6/30 - Sue, Jennifer, and I headed to Blue for my birthday week 😀 after we did some food shopping and then picked up Zoe and Jet. They were happy to see us, but I think it was a good stay overall. It was definitely good for me to not have to worry about my girl. It was the first time driving to the lake from the West, so it was nice to see some new areas and pass through Old Forget, Inlet, etc on the way to see what's new. Not that I'd really know, since it's been so long since I've been through there. It's good to see that the Hardware store in Old Forge is still there. I'd like to take a trip there again on some rainy day. It's one of those stores that has everything in it - or used to.
Sue, Jennifer, and I were pretty chill at the lake. No hikes whatsoever... We walked the dogs, paddled, swam, and hung out. Sue had prepared the meal plan and did much of the cooking. She's so good at it!!! She also prepared my traditional birthday dinner (marinated flank steak and stir fry) and cake (yellow cake with whipped cream frosting and blueberries and strawberries - red, white, and blue for the 4th). This is a tradition that my mother started so many years ago and Sue has lovingly continued the tradition for which I'm very thankful and realize that I am thoroughly spoiled!!! It was really nice. Jennifer got a good rest after all her work campaigning and preparing for the wedding. They headed out on Thursday morning, and Christine came up for the night on Thursday afternoon. On Friday, after a lovely paddle/swim, I was 100% planning to go to the Friday night get together at Steamboat, but I started walking up with Zoe and decided it was too hot and I wanted to just be on my own and swim. I'm not used to being with others so much. I really hadn't seen many of the people in town due to hanging with sisters, but I do get tired of talking about myself and my travels and needed a break. Saturday, I did some cleaning and other preparations for leaving and the renters and just hung out on the lake swimming until Paul and Sara came over in the evening. I really don't know where the time goes! All of a sudden, it's 5 PM! And then the next thing I know, it's 10 PM...
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| Ahhhh |
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| Zoe is liking Ryker's bed!!! |
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| Christine and Ryker |
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| Zoe was following that bed! 😂 |
Required sunset shots!
7/7 - How can a whole week go so quickly??? I felt like I was only there for a few days at most... 😕 Since I don't know my plans from here on, I don't know if I'll be back this summer (but expect I will). Because it's so hot and going to continue to be hot, the best option really does seem to be to head to Maine/Nova Scotia from here instead of heading the Sue's in southern NY. I also don't know if I'll be back next year at all. I am thinking I'd like to be in the Pacific Northwest next summer. There is so much to see and enjoy during the summer months and it's so far away. We shall see! I could always fly home for a week or more if I can find a place for Zoe.
I left the camp just before 4 PM (thankfully the renters take their time getting there) after taking a leisurely walk with Sara and Sherry catching up on the town gossip. Most of the day was spent cleaning, but I did fit in a swim. The lake was pretty chilly at the start of the week, but by the end of the week it was really warm. I think it went up at least 5 degrees.
So, now I'm in VT and staying the first two nights with Ken and Laurie (in my van). I'm trying to get appointments in while here, but am having trouble getting appointments. I had a teeth cleaning (I usually go 2x/year, but didn't manage it over the winter - not sure how to do these things on the road!) on Monday and will have a crown replaced on Wednesday. I tried to schedule a skin check, but timing just wasn't going to work because the only appointment they had was at 1:30, while I had to be at my dentist by 2:15. I had also scheduled an appointment to have part of my tattoo lightened, but I cancelled that because I thought I was going to have to take my van to Milton for service on Monday. I'm secretly happy because I really didn't want to deal with keeping it out of the sun and water for 2 or so weeks. I'll try to do it again in the fall.
I had called the Sprinter service center in VT while I was at the lake about the noise. The guy made me really nervous and said I really should have it looked at, but I'd have to leave it for a couple of days. He said maybe I should even have it towed. How serious can it be (I say cringing) if it comes and goes??? It is so hard to organize leaving my home! First, it's in Milton, north of Burlington, and they don't have loaners. I have a full fridge, with stuff I'd like to have available to me. I've been living in the van without having put stuff away from being at Blue because I'm going to need all that stuff when staying with Christine. I pray they can find something that explains the issue and don't make it worse.
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| View in Ferrisburgh |
No photos, but the fireflies over my old property were incredible. I guess they love the tall grasses. Everyone asks me how I feel about seeing my old home. I am fine with it, but I guess I wish they were caring for the property as I did. The fields haven't been mowed since 2021 when I last did it. But it does make for good firefly viewing!!!
7/8 - Morning walk with familiar views. I killed time until heading to Burlington for my teeth cleaning appointment. I normally am religious about 2x/year cleaning, but this year it was a whole year, so I was looking forward to a fresh start in my mouth. I thought I had plenty of time to run an errand in Williston, when I realized that it was 3:45 and I needed to be back in Ferrisburgh for dinner by 5, so I bailed on the errands. How does this happen all the time??? I'm always thinking I have more time than I really do. Is this an age thing or just someone who is clueless with time?
I got back to Ken and Laurie's for dinner where we had amazing lobster rolls from Ray's Seafood. In the past, Ken has always gotten them from a place in Shelburne, but they apparently discontinued them, for which I am very grateful! 😀 These were so much better. It was fun to see Becky, Kerrie, and Charlie after all this time too.
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| Hazy day, but still lovely view from my morning walk |
On the walk, we saw this poor fawn who seemed to be looking for it's mother as it kept running around and towards us. I couldn't see mama anywhere, but I hope they found each other!
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| Zoe was curious, but not in predator mode. She seems totally relaxed with larger animals. |
7/9 - I'm sitting in my van right now with the AC on because it's so humid out. I love the AC, but it's so loud and to have that constant hum is giving me a headache. I definitely wouldn't be happy in here if I didn't have it though, so I'll tolerate the noise! We're hanging out waiting for Anja (my amazing veterinarian) to come see Zoe and get her updated with vaccines and such. I need all that for Canada, especially since as of August 1st, the rules change for bringing a dog back into the US.
I realized we were getting close to the time for our appt, so I let Zoe out. Well, I couldn't have had worse timing as I immediately heard Zoe barking and Anja and Elijah were driving in. Argh. I try to keep Zoe's adrenaline as low as possible, but failed! She barked at everything when we were trying to have our appointment. I told Anja I was going to Canada, so needed the proper paperwork. Well, she's not USDA certified, so a rabies shot by her wouldn't mean anything with the new laws starting Aug 1, so she recommended going to Vergennes Animal Hospital. But she needed to at least check Zoe out so that she could prescribe while we're on the road. So I had to pay for a visit, which I get. She had offered to just leave with no charge, but it made sense for her to do a quick evaluation. She said that Zoe looks great. Great muscle tone and speedy (she could tell from Zoe running after the car when she arrived) when running. I wasn't able to get an appt with VAH until the following Monday. Hmmm. A bit of a delay for my trip to Nova Scotia. Oh well...
I dropped Zoe off with Keith in Ferrisburgh because I didn't have anywhere I felt comfortable leaving her while I had a very long dentist appt the next day. She was going to be with her buddy Beau and Keith, so I knew she'd be fine. Then I went and checked out Kerrie and Charlie's new tt. Wow! It is amazing and so roomy!!! Yep, I am a bit jealous...
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| Roomy kitchen and living space |
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| I can't imagine being able to shower easily in my own vehicle. When I see big rigs hooked up two sewer and water and able to live in their rig like a home, I do get a bit envious. But I'm so much more maneuverable in my van! She's big, but not that big. |
I then headed to Joe's and parked there for the night. We went to Tiny Thai (an old favorite) for dinner - yum! and then back to his place to visit some more. First we stopped to take a walk on the causeway Since it was such a lovely evening. I'm always up for a walk! Since Joe is the incredibly thoughtful guy that he is, he had bought two bottles of red wine for me, not knowing which I might prefer. It was great to spend time visiting with him.
Causeway views:
7/10 - Joe drove me to Charlebois in Milton so I could drop off the van (even though it wasn't making the noise). I wasn't impressed by the people in the front office and they didn't give the technician, who was about to take my van for a test drive, the info I had supplied. Grrr. Definitely not feeling super confident at this point.
Joe took me to Christine's to drop off my stuff, then dropped me off on Church St for my crown replacement (gold crown getting worn down by porcelain crown on the opposing tooth). This was a long appt because they make the crown in house (3D printing I think). I had a bit of a break so walked around on Church Street and came across this sign:
| Sign: Daycare center Dropoffs welcome. 😂 |
I had been planning to leave my van overnight because they told me I'd have to, but then they called me and said that they didn't find anything wrong, but my oil level was too high and they wanted to do an oil change for $400-500!!! I know there's lots of synthetic oil in there (13 qts), but I've never heard such a high price. I said nope, but I couldn't get it tonight and with Beryl coming through I figured their lot would be a great place to leave the van. I just had an oil change done 4k miles ago (recommended every 15K!), so I was not ready to do it again. If high, why couldn't they just remove a bit?
So, Joe picked me up after my dentist appointment (new crown not feeling right, but he insisted it would get better) and drove me all the way to Ferrisburgh to get Zoe from Keith's. Then he dropped us off at Christine's. What a great friend! During the drive I was still debating on whether to go get the van or not. A friend of Joe's had mentioned that he uses the 4x4 Center to service his sprinter, so I called them to ask what they charge for an oil change. 200-300 - much more reasonable.
7/11 - Christine and I had a great evening hanging out and then she drove me and Zoe up to Milton to get the van. Another great friend! They charged me an hour of labor ($160!), but did drop off other charges as I wasn't expecting to pay anything being that it's under warranty. But I do understand that they don't get anything from Mercedes if they can't find anything wrong. All in all I wasn't happy. After picking it up, I went to a skin check appt and after 30 or so min, I checked the oil level. It looked like the oil was at the max line, so not over as far as I could tell. For sanity's sake, I took it to the 4x4 Center and they checked it and said it was perfect. GRRRR! Happy that it was fine, but not happy with Charlebois!
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| Zoe thought that Christine's clean laundry would be a comfortable place to rest... |
After checking the oil, I had some time to kill before heading to Elena and Danielle's new home in Essex, so I parked at Cascade Park and walked down Cascade St to see the house I used to live in back in 1994-1996. I lived in the upstairs and it was a great apartment that had just been redone with space for Kane and Brin (my horses) and dog friendly (Luke). It was rural, but close to town and work. These days the area is built up, but there is still a farm field across the road.
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| You can see the new roofs in the distance behind. |
Once I got the OK, we headed to Elena's and Danielle's. They have two cats, Rose and Willow, and have never had a dog in the house before. Thankfully Zoe was awesome and they did really well.
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| Zoe just loves to see how small she can get! |
I was super impressed with the house. They've done a really nice job on it and it didn't smell like cigarettes at all (previous owners were heavy indoor smokers - ugh!). They did a lot of work to remedy that. Even the refrigerator and basement freezer couldn't be donated because they smelled too much of smoke when opened. Yikes!
7/12 - I hung out and did laundry after Elena and Danielle went to work and then headed to Winooski to meet Shorey, Kim, and Joe at a "new" brewery. I asked if we could go there, so I could bring Zoe as it was pretty warm out and I didn't want to leave her in the van. It was really good to catch up with Shorey and Kim, and of course, Joe.
Sue and Dan were having a party that night and I asked if I could stay in their driveway, so I didn't have to worry about driving. I'm always cautious about drinking and driving, but with the big van, I'm even more so. It was a perfect setup and Zoe did awesome with everyone arriving. I think because we were hanging out in the back yard, she couldn't see the cars showing up, which seems to be her biggest trigger. People walking into the back yard didn't seem to bother her at all.
It was really fun to see everyone who showed. No one knew I'd be there and I didn't know who was attending, so it was all a surprise. Great food, great people. Thanks, Sue and Dan!
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| Sue and Dan's wine and liquor supply. WOW! And Sue even gave me a bottle from their stash. I'm happy to help them work through their wine... 😀 |
7/13 - Dan cooked bacon, eggs, and hash browns for breakfast. He's a really good cook and I felt pretty spoiled, especially since I invited myself to stay in their driveway. They are so incredibly generous! They left to run some errands and I took a shower and went to fill my water tank. My 2nd hose blew, so I ended up having to run to Home Depot to get 2 new ones. The first ones didn't even last a year, but the first one blew due to strong water pressure and I learned to be careful about that. I really don't know what caused the 2nd one to fail as it was fine that last time I used it. Poor quality I guess, but not inexpensive.
I ended up going to visit Mike at Bostwick farm and parked there for the night. We grabbed a bite to eat at Jeff's Waygu beef food truck in Shelburne. Jeff's dad, my ex father-in-law, Vern, showed up, so that was a fun surprise.
7/14 - Deb invited me over for scones and "coffee" in the morning, so we did that. It was good to see Deb again and see how happy Zoe was to see her. They invited me out for a boat ride and since I had no plans for the day, I took them up on it. It was great to be out on the lake on another hot day. We left the dogs at home and went to Basin Harbor and got sushi, which they wouldn't let me pay for... We then went to converse bay and swam. The water was very dirty after the storm, but it felt good and we hung out in the water for about 45 minutes I'd guess. We ended up getting takeout, which again they wouldn't let me pay. And then we slept there under the portico (terminology?).
7/15 - After a visit with Ken and Laurie, I took Zoe to the Vergennes Animal Hospital so that she could get the proper stuff for coming back in the country after August 1st. What a mess that ended up being. They didn't have the proper paperwork from Homeward Bound on Zoe and so it looked like I might not get the paperwork until over a month later, which may or may not have been OK (not sure how long I'll be in Canada). What a mess. Finally, the next day, Anja came through with the document from Homeward Bound (which they couldn't produce) that showed when they microchipped and vaccinated Zoe.
Had dinner with Beth and Tammy in Richmond. Great to catch up after almost a year! I was going to park at Ken and Laurie's for the night, but Deb and Keith had Zoe and it was so late, I ended up staying under their portico for another night. I felt really guilty because they had lost power and it was really warm, so they had no AC or fans and then it started raining, so they had to close the windows. And I was comfortable under cover with my windows wide open and fans running.
7/16 - I was planning on heading towards Nova Scotia and hope that everything got cleared up with Zoe's paperwork, but Jeff called and asked about getting together. It had been a long time and I wasn't on any schedule, so I ended up heading to his place in Milton on the lake. Nice place! We went out in his boat, which I think Zoe did not enjoy very much. Jeff wanted to fill it up and we had to go across the bay to do so. They sky was threatening rain so we didn't end up hanging out too long. A 2nd day on the lake!
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| Zoe didn't know what to do with herself and the lake was a bit choppy. |
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| Jeff looks kinda grumpy, huh? |
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| So cute! |
Jeff cooked me up some of his Waygu beef - a filet and NY strip, which was really good. I always prefer the filet! I ended up parking there for this night, which led to a couple of more nights... It is such a nice place on the lake and the water was clear, which after how dirty it was in converse bay two days before, I was surprised.
Amazing sunset:
7/18 - Still at Jeff's. Zoe and I went for a hike at Eagle Mountain.
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| Lookout |
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| Zoe trying to make friends with Garfield?? |
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| Zoe cuddling with Jeff. Hmmm. |
7/19 -
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| Morning view |
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| New shoe holders to get 2 pairs off the floor. Yay! |
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| Garfield seemed to enjoy tormenting Miss Zoe. |
7/20 - Time to leave. I had not planned on this at all, but it was so lovely that I just didn't feel the need to leave... But it was time to leave. Jeff was having a get together this afternoon and though he invited me, he was concerned about Zoe making people feel uncomfortable. She had been pretty barky/protective since being there, so I can't blame Jeff for his concerns. The get together sounded like fun, so I wanted to stay, but also didn't want anyone to feel uncomfortable due to my dog, so off I went.
I headed to Christine's in Burlington and while driving there, my van started to make the noise again. It was subtle like in Utah, but definitely there. I managed to park in Christine's narrow driveway on North Ave and stayed 2 nights. It was really fun to hang out with her again for a couple of days. Since the van was making noise again, I wanted to stay until Monday and possibly bring it into the shop again, so I stayed until Monday.
Christine lives in such a great spot! Her house was built in the late 1800s and is super cute. Driveway is a bit small for Big Bertha, but it'll do. 😀 She is walking distance from Church St, from the bike path, and from Texaco beach (dog beach!). Walking in the neighborhood offers more old houses, lovely gardens, and lake views.
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| Christine and Ryker |
7/21 - Christine, the dogs, and I went to the beach. It was such a perfect day! Dogs had fun and we swam and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.
On my way out of Burlington, the van started making the noise again and I dropped in at a friend of a friend's so he could listen/take a peak. I guess Mark had worked at Charlebois and had a friend who had also worked there who was a master sprinter technician. Anyway, they seemed to think it was an alternator bearing and I should be fine to drive it. So off I went. It was nice to have some peace of mind (hoping it was accurate!). The sound got worse along the way, so I ended up calling and making an appointment at the closest Sprinter service center in Albany, but couldn't get an appt until 8/1 and Jennifer wanted us to be gone by 7/30 (her time at the lake, which I get). Bummer.
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| Rock Lake - me, Jennifer, Sue |
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| Zoe was limping so we only took Jet on this hike. He swam for the first time! |
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| Post skinny dip! |
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| Zoe overheating in the sun per usual... |
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| Amazingly calm day for a paddle with the sisters. |
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| Can the dragonfly be a spirit animal??? |
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| Loon family |
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| Jennifer, Sue, Jet and I hiked Goodman Mountain. Nice trail, about 3 miles and easier trail than Castle Rock (not as steep in places) |
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| I think the float was for me to lie on... She's such a thief! |
7/31 - I ended up staying in the van in the driveway on Tuesday and then headed out today towards Albany. Not until I took another swim though!
At first, the van wasn't making any noises, but then it started. Phew! I really didn't want to head to the shop without the noise again.
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| Stopped for a walk at the Hudson River Rec area. Not too buggy and a nice break for both of us. |
We stayed at a HH brewery which had a great trail behind it.
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| I love the silvery green look |
8/1
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Waiting for the van. It was hot outside so mostly hung out in the waiting room. Zoe wasn't thrilled...
I should have taken a chair out of the van and hung out outside in the shade. That would have been nice as there was a touch of a breeze. |
Just last night, the slider door refused to open, which is a super big deal with a dog. I was really anxious about that as I saw a video that mentioned that if you have anything in the build in front of the slider, make sure it's easily removable - NOT the case for me. I was envisioning them telling me that they couldn't access what they needed and my whole counter/cabinets on that side would need to be disassembled. I ended up speaking with Steve (builder) in the morning and he thought it wouldn't be a problem. Too bad I lost sleep over that! They made an adjustment and said I should have any further problems (I had asked them to show me what they did so that I might be able to fix it in the future).
I was there for over 3 hours and the end result with regards to the noise is that the engine mounts are faulty and need to be replaced... Big job, wouldn't get the parts until Monday, and the guy who could do the work wouldn't be in until Thursday, 8/1. I could have scheduled a time at another shop along my way to Nova Scotia, but in the end, I decided it made more sense to have them do it since they were fitting me in and the shops tend to be very busy. So, what to do for a week? I decided, despite another heat wave, to spend the week with Sue at her house in NY.
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| I just loved the gray and green on this tent at the farmers market. Nature's art. |
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| Weirdo |
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| Sue and Jet at a watering hole in Black Rock Forest |
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| I think people pay to have fish nibble at their feet. Feels funny! |
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| Sue's photos after the rain with her garden |
8/4 - Sue went for a hike with Christopher and I decided against going because I didn't think I could bring Zoe and I didn't want to leave her. So, we went for a neighborhood walk, which she loves, before it got too hot and I went through my stuff to try to get rid of some of my stuff I left at Sue's. There were only a couple of items that I want to take with me, some that I will donate, and some I can't part with at this time. I don't imagine I'll keep doing this forever, so there are some valuable items, I just can't bring myself to part with and have to replace - possibly. Now that I think about it, I doubt I'll spend winters in snow country, so maybe I really can part with some of my really cold weather stuff. I'll have to think on that!
I guess I'm going to end this super long, month long, post here and start anew.
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