As massive storms moved across much of the country yesterday, we spent the day and evening monitoring the weather. This area of Tennessee was under a tornado watch, and we were braced for whatever Mother Nature decided to throw at us.
We’ve been in some really nasty weather in our 12+ years on the road, and we take it seriously. RVs don’t provide much protection against severe weather, and to ignore warnings is just plain foolish. We knew that the bathroom on the west side of the campground is the designated tornado shelter, and we were prepared to head there on a moment’s notice. We were glad that we weren’t out on the road someplace, or sitting out the weather in a rest area or WalMart parking lot. We’ve done that, too!
I post this blog a little after midnight local time, and we were still under the tornado watch at that time, so if you don’t see a blog post tomorrow, it may be because we were blown away to the Land of Oz. If we do, and if we land on a witch like Dorothy did, I hope it’s one of my ex-mothers-in-law!
We enjoy this area of Tennessee, but we are looking forward to getting down to Florida, so we will probably leave here Thursday or Friday. The most direct route is to take Interstate 75 south, but we’ve been over that route so many times that we could drive it in our sleep. Plus, we really don’t like driving through Atlanta.
So, for a change of scenery, we may take Interstate 40 east from Knoxville to Asheville, North Carolina, and then Interstate 26 across South Carolina to Interstate 95, which will take us south to Titusville. The mileage is about the same as taking Interstate 75, and we’ll pass through some areas we haven’t been to before.
During the afternoon, our friends Vince and Judy Douglas pulled in, and parked right across from us. It has been several years since we crossed paths, so when Vince and his little dog Lady came by to visit, it was a nice treat. I don’t like yappy little dogs, but I do like dogs of any size that are well mannered and have a good personality. And Lady has a great personality! I played with her for an hour or so as we chatted with Vince, and that little critter sure has a lot of energy! It was kind of like having my grandkids over; I enjoyed the visit and had fun playing, but I was glad Vince took her with him when he left. I like loaner dogs like Lady rather than having the responsibility of caring for one myself.
Speaking of dogs, I exchanged e-mails yesterday with a lady who got upset with us at our first Arizona Gypsy Gathering rally because we wouldn’t allow her to bring her dog into the seminar buildings, or to morning coffee and donuts. Since then she has contacted us every year wanting to attend our Arizona rally, but insisting that her dog be allowed to accompany her to all of the events, because it suffers from separation anxiety when left alone, and destroys things in her RV. And, just as I have every year, I told her that only service animals are allowed in any of the buildings. It’s our policy at every rally, and our insurance company insists on it.
I guess this time I really ticked her off, because she informed me that she will be in the fairgrounds parking lot with a sign saying “Nick Russell Hates Animals!” Actually, I like some animals much better than I do their inconsiderate owners.
Before I close this blog, I want to tell you about a neat website that my friends Orv and Nancy Hazelton discovered, and shared with me, called Mile By Mile. It lists state and interstate highways in every state, as well as Canada and Mexico, with mile by mile descriptions of what you’ll see along the way. I know I’ll spend a lot of time exploring this one, and I bet you will too!
Bad Nick laughs in the face of bad weather! He spent part of yesterday posting a new Bad Nick Blog titled Cruel And Unusual? Check it out and leave a comment.
Thought For The Day – Go where you are celebrated, not tolerated.
Nick Russell
World-Famous, New York Times Best Selling Author, and All-Around Nice Guy!
I’m with you respecting Mother Nature. She doesn’t fool around. One time in Texas we picked up and moved to find a more secure location behind a nice stone building. Those RV things are really kind of light!
Glad you had fun with your little visitor dog. I’m more of a big dog guy and we’ve got the long hair to prove it. (Long haired cat to go with the dog but we aren’t talking about them.) Our dog, like most larger dogs, is very well trained. However we’d never dream of bringing her into a big venue with lots of other people, dogs, and distractions. It just isn’t fair to the animal to expect them to put up with all that stuff. Too bad your reader is too thick-headed to understand that she’s putting her dog under terrible stress bringing it along. Leaving it in the rig (home or home-away-from-home) is way nicer for the animal.
Bad mannered pets are usually the result of bad mannered owners. Just as bad mannered kids are the result of bad mannered parents.
Hey Nick, if you do cut over to I-95 and take that down to Florida, just make sure that you’re doing at least 75 (like everybody else) or you might get rear-ended!
Nick & Terry,
You have timed your trip across I-40 to Asheville at one of the prettiest times of the year. I-26 is not a heavily travelled boulevard, so it, too will be very pleasant.
You are going to love going across to Asheville and down I-26. It’s beautiful up there this time of year. My cardiologist is in Asheville so we visit every fall. The air is crisp and the scenery gorgeous and its a fabulous area for fall leaves. There are some ups and downs but nothing your coach can’t handle. Enjoy.
You will enjoy the trip across SC, but once you get to I-95, it’s BORING through SC, GA, and FL, all the way to Miami. Flat as a board, not very exciting scenery, except for some salt flats in GA, and punctuated with zones of intense traffic angst, such as Jacksonville. I understand geting tired of one highway, but once you sample the alternative, you will go back to I75.
Whichever way you go, enjoy, and travel safe!
Has that pet owner ever considered a dog sitter who can watch her pet while she’s at seminars or the morning get together?
The lady who says she will put up a sign that says “Nick Russell Hates Dogs” is going to subject herself to ridicule. She underestimates the loyalty of Nick’s readers.
This lady needs therapy she lets her dog rule her life. She has not taught this mutt any obedience. Charlie our dog also has separation anxiety but one the door is closed he is fine. We never have received any complaints of him acting out while we are gone. We usually ask are neighbors on either side if he has acted out. A pet sitter is a good idea if she can afford one. As for her posting a sign about Nick hates animals everyone will end up ignoring her, this is if she got on grounds.
I know the person you are referring to, and I was there in Casa Grande when you told her over and over to keep her dog out of the buildings and listened to her raise hell about how mean you were. She is a member of our RV solos group. Her dog is a constant source of irritation to all of us, and she cannot understand why nobody wants it around. She never carries a bag to clean up after it because she has a bad back and cannot bend over to pick it up.When we have outings to restaurants, she insists on bringing her dog, and raises a ruckus when the business will not allow it inside. I think the dog is her way of getting constant attention.
It’s fairly common knowledge that you can train a dog to a crate. After awhile, and once it accepts the idea, you can simply leave the door of the crate open, and you will find your furry friend curled up in the relative quiet and safety of its crate, all on its own.
That excitable little dog belonging to the crabby owner COULD be taught to go into its crate and calm down. It also could be taught to tolerate the absence of its owner, and, ultimately, go peacefully to sleep in its snug, comfortable little “den”.
But, first, the demanding woman must accept being taught how to be a responsible pet owner. And, Nick, that seems pretty unlikely.
Hey Nick-
Just read your account in the current issue of Gypsy Journal and your ordeal of
crossing the Mackinaw Bridge. Be glad you weren’t there yesterday – they had
wind gusts of 74 MPH. Traffic was slowed to 20 MPH and I wouldn’t be
surprised if they didn’t close the bridge at some point. The winds were so
strong that they pushed the waters of Lake Michigan up so that the Chicago area
measured 2ft less than the top of the lake. Waves on Lake Superior were as high
as 26 ft. I heard that this storm was worse than the one when the Edmund
Fitzgerald sank in Lake Superior.
We had lots of wind here in southern Mich. but fortunately no tornadoes. Glad
you didn’t encounter any in TN.
Stay safe.
I will be at the Yuma rally and will volunteer to watch the dog for a minor small fee. I got a feeling this won’t be good enough though. I do offer to do it. Let me know, Nick, if this helps at all.