Just got back last night from another trip I took, this time to Arkansas to visit my son and his family. My granddaughter Carly went along, plus a little feller that I hadn't seen before up until the time I picked him and his mother up, my great grandson, Trevyn Edward Bailey! We had planned to leave about 9 last Monday morning, but Carly thought the ride would be much more pleasant if we traveled at night so Trevyn would sleep.
And sleep he did, all the way down. We left Carly's house about 12:30 AM and arrived at my son's house about 7 AM. We stopped once at Henryville to fill up and once again on 1-24 to use the facilities. I only drove 65 mph on the highway and I think we made pretty good time.
They live near Blytheville, and as such they are on central time, so it was only 6 AM when Carly called her dad to open the door so we could go into the house. He was very surprised as he didn't know I was bringing Carly and Trevyn with me. I'm pretty sure it was a very pleasant surprise.
We had a very good time while we were there, had some good food thanks to Krista. Played games, went to town a couple of times, and spent a lot of time sitting in the backyard where Bryce loved to ride his little electric four wheeler. He can be seen in this picture destroying the packing styrofoam which was used with the bunk beds they bought for the boys. Never a dull moment when you have a couple of young boys to keep things lively!
Of course there was some down time as seen here with Bryce and Chris just taking it easy. Chris works odd hours with mixed days and nights, so sometimes a day of rest is called for. I guess Bryce decided if dad was sleeping there wasn't much for him to do either. Quiet time can be a nice thing when you live with a houseful of kids! Living alone as I do, I know I can appreciate it.
A day at the park was planned and we went to one in Blytheville so Bryce could feed the "chickens". He can be seen here doing just that. We spent a good amount of time there letting the kids run and play. A little excitement happened while we were there as some gunshots could be heard. Chris informed a local policeman who was passing through the park about it. The way Chris talked, this is a normal thing to experience in Blytheville. Thankfully they don't live near town so hopefully they are away from the violence.
A couple more photos in the park, Christian and Bryce swinging, with Breonna pushing and Christian and Trevyn in the stroller. Trevyn enjoyed a nap most of the time we were there.
Friday was cold and rainy, so we spent that day inside watching TV. I ended up going to bed kind of early as I knew we were leaving the following day. So after everything was packed and goodbyes had been said, we headed towards Indiana about 1:30 PM after filling up in Blytheville for this unheard of price. Took $31.25 to fill up my car.
The trip back home was fairly uneventful. Trevyn got a little fussy a couple of times, but nothing that bad. We made a couple of stops along the way, but after dropping Carly and Trevyn off at their house I arrived back home about 9:30 PM. Trips are great fun, but it's always nice to be back home...
Had a great time visiting my sister Melody and her family over the weekend. Never a dull moment there. Running here and there, I don't see how they do it! But is was a welcome change of pace for me as my life is just the opposite.
From left to right, Angel, Melody and Allie.
One of the many trips we took was south to Lancaster and her daughter Angel's house. You can see in the picture at the left that Melody is showing off her best side! Then we traveled on to Crab Orchard, where my youngest sister Sharon operates a restaurant called the Past Time Cafe. We were joined there by another sister, Kathy, and we all had lunch. Food and company was excellent and I really enjoyed the visit.
After that we traveled back to Lexington, dropped Melody off at the UK medical center to take care of some family business and Jim and I went to look around at Harbor Freight. I bought some plastic trim removal tools I had been wanting and checked out a tool chest I am interested in. I always enjoy a visit to that place, tools, tools and more tools!
Back home we watched TV for awhile and before we knew it the clock struck midnight, which made it Melody's birthday! I gave her the card I'd bought before coming down and soon after that it was time for bed as I was wore out from the trip down as well as all of the running around we did.
After a good nights rest, we got up to do a few things. Jim got an old Corolla wagon he had bought ready to junk by pumping up some tires and removing the catalytic convertor from it. After that he loaded it on his dolly and away we went to make a deposit at the scrapyard.
Once finished, we stopped by a house where their grandson Rodney had spent the night with a friend to bring him back home. Also got a look at a '66 Buick LeSabre there that the guy had. Then, after dropping Rodney off at the their house, we proceeded to the local pull-a-part junkyard to see if we could locate a few parts I needed for the Cavalier.
Before
After
The gatekeeper there told us a red Cavalier had been brought in very recently and he thought the right front fender was still on it. We went to look at it first, but unfortunately, the fender was not in very good shape. We walked around the entire lot, looking for parts, but didn't find a lot. I did get the missing piece for my console though and I picked up some sun visors with good plastic holders as well as a spare hubcap.
I was also looking for a jack and lug wrench as my car had neither, but none were found at the junkyard. I did find a spare tire cover which I also needed, but unfortunately I left it laying on top of a car while I was searching for something else. Dumb, dumb, dumb.
We left the junkyard after Melody stopped by to get some money from Jim. She was taking Rodney back to his mother's place in Lancaster. Jim and I went looking for his mechanic friend to see if he could tell what the noise was in the back of my car. He wasn't at his shop so we stopped by a nearby Hardee's to get a bite to eat. I had wanted to try their Memphis BBQ Burger ever since seeing this commercial:
I was not disappointed at all, it is a very good sandwich. Jim asked where the girls were, but no one seemed to know where they were. Probably for the best, I doubt I could of eaten if they were around!
Jim's friend was going to be awhile, so we went back to the house to watch TV while we waited. After awhile, he called to say he was at the shop so we headed over there. He and Jim took the Cavalier for a ride and once back the man said he thought all of the wheel bearings needed replaced, but we might get away with just doing the ones in the rear for now. He also said it could be driven as is for awhile, but they would need to be replaced soon. He also had a jack and lug wrench which he gave to me, so mark a couple more things off my list. I really appreciated that.
We headed back to the house to wait for Melody to get back and once she did, we headed out to eat supper. Texas Roadhouse seemed to fit the bill so we headed there for a pleasant meal and some people watching. Although people were waiting outside, Jim saw his friend, the owner, who promptly seated us near the bar, which is the best place for people watching.
I had my usual roadkill, well done, with mashed potatoes and mixed veggies, along with a cold Bud light to drink. I don't often drink beer, but I was just in the mood I guess. Food was great, and watching a certain girl wearing sparkly shorts was nice too. All in all a very pleasant evening out.
Once back home we had another fine evening talking and watching TV. Melody made some fresh baked oatmeal cookies of which I had several. After which I retired to the bed once more. Slept pretty good with my belly full and the beer probably helped too.
Next morning I got up and ready, but didn't leave until around 11 AM. Then after saying goodbyes I headed back towards Louisville and then north to Seymour. I arrived home about 1:20 PM, so Google was right on the money when they said the trip would take 2 hours and 20 minutes. Of course I only did 65 on the highway to save gas, which was excellent by the way. I filled up before leaving Seymour Friday and still have about 3/8's of a tank left. Not bad for down and back and running around Lexington.
To Melody and Jim, I just want to say thanks so much for your hospitality and I really appreciate all you have done for me. You have helped me a lot and I have truly enjoyed our times together. Hope we can do it again someday soon.
Finally made it down to the car lot last Friday to test drive a new ride. Overall the results were good and so I ended up buying this 2002 Chevy Cavalier. The most serious problem revealed by the test drive was a lot of noise coming from the rear of the car. Looking at the tires, one was worn much worse than the other one. On a car with a dead axle, this is usually an indication of a bearing or alignment problem. In either case, the fix is not all that expensive, so it was not a deal breaker.
The body and paint were in good shape, with one glaring exception. The right front fender has a bad spot just ahead of the door and it is buckled just a bit also. If I can find a replacement fender in the right color, that will be an easy fix. Add a little touch up paint on the door and it will be good as new then.
Some minor annoyances like the trunk lock cylinder was not secure and would tend to pop out of the back hanging by a wire. That has already been fixed with a trip to Advance Auto Parts to buy a pack of these clips for $5. Not sure why they are only sold in this style as there are 2 door clips and 2 trunk clips. Don't know of many vehicles with 2 trunks LOL. At least I have some extras if I ever need one.
Another annoyance was the drivers side sun visor was very loose. It seems the plastic piece which holds the visor was broke and so it was just held on by being too big to fit through the hole. The image at the far left is how it should look (of course a good one should not have any cracks in it), and the one at the near left is what it actually looks like.
The passenger side still works as it should, but I took it off to check it and found that the same problem is already started on that side as well. It is still in one piece, but won't be for long at the look of this picture. The crack has started in the same exact fashion as the one on the other side. I bought some plastic repair epoxy with hopes of fixing both of these, but I don't know how successful that will be.
In case I can't fix them, at least there are some on Ebay which are not too expensive. I can get both the left and right side for around $50 shipped. Plus I have already contacted my brother-in-law (Jim McKinney, Lexington, Kentucky) and we plan to take a trip to the local junkyard to see what parts we can find next time I'm down that way. My primary reason to go is for a visit, but if I could score some needed parts while I'm there it would make the trip even better.
We went to the tire shop yesterday and had a new rear tire put on to see what effect it would have on the noise. It did seem to help the problem, but it's still there and I don't know whether it's a problem or just the way small cars sound as I'm not really used to smaller vehicles. I will feel much better if the bearing can be checked. My grandson (Billy) is supposed to change my oil and filter today after school, so perhaps we can pull the back wheel and see if there is any obvious problem. I would have liked to think the guys at the tire shop would have mentioned it if they saw it, but you never know.
A couple more photos in the park, Christian and Bryce swinging, with Breonna pushing and Christian and Trevyn in the stroller. Trevyn enjoyed a nap most of the time we were there.
