All of a sudden Carol is posting daily.  I cannot write my long posts and do it daily.  I won’t!  Well I do try to write daily, but it takes a day or three to assemble the posts usually.

You may be wondering about the () around Ann.  We have known each other since before first grade as many of you know.  Her given name is Ann Carol a single name although it looks like two with no “-“.  I have known her by that name, by a familiar name “Anky” and mostly as Carol.  There are other names that are best kept just between ourselves.  The Ann Carol was not used much until she started actively producing art and she chose to resume that name as her artist’s name.  When a call comes in for Ann Carol I know it is from the Arts community.  When they ask for Ann I know they haven’t a clue and Anky is only used by aunts, uncles and older cousins of whom there are too few remaining.  Anyhow, I haven’t a clue why I wrote this.

For our visit to Berea, Kentucky you can read her post at Message in a Minute Entry #3.   

When we left the west coast we had a tentative plan that included the COE stops we have made and a couple of Escapee Rainbow Parks that we had never seen.  It turned out that the Missouri SKP (alternative spelling) was a bit too far south for us to reach, but we did divert a bit south to come to Raccoon Valley Escapee RV Park, just north of Knoxville, TN.  We laughed as we drove up, because we drove right by Volunteer RV Park that we stayed at in January of 2006 for our visit to Oakridge, TN.  The park is under reconstruction with the building having its space almost doubled and a new section of the park being developed and leveled as we sit in the older section of the park which is quite nice.  We back up to a stream and there is a wonderful nature trail, quite steep, just across the creek.

We drove to Great Smokey Mountain NP to swing through Cades Cove before the summer traffic  clogs it up and learned as we arrived that it is closed for major road reconstruction until five days from now.  We drove through the park from Townsend to Gatlinburg very slowly and then though Gatlinburg as fast as we could.  I cannot even begin to describe the lineup of chain everything mixed with amusement park rides, Ripley’s Believe it or Not, and ice cream and pancake joints all lined up along the highway like a gauntlet of beggars looking to take my money in exchange for items of dubious value.  We continued on to Pigeon Forge which is only slightly more charming, but does offer three huge outlet malls in a row where almost any clothing item can be bought at a discount for almost anyone.  I qualify that because Carol finds the selection of clothes in her size to be limited to nonexistent.  She did find something to buy however.  

Back in Raccoon Valley RV we gathered with our neighbors, Jim and Dee and Earl and Barb to exchange tales from the road and other assorted common experiences.  When we all agreed it was time to eat, we went our separate ways.  Carol and I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and the picnic table next to the creek outside our door.  We dined out there and were sitting and relaxing when the sun set taking away the last of the nice warmth.  Nice end to a great day.

And today – Tuesday, April 20 – it is raining which is why I have time to write.