Gathering photos for Roadtripper

I've taken it upon myself to supply Roadtripper with the missing photos for this area.

It's funny how you can live somewhere all your life and fail to see the beauty.  Now I gaze with the eyes of a tourist and find so many interesting things.

During my search for the missing photos, I stumbled upon some fun images and wanted to share them.

This cat has the purrfect life sitting in the window watching all the activity on the streets below. I love the detail in the window arches.

This old building had a nostalgic lamp in the window that called to me.

Then there was this old beer sign.  Third Street in La Crosse is famous for the number of taverns to be found.

I can imagine the ballroom was quite swanky in it's heyday. I have to admit that I've passed by this door many times and never even noticed it before. What a difference it makes when you just slow down and explore.

There are some lovely buildings in this old river town, much lovelier than I recall as a young person.  I'll share more images later as I discover new things.

Long Live the Queen of Nostalgia

Fit bit

I've been bitten by the Fitbit bug! 

After having seen my friend Marti's, I forced her into shopping with me to get one, not that it's that hard to make her go into a store.  This was after a long lunch, of course, we had to sustain ourselves before shopping.

My first day I logged almost my goal of 10,000 steps as I played pickleball.

The next day I spent the day goofing off at the computer and only had 280 steps at 1:00.  I guess there's no way to cheat on this, so it should motivate me to get out there and get moving.

It's a fun little tool that tracks how many steps you've taken, how many calories burned, stairs climbed and miles walked.  

You can wear it at night to record the quality of your sleep, but my cpap does that already.

At night you remove it and place it by the smartphone and they have a little pillow talk during the night and share the information.

Marti tells me that I'll get an email from them once a week with info on how I've done, but I haven't had it long enough to see this yet.

Long Live the Queen of Fun Gadgets

We'll have fun at the Y M C A

On my first visit to the YMCA to play pickleball I was so excited to get there I left early.  Way too early.  I had the wrong time in my head and arrived an hour and a half before the building opened.  Ooops.  Even with all the time to take a photo, I didn't think of it, but I found this old image on Google.  It hasn't changed much.

Since I had time to kill, I set out for whatever might be open, which ended up being Walmart.  Of course, this being a small town I ended up waiting for a train while it slowly crept along.  Then it stopped.  Then it backed up.  And finally it went forward again and cleared the tracks.

So glad I wasn't trying to get to the hospital on the other side of the tracks!

I did resist the urge to stop at Bloedow's, the notoriously wonderful bakery on Broadway.  I drove past it twice without stopping.  Another image from Google since I didn't dare pull the car over.

Once in Walmart I went to the electronics department to look for Fitbits.  I would love to have this bracelet that monitors how many steps taken, stairs climbed, calories burned, etc.  My friend Marti has one and therefore I must also.  It's just always been that way with us.

I had hoped to purchase one and be able to use it right away, but I couldn't make a decision.  I think I like the clip she has as the display is much larger and easier on old eyes.

Finally it was time to return to the Y and start to play!  It was the nicest group of people you could imagine.  Of course pickleball players all seem pretty darn nice.  The age mix was from a young boy of about 11, several college aged, some in their 30's and 40's and a few old geezers like me.

After playing I enjoyed a shower and sitting in the hottub for a while.

The drive time allows for some alone time to listen to the radio station and my music and just be alone with my thoughts.  

It was a pretty blissful experience and I can't wait to repeat it!

Long Live the Queen of Pickleball

Sometimes you just need to ask

I always search out venues to play pickleball everywhere I go, like a drunk looking for the next tavern down the street I wander.

During this process I've learned not to turn away any opportunity.  When in Florida a year ago I found pickleball at the Community Rec Center.  When I contacted them for details they said I would have to purchase a membership.

Knowing that memberships are often very pricey I almost gave up when the lady told me that for $10 I would have a lifetime membership.  The money flew out my pocket as quickly as possible in case she was new and had no clue what she was doing.  But, this was the real deal.  Imagine it...for $10 I have a lifetime membership.  

We don't travel to that area often, but you can believe this will be a draw for our next trek to the south east corner of our country.

It was great finding out that a small group played nearby and I've enjoyed going there, but the weather is so unpredictable in the springtime and it seems to always be so windy.

So when I learned about indoor pickleball at the YMCA in Winona, about a 45 minute drive down the highway, I had to check it out.

Drat!  They require a membership as well.  But I kept an e-mail correspondence going back and forth with the nice gentlemen and the offer kept getting better and better.

I ended up landing a "special" membership of $30 for the month of May and an additional $15 for the two weeks in June.  Sweet!  Plus this comes with use of the weight room (I'll pass on this, thank you very much), the showers and the whirlpool.

It's an odd set up, with the gym being on the second floor. It's an old building and there is no air conditioning,but it has a core of pickleball fanatics that are fun to play with.

This perfect opportunity would have been lost if I had not "just asked" for a solution to my dilemma.  They were great people to work with and I'm loving the compromise they made to allow me some playing time while I'm nearby.

I can't wait to go!

Long Live the Queen of Requests

May Day May Day

Today is the third anniversary or our living in the motorhome, a concept difficult for me to grasp. 

Friends of ours have a hard time believing we are still married.


We've learned so much over the last three years, about RV life and about ourselves.

I've found that living small has made me appreciate how much I have and how very little I really need.  

I'm living in the present more and more and enjoying the people that come in and out of my life now that I don't have a surplus of "things" getting in the way.


I had lunch with my other vagabond friend, Marti, today and we swapped stories about what we've been up to for the last few months.

She and her husband sold the house and have traveled extensively in Europe and now wander the US in their "home free" lifestyle.  She has come to a similar conclusion of how fulfilling it is to lead a simplified lifestyle.

Neither of us has any exit strategy or deadline for when this phase of our life will end.  We intend to just keep enjoying it one day at a time and not worrying about tomorrow.

They are in the process of preparing for a trip to Alaska and I for one can't wait to see the photos and follow her adventures.  

As you can see by the skydiving photo, she has a zest for life and is fearless.




If you'd like to get a sample of her experiences you can find her blog at thrumartiseyes.blogspot.com.  

Long Live the Queen of Full Time RV Life