and in between all the exciting moments of the rest of the day, I was getting my work done.

Feels great to be writing again!

Trip to Chicago

02.18.10

Flight to Chicago

Just flew to Chicago Tuesday morning and drove a truck back for a friend’s business here in NC. Tuesday was a nice day for flying, sunny in Raleigh for take-off, overcast and winter upon arrival in Chicago.

I hadn’t flown since 1992, so I didn’t know what to expect with all the changes since 9/11. Airport security did check everyone out rather thoroughly, and if the inspection cubicle was open and you were the next in line, you were the random choice for a detailed search. And those folks have a lot of power, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that they were polite and friendly.

The Southwest 737 was the smallest plane I’ve been on since taking a puddler jumper from Atlanta to Gulfport, MS in Dec, 1992. It was tight and full. The ride was bouncy, but the crew was professional and also friendly. I must confess after the crash landing in the Hudson, I was glad to see our captain looked like an older gentleman with a lot of experience.

Tuscany: Excellent Italian Cuisine!

Tuscany

Fred Dolche, a friend Tim Glasson’s met the 3 of us at the airport. Fred invited us to a fine Italian restaurant right across the street from the University on Taylor St. called Tuscany. I asked which university and was informed it was the University of Chicago. Tuscany is the best Italian food experience I’ve had! Wow was it good. That alone made it worth the trip!

I’ve been to Chicago, but I’ve never been to the U of C. Prior to WWII, U of C was in the Big Ten and has even won the Rose Bowl! During the years when Robert Maynard Hutchins (also the first Director of the Ford Foundation) was president of the university, the U of C eliminated sports, became involved in the Manhattan Project, and since WWII, the U of C has evolved into one of the World’s premier research universities.

I liked driving the Hino

Hino

We picked up 3 Hino box trucks at Penske to take back to NC. They ran well, had lots of power, and handled nicely even when the roads were slippery.

The Drive Back

Began to snow as we were leaving Chicago. Snowed all the way to Beckley, WV.

The worst snows were near Indianapolis and Beckley. When it began to pile on the roads north of Indianapolis, we stopped for a late dinner— just after 2100 (9:00 pm). When we started out again, the expressway had been cleared, but not before a few vehicles had spun out— mostly semis and other vehicles with trailers.

Expressway kept clear in Beckley

The worst snow fell up around Beckley, WV. The surface streets were deep in snow, but the highway department was keeping the expressway open.

Snow covered the ground completely all the way to the big hill on south I-77 down to Mt. Airy, NC. And we had snow on the ground along east I-74 and I-40 all the way to Greensboro.

Total drive time was just about 15 hours: 5.5 the first day, and nearly 10 the second. Was the first time I had to keep one of those new driver’s logbooks required by DOT.

Nice to be back in Raleigh where it is sunny and 50° and there is no snow on the ground. Robins are singing in the yard and the early flowers are blooming. Feels just like spring has sprung in the Sandhills!

.

The End of House Sitting

Wed 02.10.10

House Loan Approval

After 4 months of waiting and delays, Todd called today to tell me that the buyer’s loan for the house has finally been approved. There will be one more inspection and then the closing should be about the 20th or the 26th.

Time to blizt the rest of the Schooner resurrection project and decamp.

.

Little Gem

09.21.09

Weather

Still in TC. Colors are coming on slowly. Northern Michigan has finally had some nice weather for about 3 weeks— nicest weather of the summer claim the locals. We are finally enjoying the best sweet corn of the year and lots of tomatoes.

The cherries came so late that half (42%) were thrown away! Can you imagine? Seems like such a waste. Part of the problem was a bumper crop of earlier Washington cherries, but they never taste as good.

Joe Golder is up from Ypsi. He brought his dogs and a bike. We have been riding. We also took a beautiful drive out to Good Harbor and let the dogs run and swim.

Bucky

Bucky is getting chemo for lymphoma. I probably shouldn’t be spending the $, but she’s feeling so much better and acting happy that I can’t help myself. The vet warned me that some of the treatments for Bucky might cause a heart attack. Jeez, I’m thinking, sounds better than wasting away from cancer or having to put her down. Meanwhile she’s feeling good and back to being happy so I won’t have to worry about it until a little later I guess…

Little Gem

1970 Litte Gem

Bought a 1970 Little Gem trailer to fix up. It’s about 19′. The running gear is in good shape, it has dual axles, and it even has electric brakes. The coach is in pretty good shape, but the inside is a mess. Different people did different things to it, so it’s no longer vintage. I’m going to gut it and change the lay out. The head is in the back and the galley is in the front. I’m going to put my bed in the front so I can have a big one, move the galley mid ship so it will be close to the plumbing in the back.

Looking forward

Writing

Have been getting lots of writing done. Presently, I’m re conceiving the story The Hill Beautiful. I’m practicing with the techniques and structures that I’m planning to use for the Pitcairn project to get a feel for how it goes. Since the short story is a much small piece, I can see the work flow from start to finish in a (hopefully) short amount of time.

Looking aft

Photo Shoot

09.03.09

Travel

Some friends are planning to come up from North Carolina to play music and go fishing with Ron.

Photography

Today I’m taking pictures of Ruthie for school.

Ruth Hines

Bucky Has Cancer

08.28.09

Travel

Am in Traverse City now. It has been a cool summer here. Tomatoes haven’t ripened yet! Everything is late. Personally I don’t mind the mild temperatures, but the cool weather hasn’t been good for tourism.

Music

I went to an open mic last night at a place called The Hayloft on M-72. They had several acts nearly all was blue grass and gospel! Everything we played would go good over well in NC. I was the only bass player, so I was invited to play most of the night Last night I sat in with a group of local musicians that were short a bass player for a local radio broadcast called The Round Up. It was spontaneous. Went well and I’m invited back for next week’s session. Might even do some sidebars with a few of the players.

Bucky

Not all good news though, the vet here has diagnosed Bucky with an aggressive cancer quite common with Boxers. I stopped in Ypsi and hung a couple French doors for my friend, Joe. While there, my dog suddenly didn’t want to do anything. She slept constantly and needed help doing everything, even getting up. I found I had to give her pain medication to even get her to go outside. The only thing normal was her appetite.

I’ve talked to other Boxer owners that told me about their dogs suddenly getting sick and being gone in a month. Good news is that the vet pumped her up with steroids so her last weeks will be happy. She went to sleep crying and woke up a new dog— dancing around and wagging her tail— wanting to do everything.

I took her to the beach. She went swimming a few times and played in the sand all day. Lucky Bucky— she doesn’t know it, but she’s getting an Indian Summer of her own.

Michigan often gets what’s called an Indian Summer. The first big blast of cold hits and then it warms again. Tradition has it that’s when the Indians would migrate south for the winter. Seems like the colors are all brighter, the smells stronger, and the rays of the sun reach more deeply. Knowing winter is next makes it easy to appreciate each of the last warm days in a way that is obscured by spring’s promise.

Bad News Bucky

08.21.09

Bucky has cancer

Bad News Bucky

Greetings from TC

Bad news first: about 2 weeks ago Bucky got pretty sick. Suddenly she couldn’t climb steps, became very lethargic, and the glands her neck and elsewhere became swollen. She began panting constantly even when it wasn’t hot.

I took Bucky to her Vet in Lake Leelanau. Dr. Harrison has diagnosed Bucky with a fast acting lymphoma common in dogs, but especially in Boxers. He also said that she probably had about a month to go before she would have wasted away.

I’ve heard of these fast cancers. Other Boxer owners have told me about their dogs being fine, then dead in a month. The news made me pretty sad and I barely kept it together in the doctor’s office. I asked him if it was time to put her down. I have friends that put their Boxer through chemo, spent a fortune, and not only did the dog die anyway, it was miserable the whole time. I told him I wouldn’t be able to stand seeing her miserable just to keep her alive.

Dr. Harrison showed me an article about the latest protocol just published in July. Good news is that cancer doesn’t seem to have spread and her appetite is good. He assure me we can make her feel better— at least for a while. Decided to pump Bucky up with steroids so she can enjoy her last weeks in comfort.

That was a couple days ago. The transformation is amazing. Bucky went to sleep crying and woke up a brand new dog, dancing around, wagging her tail, and wanting to do everything. Yesterday we took her to a sunset beach (Good Harbor) on Lake Michigan where she went swimming and played in the sand. The medicine has her running around and obviously feeling very happy.

Ron & Jann

Ron and Jann like having company. They don’t travel much, so Jann likes to bring the world to them. Ron likes taking folks fishing, but doesn’t have a captain’s license, so can’t make a business out of it even though he is very good at it. Ron is a hard working guy employed by a builder. A few years ago, Ron quit drinking. Most of his friendships revolve around church and fishing.

I met Jann about 25 years ago. She was a young mother with a toddler that had just extricated herself from an abusive relationship. She was in a desperate situation, so I invited her to stay at the farm only insisting that she buy her daughter some books. Jann is industrious and it didn’t take her long to get her life back together. Right away her daughter, Rachel took to the books and eventually became her high school valedictorian. I can’t take a lot of credit, but do like to count it as one of the good things I’ve done in my life.

Anyway, Jann and Ron have invited my friends from NC, Tim and Diana Glasson to visit and go fishing. Jann also likes playing music and is an aspiring banjo player. They have a place where Tim and Diana can plug in their RV.

The weather here has been mild. Long range forecast is for a warm September (warm here is like mild in NC). There is something sublime about being surrounded by a sweet water ocean. Once visiting here, like my friends from TX, people often find themselves wanting to come back…

Music & Fishing

There are open mic nights somewhere just about every night of the week here. I’m looking forward to performing with Tim while he is in MI. I’m sure Tim will like doing some fishing on Grand Traverse Bay. The weather is great. Plenty of room for the RV.

Ron sez the best of the Salmon season is over by Sept 15, so he thinks they should try to get up this way before then if they can.

I figure I’ll be in TC for a few weeks— or until it gets cold.

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…my destination is the journey

Click any picture to enlarge it.

Smokey made a bad, bad noise!

Summer Tour

O' Smokey: 81' VW diesel— so far so good. 1st Destination: Knoxville

Travel: Ol’ Smokey

Music: Karaoke

Folly Flamingo

Writing

Flight to Chicago

Tuscany

I liked driving the Hino Hino

The Drive Back

.

House Loan Approval

.

Weather

Bucky

Little Gem

Looking forward

Writing

Travel

Photography

Travel

Music

Bucky

Bad News Bucky

Ron & Jann

Music & Fishing

Personal

Recent Posts

Categories

Archives

Art & Photography

Recent Comments

O' Smokey: 81' VW diesel— so far so good.

1st Destination: Knoxville

I liked driving the Hino

Hino