A Visit To Fort McHenry

 Thank you for the comments asking if I am okay after my encounter with the yellow jackets.  I am fine.  It has been hot here (not as hot as in St. Louis), but high dew points and humidity.  Mom and I have been taking shorter walks the past few days. We spend our days inside.  I sleep and she reads on her Kindle.

Sunday, the folks visited Fort McHenry.  They said they visited there in the 90's.  Mom said it looked different.  BOL!  Actually, they both agreed the visitor's center was not there when they visited the first time. The first time, they took a water taxi to it and this time, they drove.

Fort McHenry is what inspired Francis Scott Key to write the Star-Spangled Banner.  In 1814, the British attacked the fort.  After the battle was over, Key saw that the American flag was raised and that is what inspired him to write what is now our national anthem.

Entering the fort.  Notice the number of stars on the flag.  It is not our current flag.

Inside the fort.

Beds that soldiers used.

The flag became tangled and the Ranger along with a visitor worked to untangle it.

Other visitors then joined into help. They had to move the flag to the other side of the pole so that it could be raised again.  It took a lot of people to do this.

The guard room. This is where the flag was stored during the battle.

A re-enactment of soldiers holding drills.

The fort was very well protected.

The folks ate lunch at Guy Fieri's Baltimore Kitchen and Bar.  Guy is on the Food Network.  Dad ate there when he was here over the winter and thought Mom would like it.

Inside Guy's Restaurant

The restaurant is located inside a casino.  The folks had to wait for a while to be seated.  It wasn't crowded. There was just no one around to seat them.

The folks started out their meal with an appetizer, of course.  They chose the Vegas fries.  The fries are tossed in a spicy buffalo sauce, topped with clue cheese crumbles and served with cool blue-sabi dipping sauce (blue cheese + wasabi).  Mom said it was delicious.  She really liked the dipping sauces.

Vegas Fries

Mom ordered the Off-Da-Hook Burger.  It is a cheeseburger with an onion ring, bourbon brown sugar BBQ sauce, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, donkey sauce on a garlic buttered bun.  Mom said the flavors were amazing.  It was one of the BEST burgers she has ever had.  What is donkey sauce? It is a mayonnaise based sauce which is enhanced by roasted garlic, Worcestershire, and mustard for a well-rounded flavor smash.

Off -Da-Hook Burger

 Dad ordered the '68 Cajun Sandwich.  It has blackened chicken, andouille sausage, cheddar cheese, creole trinity and Louisiana hot sauce. He said it was good, but I don't think it was as good as Mom's burger.

'68 Cajun Sandwich

The food was great.  The service was not.  The place was not busy and the staff didn't seem motivated to work.  Mom found a large group of employees standing around the beverage area instead of waiting on customers.  The restaurant will probably not make it at this location due to the employees and the location.  It is located in a casino and the older crowd may not like the type of food that Guy offers.  The prices are high.  Mom's burger was $15 as was Dad's.  The appetizer was $13.

I was able to try a bit of the burger and a few fries and I agree that the food was great.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Enjoys Sampling Food From Around The Country

Yellow Jackets And Civil War Museum

Mom and I have been walking a lot.  On Friday, we walked six miles.  We were pretty proud of ourselves, but our legs hurt on Saturday.  We decided to scale it back some.  BOL!   Yesterday, we were out on our morning walk and then BAM!, I stepped on a yellow jacket nest.  I started running in circles because one of those mean guys got on my back leg and wouldn't come off.  Mom couldn't get him off either.  It was CRAZY!  Finally, Mom grabbed a stick and got him off that way.  They got me in my back leg and my front leg.  Basically, I had one good leg left because my other leg is connected to the foot that has a corn.  Let me tell you, it is not easy only having one good leg.  We were about 1/4 mile from home.  Mom encouraged me to keep walking. I had to stop at one point and rest in the grass.  Mom was concerned I might be having a reaction, so she encouraged me to get up and walk. We finally made it home.  Then, I had to make it up the steps.  That was not easy.  I attempted once and I couldn't do it.  Mom started to help me, but I don't like being helped.  I gritted my teeth and jumped up the steps and made it inside.  I was trembling.  Mom grabbed the Benadryl and the peanut butter and I downed them.  Mom gave me a Frosty because she thinks they solve all problems.  BOL!  I ate it and then attempted to take a nap.  It took a while for me to get comfortable, but then I slept.  I slept all day. 

I am in pain here.

I can't get comfy.

That is better.

I was all better when I woke up at 5 p.m.  This morning, we took our walk, but we didn't go near the area where we found the yellow jackets.  We walked less than a mile, but I am not complaining.  Yesterday was not fun.

Saturday, the folks visited the Civil War Museum in Harrisburg, PA.  The admission price is $11 a person, but Mom a Groupon deal and she was able to get two tickets for $12. 

The Civil War Museum

The museum is very nice.  It takes you from before the war to the very end.  Mom liked the videos that are shown of six people throughout the war. They discuss their thoughts about what is going on and what happens to them during the war and after it.  One of them had a change of heart in his feelings and two died.  Dad wasn't interested in that.  He preferred learning about the battles, but Mom didn't like that part.  They said it is a good museum to visit because it had interesting things for everyone.

There was a re-enactment by a few soldiers outside the museum. They showed how they loaded their guns.  One soldier shot an apple to show the power of the black powder.

Their uniforms are made of wool.  HOT!

You can see the apple in the smoke. 

After the museum, the folks drove to a restaurant that Mom wanted to try.  The restaurant had been on Restaurant Impossible which is a show where a restaurant that is in bad shape is turned around.  Mom didn't care about that. She just read the reviews and wanted to try their fries because they were supposed to be great. They weren't.  BOL!  Mom said they weren't even good.  :::shrugs shoulders:::

The restaurant is called Dodge City Steakhouse. 

The folks started off with an appetizer.  They chose Mozzarella Triangles.

The mozzarella triangles were really good.

The folks both ordered rib-eyes.  The entrees only come with one side, no salad.  Mom wanted to try the famous fries.

The steak had a very smokey taste.  Mom thought it was different, but not something she would order again. The onion rings were much better than the fries.  I had a little of the steak and some of the fries and I liked them both.  BOL!

The folks both said they were not impressed by the restaurant, but glad they tried it.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Thankful That He Didn't Get Stung Today

Hope This Is Not Our New Normal

Dad leaves for work at 5:40 a.m.  He called us at 6:40 a.m. and said he was still here.  "Still here? Where?"  He was stuck at the gate.  His gate card wasn't working.  The guy who came up behind him also couldn't get out.  Another guy came along and his card worked.  He tried to let Dad get out, but then his card quit working.  That is how the cards work here.  They keep track of you and if you try to let anyone in or out, it kills your card. Last night when Dad came home, the gate was open, but the instructions say if the gate is open, you still have to use your card.  Dad did, but it still killed his card.  The office doesn't open until 8 a.m., so Dad was stuck.   He called their "emergency number" but no answer or response.

Mom and I decided to walk up to the gate and keep Dad company.

Our car waiting to escape the park.

Me, in the wet grass. I kept Dad company.

It was pretty boring, but I refused to leave.

Our neighbors came up at about 7:35 a.m.  They also couldn't get out, but they were not as patient as Dad.  They decided to drive up on the hill and over some shrubs to get out.  Dad could have done that, but he doesn't want to get us thrown out.  We hope there is a video of them doing it. Seriously, they didn't even wait two minutes before doing that.

Finally, the office person showed up at 7:45 a.m.  She opened the gate and Dad left.  He will get a new card tonight.  He would have had to wait for the computers to warm up and he was already two hours late for work.

On the way home, Mom and I walked through the Chipmunk section.  This is where the long term people live.  They have nice sites and they are very neat.  Usually, the long term people have a lot stuff and it makes their sites look junky.  We have a lot of rules here and that is not allowed.

Sites are large and shady.

Do you want to see some of the hills we walk every day?


See, it is hilly here.

It helps keep my butt muscles tight.  We don't know the guy walking up the hill.  He passed us though.  BOL!

Hills, hills and more hills.

I think being an only dog is exhausting.  Mom just doesn't let me rest.  BOL!

I couldn't even make it all the way into my bed.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Has A Very Patient Dad

A New Normal

We are trying to create a new normal as we go on without Scout.  Mom and I have been walking a lot more.  We normally walk at least three miles a day.  That may not seem like much, but we are walking in a very hilly area and the temperatures have been high with high humidity.  We do our longest walk early.  I hate to admit this, but I am getting OLD.  Mom is wearing me out. 

This past weekend, I got to go for two rides!  Saturday, I went with the folks to the post office.  We are not allowed to receive mail here at the park, so Mom had our mail sent "General Delivery" to the post office.  We had a heck of a time finding the post office as it was hidden down a side street.  It took Mom forever to come back to the car because the lady had the post office was very talkative.  Mom said she was sweet as could be, but she works alone and is lonely.  Mom asked how long they hold "General Delivery" mail and she said only a few days.  Mom told her that with their hours being so short and her not having a car, it is hard to get to the post office. The lady told her to fill out a "hold mail" card and that way no one would send her mail back.  Mom never knew that was an option, so now we know for our future travels.  We now use the scanning mail service that Escapees offers, so Mom knows if there is anything important that we need in the mail.  If it is just a letter, it can be scanned opened and you know what it says.  This time, our mail had medication, so it was important we received it.

The folks dropped me off after the post office ride and they went to the Amish Marketplace.  They were disappointed in it.  The prices were higher than the grocery store.  They really liked the Amish butcher shop they visited in Indiana and hoped this one would be the same.

Sunday, the folks had planned to visit a museum.  The temperatures were supposed to be in the high 90's and they decided it might be best to stay closer to home.  We have a generator that kicks on if we loose electricity and that way I will not be without air conditioning, but they were still concerned to leave me.  They decided to take a trip to a state park and they said I could go.  We left early on Sunday morning before it got too hot.

Where are we?  We are at Rock State Park. 

This is the King and Queen Seat.  A ceremonial gathering place of the Susquehannock Indian. It is a natural 190 foot rock outcrop.

Mom and I didn't climb too far, but Dad did.  He said it would be easy to fall off.  Actually, last week, a boy did fall off a cliff at this park.

Here I go.

I am rock climbing!

Mom said that was far enough, so I am coming down.

The view from the top.  Dad took photos.

 

We then hiked to a waterfall.

It was a fun adventure, but it wore me out.

We heard this morning that Dave The Dog sent his Mom a sign.  It was a rainbow over their house.   Miss Scout hasn't sent us a sign yet.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Getting Less Treats But More Adventures