2012 Lake Trip - Day 2

I woke up on day 2 of my trip freezing.  A look at the thermostat said 62, even though it was set at 68.  I set the controller to 83 just to see what would happen. Nothing happened.  I put in a call to the property manager.  

In the meantime, I made breakfast. I enjoyed scrambled eggs, a blueberry bagel and cream cheese, but not how cold my feet and nose were. 

I layered up and went fishing down on the private dock. It was very windy, and cold.  I had a couple of small bites, but nothing I wanted to bother pulling in and taking off the hook, so let them go.  It wasn't about catching fish, it was about the process and just being there.  I had a lovely conversation with a turtle that came to visit while I was sitting on the dock.  The little birds that would come down and sit on the edge of the concrete were a beautiful shade of green.  The honking of geese and quacking of ducks surrounded me almost constantly.  The highlight of the morning was when a great blue heron swept down right in front of my face.  After an hour I was too cold to move my fingers, but happy, it was time to head back up the hill to the house.  

 

View from fishing dock.

Once in the house I made a couple of cups of hot tea to warm myself.  As I was sitting on the couch wondering if I would ever feel my toes again the phone starting ringing.  The property manager, the property owner's mother, and the owners (calling from England) were trying to figure out what was wrong with the heat.  They all assured me they would do their best to get it fixed immediately but they were having trouble finding anyone to come out to the house on a Razorback game day.  I was extremely impressed at their response to the need.  They asked for permission to enter the house if I was gone when they arrived, and then told me they would be in touch.

I went and took a very hot shower.  I must say it was hard to get out of the shower once I got warm, but I did.  I quickly dressed and hit the road.  

When I got in the car I noticed the low tire sensor was lit, but I also took note of how cold it was out and remembered that usually happens when there is a temperature change.  

My first stop for the day was The Rabbit's Lair, a quilt shop.  First impression as I walked in the door, what a friendly shop.  I was greeted, asked if I was looking for anything in particular (I was), and shown directly to what I needed.  There were several women working and all were very friendly and helpful.  The store is located in a historic building which adds to the charm.  They had plenty of fabric, but there wasn't anything that particularly caught me eye.  I did ask about something I had read about about the night before in my new quilting magazine.  They did not have one, but they offered to special order it for me which I thought was very customer service friendly.  I told them I just wanted to see the item, and was not ready to purchase it.  I did find a Clover Dome Thread Needle Case that I had not seen before and was curious about using for my hand quilting.  When I asked one of the ladies in the shop about the case, she immediately offered to demo it for me.  It went right into my basket when she finished.

 

When I left I looked at my tires, I didn't notice any of them being particularly low.

The next order of business for me was to buy and electric blanket.  They property owner's mother had called to say the heat was fixed in the house, but I wasn't going to take any chances.  The house is 11 miles from the main road, and then it is several more miles to any department store. Who knows if any of them are open 24 hours.  I can always use an electric blanket at my house.  I found a Target and was ready for the next thing.

The next thing was an early dinner at Outback, followed by a stop at Harp's to pick up a new puzzle magazine.  Another eyeballing of the tires and nothing noticeable.  The tire sensor was still going on and off. 

 

I then drove over to see if the heated fishing dock was still on Lake Avalon, took notice of houses for sale, and went over to take a picture of Mom and Dad's old house.  It is now painting a hideous blue.  They had it painted cream.

 

The youngest learned to crawl in this house.

A drive down 279 to Missouri was next on the list in my head.  I wanted to be able to say I went to three states on my vacation.  Missouri is less than 10 miles from the house.  I crossed the border, turned around in the parking lot of the liquor store and headed back. As I was driving past an empty lot a large hawk flew down and landed in the lot by the side of the road.  It made me smile, it was if Raymond was putting his stamp of approval on my trip, and letting me know he was with me.

 

As I stopped at the red light at the turn to the Highlands where the house is located, the woman behind me started honking and pointing at my car.  I pulled over into a gas station and she followed me to tell me by rear driver's side tire was low.  Yes, now the tire was noticeably low.  I pulled over to the air machine, put my quarter in and nothing happened.  Now I fill my tires at home with my own air compressor that I know how to work.  I did not know how to work this machine.  I walked into the gas station/quick mart and got in line behind a man ordering a "Frito Pie."  As he was waiting he began to tell me how unhappy he was that they had changed the recipe for the pie.  I told him I didn't know I was there on vacation and had a low tire but didn't know how to use the air machine.  He told me that as soon as he got his pie he would fill my tire.  It was at this point the clerk came over and told me the air machine was broken and handed me a quarter.  She then told me to go to Casey's. I told her I didn't know what that meant.  She pointed to a station diagonally across the road.  So to Casey's I went.  Casey had free air.  I got out to fill the tire with my tire gauge.  As I began to fill the tire I felt like I was letting more air out than in, but the tire was getting less flat. That is when a nice gentleman and his wife came out of Casey's.  He immediately offered to help, and I was relieved.  He filled the tire quickly.  He said I was doing it okay, I just needed to be more forceful with the air nozzle. I asked if there was an NTB in any of the area towns, and he said no - Walmart would have to do.  I thanked him and off to Walmart I went.

 

Fortunately, the Walmart auto service department was not overly busy and they were able to get me in right away.  They repaired the puncture from a nail in my tire, found a nail in another tire and pulled it out and checked for a leak.  I will give all the men in that department kudos for their friendliness and helpfulness.  As I was waiting for the tire repair, I picked up another puzzle book, a quilting magazine and a package of my favorite mechanical pencils.  Then came the realization that it was now dark out and the porch light was not on at the house and it would be impossible to see the key hole on the door.  I went over to buy a flashlight in sporting goods. After the purchase I asked the salesclerk if he had anything to open the package with so I could go ahead and get the battery into the flashlight.  He pulled out a pocket knife, a sign of  a true man to me since my dad always carried one.  He not only opened the package, but he put the flashlight together for me, including the keyring part.  $10.90 in tire repair and I was ready to go.

 

As I drove back towards Bella Vista I began to wonder what challenge the next day would bring.

 

Once back to the house, I had a piece of pie, watched some television and went to bed with the realization that I am really happy here.  I just need to analyze why I am so happy here.  I know most of it is being on a lake, fall colors, and the topography of  the land.

 

I am also sleeping really great here.