Day 44, We Have Air!

I want to thank everyone for their comments concerning the one year anniversary of loosing Jack.  Writing the post was very difficult for me and it actually took me two days. I wrote it last week because I didn't think I could do it on the actual anniversary.  I cried and cried as I wrote it.  I realized through the comments that some of you started reading the blog after Jack died.  Here is the link to the post I wrote when he died explaining what happened to him, if you are interested.  There were no tears yesterday, but Jack was on my mind all day.  I can remember in detail everything that happened that day and I am happy that we are on the road because I think it was a little easier. It would have been very hard to be at home where the accident happened. Something strange did happen yesterday.  After the air conditioning repairmen left, I went into the bedroom to get my tennis shoes. I had placed them in a big drawer.  I noticed my purse in the drawer.  It is a purse that I have not used at all since I have been here.  Something told me to look in it.  I pulled out a wallet and a few quarters.  Quarters are like gold to me since I need them for laundry.  LOL  The next thing I found was Jack's name collar. He was wearing it the day he died.  I knew I had brought it, but thought I had it in another location.  I looked at the clock and it was the exact time that Jack had died. A sign?  Not sure, but it was somewhat comforting.

I found out through Deccy's Mum that Jack and Joey are related!  I did not know this.  It's not a close relation, but it's nice to know that Joey has a little of Jack in him. 

Joey is now going to take over and tell you about the air conditioning repair.

Hi everyone, it is me, Joey!  I was very excited yesterday because Dad didn't go to work until late in the day.  I love when Dad is home. He stayed home so he could be here when the air conditioning repairmen came.  They were supposed to be here at 10 a.m.  They didn't come.  Dad called them at 10:45 a.m. and asked where they were. They called back at 11:30 a.m. and said they would be there in 25 minutes.  Dad was getting aggravated because he needed to get to work.  Finally, they showed up at 1 p.m.  We thought they would need two ladders to get it up on the roof.  They just backed up their pick up truck to the RV and one guy climbed on the roof and the other pushed it up.  If Mama and Dad could have done that, they would have saved a lot of money and time.  The men then came inside to hook it up.  Guess what?  One of them had a cowboy hat on. He set it down on the counter and I sniffed it.  Mama told me to leave it because she knew I wanted to steal it.  I was so excited that we had company. I kept running through the RV. Then, Fred, the park manager came in.  He is my favorite person here because he always rubs my ears.  He calls me "Big Guy".  He knows the repairmen, so that is why he came in.  They had it hooked up in just a few minutes.  Finally, we had air and we all cheered.  Last night, we were walking through the campground and Fred asked if Scout was happy to have air in "her" bedroom again.  Mama laughed and said that Scout was a happy camper again.

The repairmen were nice enough but definitely don't have a good sense of time.  They didn't even have an excuse for why they were late. Dad said he is not sure they would have shown up if he hadn't called to check on them.  Would we use them again?  Not sure.  

Last night, Mama had another training session on how to put the awning up.  She is finally able to do it.  There is one hard part and that is probably the most important part.  She has to pull a lever and hang onto the "rope" at the same time. Once the lever is pushed, the awning goes up very quickly, so you have to hang onto the rope because you don't want it go up too fast. After all the training, Dad decided maybe we shouldn't have it out today since it might rain, so Mama doesn't have to worry about it today anyway.

Ready to see what Mama fixed for dinner last night?  She fixed Bacon Penne Alfredo.  It's not a quick meal because you have to fix the bacon and the pasta, but it's not a hard meal to make.  Mama likes to bake the bacon in the oven instead of frying it. The bacon comes out flat instead of curled up. She thinks it has a better taste to it.  Mama puts the bacon on a cookie sheet lined with non-stick foil.  She puts it in a cold oven and then sets it to 400 degrees.  She starts checking it at 10 minutes, but it normally takes about 20 minutes.  It can burn quickly, so it has to be checked often.


8 oz uncooked penne pasta
8 oz sliced bacon
4 oz sliced mushrooms (fresh are best)
(1 garlic clove, minced)
1 c milk
(½ c parmesan cheese, 1 T butter, pepper to taste)
¼ c sliced green onions

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain water. Meanwhile, cook bacon in skillet till crisp; drain on paper towels. Reserve 2 T hot drippings in skillet & sauté mushrooms & garlic, 3 min until tender. Stir in pasta, milk, parmesan cheese, butter, and pepper. Reduce heat to med-low & simmer uncovered until sauce is thickened, stirring often. Crumble bacon & add to sauce with sliced green onions.

Bacon Penne Alfredo

Mama really liked this dish.  However, she did not have parmesan cheese. She used colby Jack cheese instead.  I know, its not the same at all, but that is all she had.  It still turned out.  Dad said it was good.  She will definitely make this again, but will use parmesan cheese next time. 

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Came Close To Stealing A Cowboy Hat