C&D Adventures 2018 (Gordon's Gone, but I am still suffering without my Data) Week 3

My wifi "hotspot" in the park 

9-3-18 Monday

Well it looks like we have a 50/50 chance of being evacuated from Topsail.

Tropical storm Gordon is bearing down on us.

So what do we do?

We got out for lunch and eat at a little restaurant called "The Local Catch".
It's a cute little place and seems to be pretty busy.

My favorite.  :)

The area we sat at had some local art that was quite funny.
The guys have hamburgers and Diana and I have fish and it was agreed upon that the food was quite tasty.

Back at the RV we turn on the weather station on the TV and start watching the latest updates on Gordon.

Ugh, so reminiscent of last year and our watch on Irma. 
The park is busy with people pulling out.
But we also notice that there are still people coming in.
We also notice that there are quite a few spaces empty, so that leads us to think that a lot of people have cancelled their plans due to Tropical Storm Gordon.

We have begun packing up just in case we actually have to evacuate.
Our neighbors on the other side have done the same.
We haven't been as neighborly as we should but we actually met them when they pulled in, but everyone is going their own direction so it makes it hard to stop and talk.

One of the funniest things we heard from Ray and Maria (our new neighbors) when they pulled in was that Maria cried 3 times on their first trip pulling their new trailer.
She hasn't cried once (that we noticed) so far.
I think they are getting this camping figured out!!!!  

9-4-18 Tuesday

Tropical Storm Gordon watch today.

The rains came around 10AM and basically it has rained off and on all day.

The storm threat has passed us and it looks like the tropical storm is going to leave us alone here in Topsail.
They are calling for quite a bit of rain, so it looks like we will be spending time in the trailers.

We got out this morning and went to the grocery for a few things.
The guys are with us, so the shopping was a little different than usual.  LOL

We also tried to get a donut at The Donut Hole but that wasn’t going to happen today.

They had a line out the door of people waiting to eat.
Not to be donutless today,

Diana uses HER "data" to find a Dunkin Donut instead.
We aren't but about 5 miles or less from it, so this hunt was easy peasy.
Just what we needed on this rainy day...sugar!!!

Back at the trailers we stayed in and stayed dry.

I finally finished my book that I had started while we were in Arizona.

I found a small coloring book page I could work on to pass the time away.

Since it was Tuesday it means it’s Taco Tuesday and we go to a local Mexican restaurant and had dinner.

Chuck and Chris had a Bushwhacker and Diane and I had a Top Shelf Margarita.
The guys said their Bushwhacker wasn't as good as the one they had from Harry T's....and our Margaritas were just so so.

When we left the restaurant there was actually a lull in the rain and we made it back to the RVs before it started raining again

Looks like we are going to get rain all night tonight.

Just glad we haven’t had any of the spin up tornado's they were saying were possible.

9-5-18 Wednesday

Light mist this morning so what a perfect time to hit the laundry.




The laundromat wasn't that busy and we knocked out 3 loads a piece fairly quickly.












There is an area by the laundry that is covered in blooming flowers to attract butterflies.
The Passion Vine that adorns the area is absolutely huge.
It always has a lot of blooms and I notice them every time we walk by.
My Dad (deceased for many years now) always planted a Passion Vine in our gardens every Spring.
I grew up marveling at the site of their blooms.
I hope my sweet Dad can see these blooms from heaven because I think of him every time we are here in the park.

As we finish getting our last load of laundry out of the dryers the rains decide to start.
Laundry is done for now and although we all had plenty of clothes it feels good to get caught back up.

After lunch Diana and I decide we are bored.
What else is there to do but go to Walmart.
Both of us buy new coloring books and pencils so we will at least have something to occupy the time while we watch it rain.

We also stopped at The Donut Hole and got some chocolate angels.

Back at the trailers, the rains let up and we were sitting outside under the Biggs awning.
We are sitting there chatting away when Debra and Craig Dickinson came by to see us.

This is the great part of RVing....you meet and reconnect with people that you have met in your travels.
In fact Debra was the person that told us about Topsails in the first place.  

After they left we decided to walk around the park.

There are a few places in the park you sure wouldn’t want to be parked at because it’s a lake in front of them.

We decided it was a good evening to make our shish-k-bobs for dinner.

Fresh green beans and corn on the cob accompanied our steaks.

The rains held off until we got everything cooked.
The food was cooked to perfection and it really hit the spot. 

After we finish dinner in our trailer we actually find a movie on the FX channel. 

Money Monster with George Clooney was an entertaining movie.
I am surprised that none of us had ever seen the movie.

500 loud commercials later we finish the movie. 
Are we spoiled or what, usually you DVR the movie or watch on a provider that doesn't require you to watch the commercials.
One thing for sure, it gives you plenty of time to talk and move around during all the interruptions,  look at it this way, you now know all the side effects of taking a certain medicine, and all the new products that you can purchase via the "As Seen On TV" commercials.

9-6-18 Thursday

We are going to have another rain day here in sunny Florida.

Out of pure boredom Diana and I make a drive to Walmart and surrounding shops.
Retail Therapy is a cluster of shops under one roof.
It was just nice to get out and touch things...if you are a shopper, you know what I mean.

I bet you can't guess where we headed after we finished at Retail Therapy.
If you said The Donut Hole, you are correct.

Did we get donuts?
Yes we did....chocolate angels for all our friends....well, actually we only share with Chris and Chuck...LOL
And we also got Pineapple Upside down cakes....and they were very good!

Lunch at the trailer and then an afternoon of coloring in our new color books.

I know you see all the exciting things we are doing as comical, but when it rains on your parade,  you have to make due.








We decide to get out for dinner and Diana had been told we need to go to Fudpuckers.

The place was a typical tourist trap,
Guess we are tourist because we really enjoyed it.

The alligators that were on site were pretty cool to watch.

The food and the punch were quite tasty.

Our waitress “Pepper” was a lot of fun and comical.












As we make our way back towards Topsail, I mention something about wanting to look for some shoes.
I guess billboards still work, or at least for this group, cause Chris sees one that says they have shoes and we are very close, so we dive into the parking lot and check the place out.
I didn't find anything but Chris did.
He got himself a new pair of Keen's.

Back at the park we take a walk so Chris can try out his new shoes out. 
He thinks he is going to like them!!

With all the rains it has become a mosquito heaven here so we didn’t stay outside very long.

We make plans to go to the beach tomorrow as it is supposed to be sunny.

9-7-18 Friday
Its a beach day for us today.
But first we have to check out this lizard that has decided to come out and enjoy the sun as well.
We have actually seen more reptiles this trip than we have ever seen in the three years we have come to Topsail.

We pack up our stuff in our little red wagon and head to the tram.  

The tram is pretty full of everyone that is trying to enjoy this beautiful day.
After all the rain we have had, we are ready for sunshine.  

The beach at Topsail is never very busy, but today we have a good amount of people there.

When we found our perfect spot in the sand we started setting up, and noticed the guy next to us had been building a castle in the sand.
Diana asked him how long he had been working on it and he say only about an hour.
It was really pretty cool and he had put quite a bit of detail in it as well.

We notice that Debra and Craig are there flying their new Pirate Ship flag.

The waters are much more calm than our last beach day.

You can tell the storms have passed and life is getting back to "normal".  

Today is probably the best day we have had since we arrived here.

Our Chef Chris grilled steaks for us and Diana and I fixed veggies for dinner.
Nice to be able to sit outside and enjoy the evening without any rain.  

Storms has formed but all we got was lightening and thunder.

9-8-18 Saturday
Diana and Chris get up bright and early to go down to the beach to see the sun rise.
Chuck and I don't partake but I know one thing for sure...we will see that sun when it gets a little higher in the sky.

Breakfast with the Ranger is at 9am today so we get on our bicycles and make our way over there for breakfast.
This year they had a pretty full house of people partaking in the breakfast.
It is one of the fundraisers they do for the park to get them some added funding.
It is always nice to have someone else cook for you, so why not go!
Enjoyed listening to the Ranger talk about the area and give us information about the park.

Our breakfast didn't last very long today so now our sights are on lunch.
The little BBQ restaurant down the way is going to be our stop for today.
98 BBQ was a nice change from all the fish we have been having.  

After we finish eating we go by a Golf Cart place that we have seen and wanted to check out.  

We looked at electric golf carts and they even had electric bicycles.
The gentlemen that was there working really didn't think we would be buying anything, so he just let us look around.
Heck for all he knows we were going to buy 4 of those bikes.
Chris was really itchin to buy one but alas we walked out empty handed.  :)


We sit outside and watch some football on the outdoor TV.
Diana and I are coloring in our books and enjoying the time together.



During our afternoon a baby squirrel decides he wants to be part of our day.
This little guy is very small and not scared of us at all.
Bronco is doing good with her "leave it" although you know she would really like to chase the little guy like she does at home. 

Later in the day we see there are actually two babies and they make their way back up to their nest high in the tree that is next to our rig.  

Their mom had let them come down and explore the new world they will be living in.

I bet she was just glad to get them out of the nest for a bit!  

All of a sudden out of the corner of my eye, I see a lizard running under our trailer.
Lordy lordy, there is a large snake chasing the lizard.
All this time we are telling Bronco to "leave it" and she is doing her best to do just that.
The lizard gets away and crossing in front of Bronco and once again she has to "leave it".
The snake has slithered under our truck.
Chuck thinks it's time to burn the truck....LOL
You know Chuck doesn't do very well with snakes....and this guy is pretty darn big.
Diana gets on her phone ( because she can use her data) and finds out that it is a "coachwhip" snake.   
Looks like he has slithered over to the walk area between the Biggs trailer and ours.
Not sure that Chuck will be walking through there ever again...ROFL.

Our neighbor Maria and Ray came over and talked a while.
Ray sits with the guys and watches some football.
Maria sits down by us and we get to know her.
Loved listening to Maria's Alabama accent...such a sweet lady.

They are new to the trailer life so we suggested a few groups on Facebook to learn more.

What nice people.

Think we could have some fun with them but sadly they are leaving tomorrow morning.

Dinner was pizza (from Walmart) on the Traeger grill.
I made a salad to go with it.  
Dinner was pretty tasty!

No rain on us today....great day in paradise.  

9-9-18 Sunday

Diana informs us of another snake in our walking path between the trailers.

Chuck is not happy about hearing this.

Afraid of being eaten by a resident snake we take our little path a lot slower and keep our eyes peeled;) and let Bronco lead the way. LOL
Gosh, that's really bad of us...nothing like sacrificing your dog.

Relaxing morning as we sit and watch the squirrels come and get pieces of popcorn that Diana has put out for them.
The larger squirrels knew just what to do with the food, but the babies have no idea.

We notice that Marie and Ray are getting ready to hitch up to leave.

It was only neighborly to go over and disturb their departure and say our goodbyes to them.

We girls had to share some RV thoughts and also make sure we are friends in Facebook before they pull away.

Enjoyed meeting our new “Alabama” friends.

We will be leaving Topsail in the morning.

I think it has been a nice two weeks here.

Only way it could have been better is if I had "data" so I could keep up with the world. (aka Facebook.)

I feel so out of touch.

It’s probably good for me to not have constant availability of the Internet but it really sucks when you are so used to it.

When we get home we will be checking on some options and attempt to get unlimited Internet without spending an arm and a leg for it.

More to come on that process, but for now, we begin to pack up our belongings so we can pull out in the morning and make our way back west.  




Diana and I make one last trip to Walmart to get some food for the road trip tomorrow.
When we get back the guys are standing over by our bicycles looking at something.
Seems the little baby squirrel has decided that he likes our place.
He is actually hanging out on my bike.
Diana comes up to him and he just stands there.
She extends her arm out and he climbs right on up to her chest.
OK, I am about to freak out right now, and I find out later that she was too.....she has a wild animal on her chest.
The little guy didn't seem to care and finally she got him to walk back off her arm and onto my bike.
This was just really strange to have a little guy like this so tame.
By golly Chris was even able to get a picture to prove it.
Check this out!  (Diana was sooooo brave!)




For our last evening in Florida we go to Pompano Joes for dinner.
The place is right on the beach, and we got a great seat that looks out onto the ocean.
I really don't think there is a bad seat in the place, but people were waiting to eat outside....heck we felt we were doing just that.
What a great way to end our stay here.