OK, starting with this blog entry I am going to change the writing style. As most of you have probably figured out I (Dale) write this nonsense. Lisa convinced me it might be more natural and easier for me to generally write from 'my' perspective rather than 'our' perspective. The disadvantage to this is that when I describe one of my bonehead maneuvers, it'll bring it closer to home as I talk about it. When I used to refer to 'Dale' performing this or that less than admirable maneuver, it was like I was talking about someone else. Now we'll all know who 'I' is. Oh well, here goes.
I know it sounds like a broken record, but once again time has flown by. We have less than a week left in our month of living just 20 minutes from Mickey and the rest of Disney World. While our stay hasn't quite lived up to the lively expectations the first night might have suggested, we have enjoyed our time here very much. Deer Creek RV Golf Resort is an ownership park where several lots and homes are available for rent either directly from the lot owner or through the resort management office. We went through the resort office. There are 5 sections to the development. The first four sections are a mix of motorhomes, fifth wheels, travel trailers and park model trailers.The newest section, Regal Pointe, is where we're staying and is restricted to Class A motorhomes. I really appreciated getting back onto a nice clean pad to park the motorhome. And being a complete brick paver pad, as are all of the pads in Regal Pointe, has been a first for us. The outside of the coach stays much cleaner as well as the interior since we're not tracking in dirt and grass. We could get used to this 'clean' living. Besides cleanliness, Deer Creek also has good electricity. No funny power business like Recreation Plantation. And the water pressure is the highest we've encountered so far, about 80 psi. This meant I had to use the (cheap) water pressure regulator (aka cork) I bought early-on in our adventure just in case we encountered such a high pressure situation. I learned cheap is sometimes just that, CHEAP!! Our wonderful water pressure regulator did such a good job of protecting our water system that the washing machine faulted out and shut down for lack of water. The cork (aka water pressure regulator) took us down to something less than 40 psi. That, combined with the fact we are 8 months into the life of our original factory whole house water filter, resulted in a relative trickle inside the coach. So, our first adventure in Davenport found us heading off to the Kissimmee Camping World (and Sams Club just because it was there). I bought an adjustable pressure regulator this time with a built-in pressure gage. Installed it, dialed up to 60 psi, and Voila! plenty of pressure for showers and keeping the washing machine happy. What a wonderful invention! Over the next three weeks we watched a lot of Winter Olympics, rode bikes around Deer Creek, and generally enjoyed being in a very nice park. Lisa spent a few hours relaxing by and in our Regal Pointe pool and hot tub. I joined her on a few occasions, but spent much of my time on paperwork and more tax prep. I managed to find time to whack at a few balls at the onsite driving range and once again convinced myself that I should never step foot on a golf course.
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| Lisa took a picture of her pedicure at our Regal Pointe pool |
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| That wonderful adjustable water pressure regulator |
One of the more memorable outings we did manage to fit in was a trip to Safari Wilderness in Lakeland on February 19th. Lisa found a Groupon for half price admission. This is the kind of excursion we always looked for when traveling with Kristy and Kelly. They always got a big kick out of seeing animals and we loved watching their expressions. But how would it be without them? Actually, we thoroughly enjoyed it. Our guide, Kathy, was enthusiastic about the mission of the sanctuary and extremely knowledgable. Unfortunately, my memory is anything but a steel trap and I won't have a chance of regurgitating the names of all of the cool animals we saw. They had two main habitats: Africa and Asia. Each contained animals related to those regions. We got to feed Asian water buffaloes right from the safari truck. Lisa got a picture or two of their long blue/purple tongue that would come out to latch onto the feed pellet. After the nearly two hour driving tour was over our Groupon included the additional cost option to feed the lemurs. And what did we feed them you ask? Nice sticky grape pieces. The reason the experience was so sticky is that we had to tear each grape into at least four pieces as the whole grape was too large for the lemur to eat. Have you ever torn apart a grape with your bear hands? How about several without washing in between? Try it. Alright, I'm not really complaining. It was actually very cool having them take the grape from you with their little hands (paws?) and then lick at least some of the juice off your fingers. There must have been at least a dozen vying for your attention and grape pieces.
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| The photographer wandering before the tour |
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| In front of our tour bus |
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| Wait for me! I'm supposed to be on that bus! |
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| Hey Buddy! Just try and make us move off this road. Ever seen a llama spit? |
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| I'm going to go check these guys out. |
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| Watch it! I've got my eye on you! |
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| This is what happens to your horns when you stick your hoof in a light socket. |
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| Ain't he cute? Warthogs rule! |
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| African cattle |
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| Will that be one hump or two? |
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| Asian Water Buffalo |
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| Dueling tongues |
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| Can I tell you a secret? |
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| Gazelle |
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| Z-donk's: cross between a zebra and a donkey |
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| Feeding the Lemurs |
On Thursday, February 20th we locked up the BBB and headed to Kissimmee for two nights with our friends, Gary and Linda Moore, who were staying in a timeshare at Westgate Vacation Villas. Some of you who have been following our blog from the beginning might recall that Gary and Linda were our first overnight guests in the BBB while we were camped up in Gaylord, MI. We spent some time catching up and then they made us a nice dinner. Their reward for making us dinner was to have us teach them a new game. You guessed it: Marbles. A great time was had by all. Well, at least for the guys. I don't want to brag or anything, but Gary and I won all three games. We finally called it a night at 2 AM. The next day we introduced them to Florida flea markets. After 3 markets with mostly the same stuff we went back to their place empty handed. That Friday evening we drove up to Leesburg to meet our Recreation Plantation friends, Lori and Paul, and, Linda and Claude, at the always excellent Oakwood Smokehouse and Grill. And just to ensure we all had too much to eat for the evening, we went next door to the Perkins afterward for dessert. It was great to see them once again. Back at Gary and Linda's another intense round of marbles ensued. Alas, the guys could not remain undefeated. Lisa and Linda won the second game. Again, I don't want to brag, but the guys still got 2 out of 3. Stayed up till 2 AM again.
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| Oakwood Smokehouse and Grill |
On Saturday, February 22nd, we headed back to Deer Creek to receive a visitor. Kathy Chrzanowski, a friend from St. Matthew in Walled Lake, was passing through the area on her way to Naples. Kathy had gone to India on a mission trip with our Pastor Paul Moldenhauer late last year, so it was neat hearing about the trip firsthand. We had been on the road by the time they made the trip. Although it would be too long to relate the story here, it gave us goosebumps hearing about at least one 'godcidence' from the mission trip. Kathy had been Kristy's confirmation leader and had children the same age as ours, so it was also good to exchange kid updates. After a nice two hour visit she headed down the road to Naples.
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| Lisa and Kathy Chrzanowski |
On Tuesday, the 25th, we golfed at Kissimmee Golf Club with Gary and Linda. It was a fun day and not as bad as my earlier experience at the driving range might have indicated. Although the course was in good shape and we all had some nice shots here and there, the most memorable part of the day was the airstrip immediately adjacent to the golf course. Lots of small planes taking off and landing, even a couple of cool old yellow warplanes practicing taking off in pairs and flying in formation. The pilots would even wave at us at they went by. Finished the day with dinner at a nearby sports bar.
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| Lisa, Dale, Linda, and Gary |
On Saturday, March 1st, we golfed at the Orange Lake Resort Legends Walk Course. It's an Arnold Palmer designed Par 3 course. Lisa was ON her game. She shot a 34 on the par 27 course including her first birdie of the day. Although I had fun, my scores won't be quoted here. Suffice it to say, Lisa took me to school. Our GroupGolfer certificate gave us unlimited golf for the day. So we played a second round, then headed over to Universal's City Walk for some shopping and dinner. After dinner we came back to the golf course for a first. We played golf at night. That's right, the Walk Course is lit for nighttime play. The person on duty during the day suggested that we might see the Disney Epcot fireworks from the course if we got there at the right time. We got there at the suggested time, but never saw the fireworks. No big deal. However, the big deal was that Lisa was on her game again and followed her daytime birdie with a nighttime birdie. Double high five!! It was definitely a unique experience golfing at night, but Lisa and I decided our accuracy needs to improve. Although the course is lit, it's only lit where one is supposed to hit the ball. That's a problem when the balls don't glow.
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| Lisa's first birdie of the day from where she's standing! |
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| Yeah, I think I can do this. |
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| Nighttime golf at the Orange Lake Legends Walk Course |
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