Shower House Hall of Fame!

It's coming right along.....The roof is just about ready to be installed, thanks to the merry Sandpiper Building Crew.

Go back a few blogs to see them in action.

Garland, Bill & Gary have done a terrific job under rather brutal working conditions.

Have I mentioned that it's

HOT?But I neglected to show Roy...he's been a dynamo!

Roy has done ALL the electrical work in the new building.And cheerfully, too.And there's a lot of it. He's been in the corners and on the roof.Up ladders and hunched close to the floor...

But always with a smile.There is a crew of plumbers getting the showers ready to use.....I can almost see it.....

Enjoy the sky...soon the roof will be on.

Well done guys!

When you return this fall and winter,

and you stop to take a shower,

remember who made it happen.

Greetings from Canada!

"Hi there, to Suz and Jim and to those in the wonderful Sandpipers sunny and
fun park and also to those who read the blog religiously...

We heard it was hot hot hot in Texas but we just can't say the same here in
Québec Canada where we had visitors from Texas, in the rain and cool weather.
It looks as though we won't get a summer this year if it keeps going that way.

Yes, George and Kathy were in our park for the last few days and we also were
Happy with the presence of Bill and Monique who live not too far from our park.

It was really pleasant to see all those smiling faces and we had a good time
talking about almost everything over a brunch Francine and I concocted
for the occasion.

We join two pictures for the records. George could not believe I had played
twelve sand-volleyball games the very same day but it goes to show that my
heart condition has not deteriorated at all and that even a little progress is
under way with the new medication I'm on now. If it keeps up that way.......

Hang in there guys and gals, the hot hot hot weather will leave your area and
come north to warm us up a little.

Take good care of yourselves until we meet again.

Big hugs and kisses from the two of us to all of you"

Francine & Raymond

Champions!

From Vicki:

"Ekkehard and Dorothee participated in Empire Haven's Annual Petanque Tournament and were paired up with EH members Jay and Mary who have been to Sandpipers.

They lost their first game and were moved to the losers brackets.

They proceeded to win five more games and faced one

other team to decide first and second place.

They played against the team that beat them in the first round and they won again (win #6).

*

Because this was a double elimination tournament,

each team only had one loss, they had to play again.

Ekkehard and Dorothee came from behind and won 13 to 12 (win #7).

*

Ekkehard and Dorothee picked a Empire Haven T-shirt and an AANR cap.

They played more games (8) than any other team."

*********************

Wow! What a thrilling win! Congratulations Dorothee & Ekkehard, good job!

Just How Hot Is It?

While the sun is blistering everything in sight our

intrepid Sandpiper Construction Crew bravely struggles on. Garland & Bill, being up on ladders and thusly dressed for the occasion,

show off their hammering skills.Did I say "hammering?"

The noonday sun must have taken it's toll.Mayhem was narrowly averted.The cool, ahem, "head" of Gary brought peace to the construction site.Head Honcho.

*****

It was so hot today that I had an idea.

I bet I could cook an egg on the sidewalk.

If not on the sidewalk, how about in a cast iron skillet?I removed the egg from the fridge early in the day to warm up to room temp.

Then pre-heated the skillet in the sun for several hours.

When it reached 142 I couldn't wait anymore, so sprayed the pan with non-stick spray

and cracked in the egg.Temp dropped right away to the mid 130's.And stayed there....

After an hour and a half of not much happening I covered the pan with Saran Wrap...trying to make an oven, don'tcha know?

That did boost the temp....but after 2 hours plus, the sun started

to lower in the sky and I got bored. The finished product.

The yolk did cook along the edge of the temp probe.

And it's kinda hard to tell but the yolk did, hmmm, firm up a bit.

All in all, not a huge success.

Next time maybe I'll bake cookies in the car.

News from the Chilly North!

From Miss Vickie & Bob:

"Ekkehard and Dorthee are visiting us at Empire Haven and spending a week here. They met someone at our club who was formerly from Germany and another couple from Austria and had a nice visit speaking German with them.

We took Ekkehard and Dorthee to Watkins Glen for a walk up and down the Glen. There are a lot of stairs, waterfalls and small caves to walk through. Afterwards we stopped at a couple of wineries to sample wines. The picture is the Leidenfrost Winery on the east side of Seneca Lake (one of the Finger Lakes) just north of Watkins Glen"

Empire Haven Nudist Resort is located in the Finger Lakes area of New York State, in the crossroads of Summerhill. Summerhill's claim to fame is the birthplace of Millard Fillmore, the 13th President of the United States. He brought the first bathtub to the Whitehouse! Fillmore's birthplace is 2 rights and a left from Empire Haven...about 2 miles.

The town of Moravia has Fillmore Glen State Park and Fillmore Golf Course named after our 13th President.

Jon & Donna Report In.

First off...I must scream at my computer.

When I wasn't looking all kinds of nifty accelerators and upgrades appeared in the demon Windows Vista operating system and I can't figure out how anything works anymore.

I want to go back!

Why can't I go back?

So...after fruitlessly trying to cut and paste travelogues from John & Mary, from Tom & Louise, I have given up (temporarily) and will put up pictures with my own commentary.

**

Today...pictures from Jon & Donna's 4600 mile, 10 week odyssey.

They have visited with Sharon & Dick, Bob & Bernie, Joey & Barry,

Dave & Mary, Yves & Andre, and Tommy & Terry.....

Sharon & Dick

Donna & Joey, noodling...
At the ranch.....

In T & T's cave....

Jon with the biggest horse in the world!

Maybe someday I'll be able to cut & paste again...meanwhile...you really only look at the pictures anyway, right?!

Let's Eat!

Well, I can't but YOU can!

A while ago Mariana sent me this link to KGBT's Deals for Dining and I put it in a folder for later...later has come.

This is the real deal.

You buy a $50 gift certificate for only $25 from a different valley restaurant every week.

Wait, I said that wrong.

You don't have to buy a certificate every week.

You can pick which ones you want.

The link has the list into the future by several weeks, but quantities are limited to about 100 certificates per restaurant.

http://www.valleycentral.com/on_kgbt/discounts.aspx

Check it out and eat something for me.

More Skinny Dip Reports.

From Bob & Pam P....do check out the video (you must sit thru a short car ad but Pam does a bit at the end and is very impressive. What a great spokesperson!)

"Bob and I participated in the Guinness World Record Skinny Dip at Empire Haven in upstate New York. It was cold, windy, and rainy. You can read about it and see a video at http://www.news10now.com/content/top_stories/477027/more-than-a-hundred-for-skinny-dipping-record-attempt/?RegionCookie=1013 .

B & V (I just used their initials to protect their identity...but we know who you are!) joined us in the attempt. Since the health regulations prohibit more than 83 people in the pool at a time and there were 112 people willing to brave the nasty weather, some folks had to wait in the wind and rain while the others were in the pool. Our group had to stand on the side of the pool while the second group got in so a photographer could get a picture of the entire group. If I hadn't been fortunate enough to get out of the pool between my Bob and V's Bob, I would've been miserably cold. Those generous gentlemen allowed me to become the middle of a Bob sandwich that helped ward off the chill. Poor V was lost elsewhere in the crowd or she could've joined us in sharing body warmth..

John and Mary are here at Empire Haven, too. They stayed warm in their RV while we shivered at the pool. Maybe they had more sense than the rest of us.

Pam

P.S. Sue, we're delighted to hear you're feeling better. Congratulations on losing the first 12 pounds!! That's quite a bit to lose so quickly. Best of luck on losing all that you want to lose! Hope it's as painless as possible."

Quiet July.

All is quiet here at home.

The shower house is awaiting the return of the workers and delivery

of correct materials (this time) to begin interior work.

*

Louise (Norm's, aka Santa Clause's wife) is fading quickly.

She's been in hospital for the last several weeks and

has been spirited to the end.

*

Jim has been a real King around our house...doing laundry, cleaning and repairs while making sure I take meds on time and remember to eat and drink.

Lately he is feeling cursed, though. His computer has developed an evil spirit, the house water filter system sprung a leak, my watering system timer for my plants went bonkers, and to cap it all off our central air conditioner broke down-during what has to be some of the hottest weather yet at Sandpiper's.

Our house is 7 years old.

We've had extensive repairs on our AC unit.

The blower went out just after the warranty period expired.

Now...guess what?

We are 3 months past the warranty on this new blower and KABaAm! It's toast.

The jolly repairman, who loves a trip to Sandpiper's, just shrugs and says,

"They just don't make quality parts anymore."

Grrrr....I must move on to more pleasant things.

************************

Here is a pic of Lois & Ken from the trip this year in Rome. They scooted around Rome for 3 1/2 hours on these, these....what the heck are they called? She says it was fun but more work than they thought it would be, and highly encourage the rest of us to try it.

**********

Lanny & Donna report from Ashville, N.C. where, while awaiting an RV part, attended the Great Skinny Dip at Carolina Foothills Resort in Chesnee, S.C.

They not only got counted but played water VB all afternoon.

They were part of the 90 official dippers (plus 40-50 more who didn't sign the release).

In their photo (hope we get to see it) they are the only ones wearing Sandpiper Resort hats.

That really puts our 43 official dippers is perspective, doesn't it!? We are practically a ghost town but still managed to bring out the crowd. I am soooo sorry I missed it.

***

I'm feeling a scoosh better every day. Can manage to type a whole sentence with out using spell checker...sometimes. I'm learning how to eat, and have lost....drum roll please!

12 pounds!

Back From LA-LA Land.

Hello, my lovelies! I'm back, sort of.

My head is getting clearer every day

(you should have seen the first few emails I tried to type! Could NOT spell).

*

I'm starting to feel better.

Starting to eat.

Well, cream of wheat and yogurt and soup.

I'm taking a day at a time.

*

I missed the Great Guinness Book of World Records Skinny Dip

and the following scrumptious shrimp boil. (Mariana outdid herself)

Jim did go to the dip, though, and did enjoy the plate of shrimp Karen brought him later.

Where were you? Did you get to particpate? Let's hear from you.

*

The shower house exterior is complete (except for the roof) and they are working inside.

I now know there will be storage in the extra spaces, not an exercise room.

It should be done by September.

It'll take me a while to get back up to speed....Oh, Oh...I do have news.

Remember the Case of the Purloined Blue Ball? It has been anonymously returned. No ransom demands, no culprit observed....although a few volleyballers have quietly offered opinions as to the Id of the kidnapper.

I guess we'll just never know.

Blog Mistress Update

First of all, don't expect pictures or fancy clever words from me-(Jim 38) Just the facts.

Sue had her bypass surgery on Tuesday. The operation took three hours due to the fact that they could not do it Laparoscopy, (although they tried) due to her scar tissue from past operations. However the Dr. indicated that the operation was successful and he also repaired her heiatal hernia.

Today she is somewhat better but still full of tubes. She could talk with me today, although her throat is sore and she is somewhat nauseous.

She is anticipating a stay in the hospital of 4 days.

She is at the McAllen Heart Hospital, room 235.

A Dastardly Deed!

A crime has occurred.

A crime of unimaginable proportions.

The new blue water volleyball has been kidnapped and is being held

against it's will by a person or persons unknown.

We are awaiting ransom instructions.

Poor blue ball.

The old, herniated blue ball is still hanging out with it's

red, white & blue cousins, but the new one has disappeared.

It's only crime being a smidgen harder than it's brethren.

Some players took BB (blue ball) under their wings and embraced it's hard hitting speed...others scoffed at BB and threw it from the pool at every opportunity.
We BB fans are sad.

Come back BB.

We love you.

Trash...and We Need A Roof!

The sides of the new shower house are done and the crew is working inside,

but the interior work has us all baffled.

Can't figure it out...need more work done so we can tell what's what.

Love the pattern on the outside, though.

Now....the trash dumpster is a work in progress.

If..........

the garbage guy can be trained to push the button on the call box

to let the office know he's here to pick up trash...

and if.......
he is able to actually remove the trash from it's new location...

(Big if's)

Then an asphalt pad will be laid as a base for the dumpster.

And if none of the above "if's" work out then a new plan will be formulated.

But for right now trash can be dropped off via bicycle, foot or golf cart.

NO CARS! NO TRUCKS! NO RV"S.

If you do drive over the grassy area with a vehicle you will disappear from sight into the leech field, and you won't be pulled out, but will be left as a monument to hard-headedness and folly.
There is a barrier of bike racks to remind you.

A path will be laid for foot traffic in the near future.

*****

Once the garbage area is complete...just a few more weeks, hopefully...it will be combined with a new recycling center to make trash drop off and recycling a smooth and easy operation.

Plans are being developed to build something that really works,

'cause we REALLY need to reduce our trash footprint!

Management is working to get pick-up for big bulky items that don't belong in the dumpster

(did you know the park can be fined for throwing away the wrong kind of trash?)

We'll need more clarification on just what the "wrong" stuff is,

but I'm thinking big things like trashy recliners or broken stoves.

****

So patience...let's see how it goes.......

Jon & Donna-Where are They Now?

Colorado and Kansas were wonderful!
We started our exploration by visiting Toni and Paul

in their beautiful home with a breathtaking view overlooking Lake Granby.

They played hosts for us as we explored the area surrounding Rocky Mountain National Park (more about that later),

visited a couple of mouth-watering eateries, explored their ranch where the elk truly do roam, and in general, had more fun than a 6 year old in Disney Land.

We also enjoyed a wonderful dinner with friends that I knew from the "DC Project", explored Denver (yes Dave, the capitol building is awesome!), and then headed for Rocky Mtn. Natl. Park. Simply beautiful - and cold!

The Trail Ridge road - which is the highest continuous highway in the world - stretches for 50 miles through the park and tops out at 12,183 feet above sea level. The road was closed at the highest elevations the morning we arrived due to snowfall and drifting from the night before. They broke out the rotary plow which had already been put away for the season, and had the road open again by noon. We tried to meet up with Al and Shirley, but due to technical issues (Wi-Fi) and some scheduling conflicts, we missed them and have put them on our "must visit" next time through here. We then headed a bit south to the Colorado Springs area and drove up to Pike's Peak.

Well, as far up as we could go anyway, because the road above 13,000 feet was closed due to snow and the wind-chill was 20 degrees Fahrenheit. (Hey, this is the middle of June - what's with all of this snow stuff?) We also spent a day at a place called the Royal Gorge, spanned by a bridge constructed in 1929 suspended 1,053 feet above the Arkansas River. The bridge is about 1,260 feet long and the "floor" of it is made out of almost 1,300 wooden planks. I am not a great fan of heights, but walked across the bridge and took a tram ride, which is even higher (also listed as the longest single-span aerial tram in the world). We also visited 7 Falls in South Cheyenne Canyon. Here water cascades 181 feet in 7 distinct steps down a granite cliff of Pike's Peak granite. Next to the falls was a 224-step stairway which led us to the top and some wonderful views along the way (although I wish I had an oxygen bottle with me about half-way up). We also took a ride on Skyline Drive, a one-lane, one-way road climbing up an 800 foot ridge and then along it for over 3 miles. This road appeared to simply drop off the face of the earth in many places and provided enough adrenaline excitement to keep us going for quite awhile.
Heading east from the never-ending mountains and needing a chance

to rest up a bit, we stopped at Lake Wilson in north central Kansas.

This large man-made (Army Corps of Engineers) lake,

has many campgrounds operated by the COE

and also a couple of state parks dotting its shoreline. We had picked out a site in advance that surpassed our greatest expectations, located on a point of land that jutted out into the lake and parked nose-in so we could enjoy the ever-changing moods of the lake through our large front windows. But windy!!! The first night we brought the slides in as there were reported gusts in the area topping 70 mph.

(Reminded us of Texas ).

Arriving on a Wednesday, we stayed through the weekend

when it changed from a quiet, peaceful place into a Mecca for boat lovers

of all types, here to celebrate the Father's Day weekend.

To get away from the crowds, we used Saturday to tour a very large, working, underground Salt Mine. Traveling in a "cage" 650 feet straight down into the ground, we emerged into an underground labyrinth with 67 miles of tunnels burrowed through 970 acres that have been mined so far.
Leaving Lake Wilson, we headed east toward Missouri with a planned stop in Topeka and perhaps dinner with our friend Phaleta - but we did not manage to connect so continued on and spent a night boon docking at a Walmart in Nevada, MO.

(Note - this is pronounced "Nevayda" as we were pointedly told by locals ).

On to Lake of the Ozarks to spend time with friends in that region.
Hugs,
Jon and Donna