The Sandcastle – Page 153 – Blowing in the wind

Golden Arches

They mostly don’t build things the way they used to. So when I saw this McDonald’s in front of the Super WalMart in Bushnell, Florida, I had a strong urge to show it to those of you who may not understand where the term “golden arches” came from. They all used to look like this. Even before they had dining rooms attached to them they had golden arches. Not just those puny things you see on their signs nowadays, either. Real arches. Like these.

See how old I’m getting? I’m telling stories of how it used to be back in my day. When McDonald’s was a new thing and we thought it was cool to go to a drive-in and get such skinny hamburgers. Of course, we didn’t think of them as skinny–just affordable to kids who didn’t have much money. I’ll try to stop now and not tell you about the time some driver broke the door off our friend’s car at McDonald’s or all the time we spent hanging out at Porky’s.

TTYL,

Linda

Social Security

I am officially old. I applied for Social Security yesterday. I still can’t believe how easy it was to do.

I started by filling out their on-line application at ssa.gov. That takes awhile because they ask for a lot of information but it was all stuff I knew so it wasn’t difficult. The only thing I had to look up was what was the last year I worked.

I know, I know. How can I not know the last year I worked? My last job was as a free-lance writer. I wrote as topics occurred to me and stopped when I couldn’t get around well enough to do the research anymore. Why would I want to remember when that was?

Anyway, I filled out the form and sent it on its electronic way.

Last night I got a phone call from a lady at Social Security in Kansas City. She wanted to verify my information and talk about me filing under Dave’s earnings rather than my own. I already knew I wanted to do that since he worked a lot more and earned a LOT more than I did. I took a lot of time off to be an Army wife then raise our daughter in addition to retiring very early. When I did work for pay it was mostly part-time. So my benefits weren’t going to be wonderful if they depended solely on my own earnings. Fortunately, Dave and I have been married more than four times the required ten years for me to qualify to file under his earnings and he told them that back when he filed for his benefits so they already had a record of that.

So, the lady and I talked awhile, then she and Dave talked awhile, then she said she had everything she needed. I don’t even need to go into an office with any of my official documents like Dave did when he applied about six month’s ago. I get to just wait for my first payment to show up in our bank in September. Isn’t today’s technology marvelous?!

TTYL,

Linda

Beds

When my mother was a child, I think she and her twin sister slept in a twin bed. I remember Mom telling me that when one wanted to roll over both had to roll over.

When I was an infant, my father got me a 6-year crib. So, I slept in it for six years. You’d think I’d be embarrassed to be going to school and still sleeping in a crib but I don’t remember that being so and I have memories going back to age two.

At least, I didn’t have to share my crib. Except once. My cousins came to visit after my brothers and I were already asleep. So Mom and Dad tucked me into the the foot of the upper bunk where my brother, Wayne, was asleep at the head. They put my cousin, Karen, who looked a lot like me except she was three years younger than me in my crib across from the bunk beds. When Wayne woke up and looked down at my crib he started screaming, “Mom! Dad! Come quick! Linda shrunk!”

I slept alone until I got married. As a new couple we had a double bed. Which is not quite as wide as two twin beds. In fact it’s about as wide as two cribs. Good thing I had lots of experience sleeping in cribs, huh?

When we bought our first house, a mobile home, it came furnished with a queen sized bed. I felt like royalty.

Now I have a memory foam bed. It doesn’t seem to be helping my memory, though.

TTYL,

Linda

Apalachicola and Perry, Florida

Leaving Hickory Landing we went just a short way south to see Fort Gadsen. This was a challenging trip in our RV so I don’t recommend anyone else try it in anything bigger than a pickup truck. If it has been raining, you’ll want four wheel drive.

Fort Gadsen had been in existence in many forms for many years before the actual Fort Gadsen was built. This location on the Apalachicola River was a strategic one for everyone who lived here.

You can still see some remains of the fort.

Heading on south we passed Tate’s Hell State Forest. According to Wikipedia: “Local legend is that a local farmer named Cebe Tate went hunting in the woods in this area. He went into the swamps hunting for a panther that was killing his livestock. Most stories end with Tate being lost in the forest for 4 to 7 days until he finally came to a clearing near Carrabelle. There he stated “My name is Cebe Tate, and I just came from Hell!” He then died.”

We pulled off by bridge for lunch. I used the packet of sour cream that came from Lambert’s Cafe to make dill dip to go with baby carrots. I’m still eating from that $12 meal back in Alabama. Would I go to Lambert’s again? You bet I would.

Our next sightseeing stop was at Forest Capitol Park in Perry, Florida.

There we learned more about the making of turpentine.

We also visited the Cracker Homestead Interpretive Site there.

Florida “crackers” lived in rural areas of Florida from the mid 1800s through the early 1900s. One of the possible sources of this nickname is the cracking sound of the whips they used to drive their cattle and oxen.

The house consists of two good-sized rooms with a dogtrot between them and big front and back porches.

The main room was where Ma & Pa and the newest baby slept.

The other room is where Granny and all the other kids slept unless there got to be so many kids they had to add rooms off the back–one for the boys and one for the girls.

Activities of daily living went on in both rooms, both porches, outbuildings, and the yard.

This family had everything they needed for daily life including the above cane grinder and syrup kettle. Aren’t you glad we don’t have to make our own sweeteners today?

TTYL,

Linda

Long Day

We were awakened early by construction equipment. If it had been only the low roar of their motors I probably would have slept through that but one of the machines had a backing up beeper I couldn’t ignore. So we were on the road much earlier than usual.

The beaches of Gulf State Park are still in the process of being rehabilitated. There is now a very long boardwalk leading over the dunes. Sorry about the reflection in the windshield; that light wasn’t going to stay red forever, you know, and I keep my maps and lists of potential destinations on the dash where we can refer to them quickly.

ReMax Realty had a sign out front saying “The turtle only makes progress by sticking her neck out.” Trying to shame people into tackling more than they should? In a place they probably shouldn’t?

There are a great many new houses, hotels, and condos here which, while they are pretty, make me feel sad thinking about what came before them.

Just before entering the bridge across the entrance to Escambia Bay is a sign that says, “Check Fuel. Long Bridge Ahead.” BIG bay! And signs on the bridge warning you not break down there. If you do you are required to keep driving anyway. If you get a flat tire, drive on it until you get off the bridge. It made me think of Sprinter vans having what is known as “limp home mode” which drops your speed if there is a problem but lets you keep moving. We have not experienced that but it’s always possible.

We stopped at the Gulf Islands National Seashore Visitor Center and Administration Building where we got a Florida State Highway Map.

Displays there were mostly about the Live Oaks and their usages such as becoming hulls for warships back when all ships were wooden.

Technically, this is the same park we stayed in while camped at Davis Bayou campground in Jackson, Mississippi. Can you remember back that far? Me either. That’s why I take notes and write these blogs.

Gulf Islands National Seashore has bits and pieces all along the Gulf Shore. Many of its campsites are pack-in sites you access by ferry boat. Back when we were young backpackers we might have done that but our RV won’t fit on the ferry and I’m no longer fit for anything else.

We went to Wendy’s for lunch because Dave has no leftovers from Lambert’s Cafe. Since we were there I ordered one of my favorite food combinations there: a plain chicken sandwich and a sour cream/chive baked potato. I take the chicken off the bun and cut it up onto the potato. Yummy.

We saw some people kite boarding but the area went by much too quickly to get a good photograph. This is the best I could do. See the two little specks over the water? You don’t? Oh, well, I tried.

It’s Easter Week but schools are in session here. We slowed for three school crossings with flashing lights this afternoon. Since the kids are getting out of school it must be time for us to find a place to park for the night.

We planned to stop for the night at Grayton Beach State Park. We wanted to see this place where the Yahoo View/Navion Owners Group has gatherings. We didn’t get to see it, though. Local schools may be in session but families from other states are here on Spring Break so the campground is full. The ranger was not encouraging about what we are likely to find in other parks ahead of us, either.

Leaving Grayton Beach we turned right instead of left thinking we’d be taking a more direct route to meet up with Highway 98 again. We were right. More direct–but not faster. We drove through lots of communities that appear to make a fair amount of money off college kids on Spring Break. I wish I hadn’t been so busy looking that I forgot to take pictures. It was just like my imagination has always told me it must be. Lots of barely dressed young women with sunburns, lots of full sidewalk cafe’s/bars, and lots of beach houses with multiple cars parked outside them.

At 6:00 p.m. we finally pulled into Pineglen RV Park in Panama City Beach, Florida. It has some big sites and some not so big sites. Five sites still available. Fortunately, we were able to get a site between a road and an empty spot with a pond in front of us.

But, we paid $43 for one night! That will mess up our camping fee averages for awhile.

TTYL,

Linda