You know that Deb and I took a trip…Vicksburg, Gulfport, and Mobile. We’d rented a motor home and set out last Sunday morning about 4:30. We left home and had basically no traffic until we’d gotten to almost Tallahassee.

We were like…man, this is just going TOO smoothly, especially on the last travel day of the Thanksgiving long weekend. Where in the world is all of the traffic we were anticipating? We just guessed most must have gone home on Saturday, or, so we thought.

But, about Tallahassee it began to get heavier…and heavier…AND HEAVIER! Still though, it was no problem. Everything was flowing smoothly, and there just weren’t any problems. Like I’d said earlier…things were going just too smoothly.

We did realize that we were heading right into rain, but we just kept watching the sky up in front of us for the clouds involved in the cold front that we knew was headed our way.

The front that we were headed towards, from what we’d seen prior to leaving, was simply a band of showers that you normally get with these coldfronts, a thin sliver of rain pushed along by the front itself. No problem! We’d just pullover at a rest area until the rain passed…two, three hours tops.

No sweat, we’d stop, grab a bite to eat, maybe rest up, then go on. This motor home traveling was, well… “the cat’s meow!” Why in the world had we not thought of doing this before now?

So, just as we’d planned, we kept watching the front get nearer, and we started gauging rest stop distances, and sure enough, JUST as it first started drizzling we were pulling off into a rest area…about 90 miles west of Pensacola, and…the Alabama line.

It was 12:00 our time, and 11:00 their time. We were making great headway, and I told Deb that if the rain blew through in the next hour or so, as we had anticipated, then shoot, we’d be in Vicksburg by 4 or 5 o’clock!

We made a sandwich, walked Cheyenne before the rain started in earnest, then went back in, sat down, and relaxed for a while. Man, this RV traveling is ALRIGHT!

Then it really started raining, and it was coming down good for about an hour. At this point, it laid some, and we’re thinking that we’ll let the roads dry off a little from the traffic, then we’ll hit it again. Then it began to darken once more, and here it came again.

Now we’ve been sitting two hours, then three hours, and it looked as if it was finally blowing on out, so, we headed back out. Now though, we have wet roads, THEN even MORE traffic. BUT, we felt the rain had stopped, and it did! Phew!!!

Until…we got about 8 to 10 miles outside of Pensacola. THEN it came down harder than it had previously, so, off the Interstate once more. This time there was no rest area, and the exit we got off on showed gas stations off this exit, and there were, only 4 miles to town is where they were.

So, we headed to town down a two lane road that wasn’t much better than a dern pig trail. It was curvy as a snake, and we couldn’t hardly see the road because it was raining so hard. We finally came to a gas station and I went ahead and fueled up since we had stopped.

While I fueled up, and paid for the gas, ole Deb got on her computer, pulled up a radar, and guess what? This front we were in the middle of had formed into a low pressure area, and it was raining as far west as…TEXAS!

Deb and I both were like…WHAT in the world have we done? So, Deb says, why don’t we just go to James house and stay there a couple days? James used to be our neighbor here in Central Florida, and he moved to southwest Georgia about three years ago.

I tell Deb that it sounds good to me, so I called James…no answer. Deb goes…get me home! I’m like, are you sure? She says that she’s positive, and she’s stressin in all this traffic, and then the rain was making any attempt at driving pure misery. Let’s go home!

Well, that’s exactly what we did. We U-turned that mutha, and back to Haines City we were headed! The problem now though, was we were tired, stressed, and it was still raining and getting dark fast. But, we really needed to get ahead of the rain before we stopped for a little shut eye.

We stopped about 11 miles outside of Live Oak, slept, or you could call it that, for about an hour and a half. We got up, drove to Ocala, fueled up, and drove to the Florida Turnpike, and stopped at the Okahumpka Plaza, stopped and slept another couple hours.

We then got up, and drove home. You ought to have seen Dale’s face when Deb, Cheyenne and I came through the gate at the house. He was like, what in the heck are you guys doing back here? After all, we’d just left the morning before.

Deb beats me off the motor home and tells Dale, “Well, Dub got as far as Pensacola, then got to thinking about that he’d told you to keep our okra cut for us, and just keep it and pickle you up a bunch while we’re gone. Once he realized how much okra you’d get while we were gone, he said to heck with this…we’re goin home!”

Dale’s exact words were, “It sounds just like him!”

So, in just a little over 24 hours, ole Deb and I had driven right at 1,000 miles…in the rain, in the wind, and those dern semi’s going by us like there was no tomorrow. When they’d come by, they’d blow that motor home back and forth!

Once we got stopped in front of our house, I swear my arms, and fingers ached from grippin that dern steering wheel so tight. I was hanging on! But, with the good Lord’s help, and I do mean with his help, we got back home!

About 20 miles from our house, there was a pretty new motor home for sale out by the highway. I told Deb, “Lookie there, they’d bought them a motor home, and they’d probably driven to Pensacola and back, all in the same day too, in the rain, the dark, and fightin those dern semi’s! After getting back home, they put a for sale sign on it, and were gonna…buy a Honda!”

Deb’s words in answering my statement… “you’re probably right, cause if this one were mine…it’d be for sale time we pulled up in the yard!!”

In defense of motor homes though, I still feel they can be a lot of fun…I think. First off, the motor home coaches we saw on the highway, were dual axles in the rear, and had big diesel motors. Yes, they are surely a “step up,” versus what we drove, but they’re heavier no doubt, so I have to imagine much easier to keep on the road.

But, the one we rented was definitely nice, and weather permitting, they’re really no big deal to drive. We just happened to be on the road at the wrong time. Too much traffic with the holiday ending, plus we literally got into hours and hours of rain.

So, what did we learn? We learned we’d not be planning trips through the holidays. I’d never seen traffic this bad before…ever. Those dern people were whipping in and out of traffic, the traffic was bumper to bumper, and still they were just whippin in and out…in the rain…at night! We were glad to get home!

Just east of Tallahassee, about 11 pm., there was a wreck in the westbound lanes. 5-6 cars, at least, and I-10 westbound was shutdown…all three lanes. I’d bet the traffic was stopped for at least 10 miles if not more. Every time you’d come up a hill, once you topped it there were headlights as far as you could see, stopped, on I-10.

Well, long story short, we’re back at home, and…lovin every minute of it! I gotta go now though…I got okra to pick!! LOL!

You guys have a great day, and God bless! Deb says to keep a smile on your face, and one in your heart!

Dub and Deb

You know Deb and I are headed to Vicksburg, and although we’ve had a couple of delays, what else is new, we’re leaving out Sun. morning at 4 am. We’re really looking forward to the trip, and are ready to get headed out.

This will be Deb and my first “vacation” to come and go as we please, in maybe 5-6 years, and goodness gracious, I hope I know what to do with myself.

We’ll start off stayin with Sandra, or “Mississippi,” so as bad as I hate it, it’s looking like I’ll have to have my “manners on.” I sure hope I can pull that one off, but I promise you, ole Deb’ll keep close tabs on me! Course, that’s her job description…keepin Dub outta trouble!

She does a good job at it, but good night, she’s on call 24-7 in that regard…

We’ve rented a motor home for the trip, and I did a video showing the one we’ve rented. We took it for 14 days, and I gotta tell you all, we both thought they’d be a little more expensive, but we were pleasantly surprised at the cost. In reality, we both are wondering why we’ve never checked into using them prior to now??

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the video, and if you’ve never looked into traveling this way before, I suggest you look into it. Again, you may be just like Deb and I, and be surprised at how reasonable these actually are.

In this video, we have Shelby Lynn, our 4 year old granddaughter giving us a tour of it. I got the biggest kick outta of doing this with her, and honestly, I thought she did a great job! Check her out, and let us know.

We had one lady that watches our Youtube videos and she commented on how cute Shelby was, and that as she got older, she’d get out of her “camera shyness.” For those that already know Shelby, you’re already aware that Red is her Daddy, and neither he, nor Shelby Lynn have a shy bone in their bodies!

Now, an update on our hog pen/trap. You know the hogs had become a problem in regards to our pastures, so we built a good, strong pen to catch these dern things! Check.

The trap door, we’d gotten a little advice from a man up in North Florida, so after taking a look at his method for the door, we then changed ours out. Check!

So, we baited the pen up, for couple of days, then baited the trap in earnest. The first night it was set, I knew we’d caught the pigs. Cheyenne kept running to our fence and just barking away back towards the pen, so I knew she was hearing them. Sure enough she did…the pigs WERE caught! Check!

I got up the next morning, went to the pen, and sure enough…the pigs were gone. Check! Wait a minute, the pigs were gone?? Yep, we’d left a stump inside the pen next to the fence, and sure enough, the dern things had climbed up on the stump, and jumped out.

I knew to cut that thing out, but we didn’t, so boy, I was ticked! I imagine though, the dern pigs were probably pretty elated over our stupidity! The trap builders not being very smart? CHECK, and DOUBLE CHECK!! LOL!!

Here’s a video of the pen after we’d caught the pigs. You can see they rooted the pen up all over, and you can see the stump they jumped off of to escape. I just imagine the dern things had got a good view of me out there before, and once they saw that trap door close shut, they had only one thought on their mind…ME, lightin up the grill! LOL!

I’d of left town too, under such dire consequences, wouldn’t you have as well?

So, we immediately cut the dad-gum stump out, and raised up the sides of the pen another half a bull panel, or two more feet. Now, we’re ready once again! Look out pigs, we’ll git ya now for sure!

So, here’s a look at our new, redone pen/trap.

I can smell the smoker now…

Well guys, we’re gonna close for today, and if we can pick up internet on Deb’s laptop, we’ll keep you aware of our comings and goings, and post a few times while we’re gone. You guys take good care, and we’ll be speaking with you all very soon.

Thanks for all your support in regards to our site, and God Bless each and every one of you!

Thanks for droppin back in to visit with us once again, and Deb says to keep a smile on your face, and one in your heart!

Dub and Deb

Well, Friday morning Deb and I are going to take a little trip. We’ll be gone 10-14 days, and we’ll be taking along our “baby girl,” Cheyenne along too. Deb says she ain’t going without ole “Shiny girl.” I suggested they stay here and I’d go alone, but that ain’t gonna fly. I wonder why??

Anyway I told her we needed to take a break and get away for a few days and she said, “Where to?”

I suggested Orlando, it’s about 20 minutes from us, and she said, “No way!” I asked her, “Why, is it too far to drive? If so, we can stay a little closer to home if you’d like…we don’t really HAVE to go that far if you don’t want to.”

Well, she’s JUST NOW started speaking to me again! I swear, I’ll never figure a woman out! I did tell her that I’d take her on a trip, but shoot, I figured Orlando would be far enough! Wouldn’t you?

You guys can weigh in on this too, if you’d like. I’d kinda like hearing from you on this one. If you feel I’m right in this thinking…please let Deb know, okay?

Actually we’re going to Vicksburg, Mississippi for 4-5 days first off. We’re headed out there to meet a woman and her family for the first time. We met this lady through our website, and what a good friend she has become to Deb and I.

You’ve seen her comments many times, and she is a wonderful person. She’s the lady you all know as “Mississippi” on our site. She is who supplied us with that delicious fried okra recipe.

Her name is Sandra, and actually Sandra has become a part of our extended family. Sandra started commenting on some of our columns, and she and I started corresponding back and forth like we do with so many of ya’ll anymore.

Then Deb was diagnosed with cancer, and her and Deb have spent many hours on the phone together since. Those two all of a sudden had a common bond after Deb’s diagnosis…Sandra had cancer too.

Sandra has been fighting cancer since 1998. She’s been undergoing chemo on and off since 1998, and last week Sandra received wonderful news…CANCER FREE!! Isn’t that just the greatest thing? We’re so very happy for her and her family.

We had the trip planned prior to her getting her all clear, but this is literally the icing on the cake for our trip. We’re just ecstatic over her good news, and we can’t wait to get there and hug her neck! This has been a long time coming for her, and bless her heart, she deserves all the good things that come her way!

We’re also looking forward to…some good eats while we’re there! I’m just willing to bet them Mississippi women can put some good groceries on the table! I personally…can’t wait.

I’ll be in kinda a Catch 22 while there though. First off, I’ve been on a diet, plus trying to basically eat most of the things Deb has been needing and eating, such as fresh fruits and vegetables. This along with MORE fresh fruits and vegetables! LOL!

Since trying to eat more along the lines of what Deb’s been needing, I’ve lost 36 pounds. I got on the scales at Winn-Dixie earlier today and was down to 279 from, well, you do the math…

But, my dilemma is this…I sure don’t want these nice people putting on the feedbag, and them feeling like maybe I don’t like there cooking. I gotta tell you, if they thought that, well, that just might break my heart. We sure don’t want to do that, do we?? Heck No!

So, I’m leaning towards eating enough so they know I enjoyed it. LOL!

Anyway, we’re looking forward to finally meeting Sandra and her family face to face. Deb said that Sandra had told her that she’d have everybody there, waving at us when we pull up.

Deb says, “Well, Sandra, you think they’ll be waving to beat the band when we pull up, if you REALLY want to see em waving at us, then just wait until they see us pulling out!” She told Sandra also, “That they’ll be so happy we’re leaving, they might just throw a shoulder out of socket!”

I told Deb after she’d told me about it, “To speak for herself, they might actually LIKE me!”

Once we leave Sandra, we’ll head down to Gulfport to see one of Deb’s sister’s, Joyce, and her two daughters, Karen and Amanda. Joyce has already put in her order for fresh peas, I knew I shouldn’t have made a video of our food storage room dad-gummit!

But I told Deb not to worry, I’d already pulled a pint of peas off the shelf, and dern if they ain’t got Joyce’s name written all over them! Deb said, “A PINT?” I told her if she didn’t want to take Joyce that many, I’d just dump her a jelly jar full!

I swear, in Deb’s regard, I don’t know whether I’m comin or goin. She says Joyce wants some peas, I grab a pint, tell Deb what I’ve got…and she gets mad?? Well, what’s she mad at?? Am I giving too many peas away, or does she feel a pint isn’t enough?? You know, if they’d just come out and tell you what they wanted you to take them, wouldn’t life be much simpler? I’d think so! LOL!

Seriously though Joyce is gonna get her peas, and we’re looking forward to seein her and her family too. Joyce, I believe, is a blackjack dealer at one of the casino’s, so man, I’m gonna have to keep ole Deb on a short leash!

Oh that woman sure might like to gamble some, and she has only one drawback which pertains to gambling…she ain’t very good at it!! Hence…the short leash statement!

But, we’re going for a good time, and I’ll be the first one to admit it, and the loudest to shout it…she deserves this getaway! Since her diagnosis, she has worked so very hard in fighting this, and I’m here to tell you…she’s doing one heck of a job! This IS her trip, and she’s welcome to do whatever she wants, whenever she wants. This one…is on me!

We’ve been really busy lately, and on top of that we’re trying to get our stuff together. But I told her to don’t worry about anything the next two to three days. By giving her these next few days off, so to speak, I figure that ought to give her PLENTY of time to get out on the road shoulder and pick up enough aluminum cans so she can have her a little jingle in her pocket…to gamble with!

See, I pretty much think of everything, huh?

We’ve got a little surprise while we’re in Gulfport. We have two other readers, Sandy and Bill, from Mobile. You know these guys too, if you’ve read us very long. They’re our two friends from Alabama who have been supplying me with the Bama football team jokes, and Sandy comments from time to time as well.

Well, Sandy and Bill are going to meet us in Gulfport too. We’ve never met these guys face to face either, but boy, we’re sure looking forward to it! They’re just good, down to earth people too.

Once leaving Gulfport, we may stop by their home on the way back. We’ve got to stop in Lucedale, Mississippi on our way home to look at a mobile kitchen. Deb and I are contemplating getting one and starting a barbeque stand…you know our motto already…“you’d have to be a rooster…to get a better piece of chicken!” Now, if you were driving by, and saw that quote…you’d just HAVE to stop and try it, wouldn’t you? Yeah, you would!

Anyway, we’re not going just to buy one outright. We just want to see what’s out there, how they’re set up, and the cost.

We have talked about one for the last couple of years. People will come over, eat with us and go, “Man, you guys ought to have a restaurant, this is GOOD!” I’m like, “Oh, really? It’s free right now. Would you still come and tell us how GOOD it is, if we were charging you $7 bucks a plate??” LOL!

Actually though, we’d just about talked ourselves into one, and then…Deb was diagnosed with cancer. For those who remember this, her prognosis wasn’t good at all. 8 to 9 months without treatment, so that knocked our barbeque stand in the head.

Well, now we’re 8 months into it and Deb looks, and feels great, so, we’re beginning to rethink this little venture. She has been telling me now for the last couple months, I’m ready to do this if you are, so we’ll see. Maybe we will, maybe we won’t but we are looking at it again…

But as you guys can see, our trip is based upon people we’ve met through this site. Once again, Deb and I would like to thank everyone of ya’ll for being so supportive of “Ridin Out the Recession.”

This site has made this trip available to us. This site has allowed these friendships to nourish, and hopefully this continues to be the case. We love each and every one of you guys, and because of you, we look forward to getting a new column back up, and visiting with you all once again!

If any of you live close enough to possibly “hook up” with us while we’re gone, we’d love to see, and meet you as well. Drop us a line, and I’ll send you our cell phone numbers, and who knows…the more the merrier!

God Bless you and yours, and Deb says TO BE SURE and keep a smile on your face, and one in your heart!

Dub and Deb