A Tour Of Wheatland

A tour of Wheatland?  Did we drive to Kansas without tell you?  No, sillies.  BOL!   Wheatland is the home of President James Buchanan.  When he lived there, it was surrounded by wheat fields and thus, it was named Wheatland.

Wheatland

 The folks said the tour was great!  The tour guide was dressed in period clothing and she was excellent.  She made the tour very interesting. 

Buchanan was the 15th President.  Historians say that his presidency was a failure.  Basically, he didn't do much.  He didn't want to deal with slavery and said that it was up to each state to decide. 

He was the only President to be a bachelor.  His niece, Harriet, served as the first lady.  The position wasn't called "First Lady" until she held it. Harriet's parents had both died and she and her brother moved in with their Uncle James when they were young.  She became his confident and very much a partner as far as his politics were concerned.  James had been engaged to Ann Coleman. She died a week after their engagement ended.  She overdosed on laudanum. Was it an accident? We don't know.  She thought he was having an affair and he wouldn't dignify her questions with an answer.  Her parents did not let him attend the funeral and it was then that he declared he would never marry.  There were/are rumors that he was gay. We ran across a blog today where the author was quite upset when he questioned his tour guide at Wheatland about this and couldn't get confirmation about whether Buchanan was gay.  Another tour guide commented on the blog post and told him that basically no one knows for sure. 

Buchanan enjoyed spending time with his "little" family.  His little family included his housekeeper, Esther "Miss Hetty" Parker, who lived with him for 38 years and his niece and nephew.  There was nothing romantic with his housekeeper.

Okay, so now on to the pictures. 70% of the furniture in the house belonged to the Buchanan's.

This is the dining room where they ate most meals.  The China belonged to the family.

These shade are original and were restrung only once by the housekeeper.

Harriet's writing desk. The guide pointed out that this piece of furniture was not practical due to the small space for writing.

The parlor.

Harriet's piano.

Buchanan's study.

The spindles on the staircase are different looking.

Fireplace in Harriet's bedroom.

Harriet's Bedroom

Prayer bench is under a painting of Harriet's two boys that both died.  Harriet married after leaving the White House. Her two boys and husband died fairly close together.

Harriet's doll.  It may have been a model for clothing designed for her.

James Buchanan Henry's room. This was the nephew's room.

President Buchanan's room.

Small tub was used for bathing.

After President Buchanan died, Harriet inherited the house.  She added a bathtub.

This is Esther "Miss Hetty" Parker's room. She was the housekeeper.

Esther "Miss Hetty" Parker

Warming Kitchen. Actual kitchen was not in the house.

Dumb waiter.

Outhouse

Inside part of the outhouse.  There was total seating for 8!

 The cost to tour the house is $10 a person.  Mom said it was one of the best house tours that she has been on.  The house is located in Lancaster, PA. 

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Not Interested In Old Houses

We Have A New Shade!

One of the things that we added to our old rig that we loved were privacy shades.  They were made custom for our rig right at our site.  You can read about it here:  We Have Shades!  Well, when we sold the old rig, that whole setup went with it because it wouldn't fit our new rig.  Our new rig came with privacy shades that are mounted on the inside, but we were not thrilled with them.  One of the problems is that they did not stretch all the way to the corners of the windshield and the sun still came inside.  Also, since they were on the inside, more heat came in than if they were on the outside.  The folks saw a system they really liked at a RV show in February.  However, it was pretty pricey, so they thought about it for six months.

The new system has magnets.  There is no drilling into the RV for snaps.  Today, the folks installed it.   The first thing you have to do it dry fit it to your windshield.  The shade comes with magnets sewn into it.  One person has to be on the outside on a ladder and the other person is on the inside placing the inside magnets to the windshield.  Let me tell you, those magnets are strong.  The instructions tell you that the magnets can jump 12" and they can.  Mom made the mistake of putting one in each hand.  She then had to ply the magnets apart.  So, Dad stood on the ladder holding up the shade and Mom placed the magnets on the inside of the windshield.  They then made sure it was exactly how they wanted it.  The next step was for Dad to hold the magnet that was sewn into the shade in place, while Mom took the adhesive strip off the magnet that she had and stuck it into its' permanent place.  It was basically an easy process. There was just one magnet that Mom had trouble with because she had trouble reaching it over the steering wheel.  She hit the horn and scared Dad.  BOL!

TADA!  Here is the new shade.

 The great thing about this shade is that we will never have to use a ladder to put it up. We just needed it to install it the first time.  A pole is used to take it down and put it up.  The magnets are the key to making this shade easy to put up.

This is the view from the inside. 

We can see out easily.

Here is the magnet on the inside of the windshield.  It is "permanent".  It is all the way to the top and you don't see it unless you are next to the windshield.

Magne Shade is the company that makes this shade.  We chose just the basic black because we thought that was perfect for our rig.  However, they do take photos and screen print them onto the shades.  My picture could have been on the shade!   I know when Mom first saw the shade in February, she thought about putting a photo of Scout and me on it, but then she thought if something happened to one of us, she would be sad.  Well, you know what happened.  I think the photo of Scout and me in our party hats would have been awesome though.  The saleswoman did say when you have a design on the shade that your view outside is not as clear. 

We have a neighbor who recently arrived and they have the Magne Shades.  I think they bought everything they sell.  They have the side windows, mirror covers and the tire covers.  We decided that the windshield shade was all we really needed and all our budget allowed.  We did get windshield wiper covers, but they came free with our purchase.

Our neighbors chose a pattern on theirs.

We hope we like the shade as much as we think we will.  Getting that ladder out sure was a pain.  We haven't played with it by taking it off and putting it back on yet.  We are making sure the magnets get a good hold onto the window before we do that.

Oh and Dad adjusted our awning today.  It now tilts down more.  The way it came, it just stuck straight out.  We planned on using it today, but it was too windy.  :-(

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Served As The Shade Reporter Today

Just Relaxing In The Sun And Then....

Monday, it was humid and we had a brief shower.  Yesterday, it was beautiful here and Mom and I decided to relax in the sun.

In this photo, you can see our new tire covers.  Pretty, don't you think?  BOL

Normally, I lay in the shade, but maybe I knew something was about to happen because I chose the sun away from our rig.

Mom sat with me for a while and then decided to move back to the shade near the motor home.  That was her big mistake.  What happened?  Well, all of a sudden without any warning, water fell from the roof.  It was not just a sprinkle.  It was a big gush of water.  Mom said it was like the ice bucket challenge.  She jumped up.  Her hair was plastered to her head.  BOL!   Her shirt was soaked.  It was pretty funny.  She had to change her clothes and dry her hair.

Evidence of the event.

We don't think anyone saw it happen as no one is really around.  If they did see it happen, I am sure they laughed and laughed.  It was pretty funny.  Dad said he wishes he could have seen it.  He laughed pretty hard when Mom told him the story. 

The rest of the day was pretty normal.  Mom did make an awesome dinner last night.  She fixed BBQ chicken thighs in the Ninja.  She sauteed the chicken in onions and garlic in the Ninja.  She then removed the chicken and added 3 cups of chicken broth and put the chicken back in the Ninja but on the rack this time. She steamed it for 30 minutes.  She then removed the chicken and drained the liquid but kept the onions and garlic in the bottom of the Ninja.  She then added the chicken back in without the rack and added BBQ sauce.  She baked it for about 15 more minutes.  Dad said it was really good.  It was better than actually putting it on the grill.  Mom loves her Ninja.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Stayed Dry Yesterday - BOL

Oh, The Things They Eat

One of the things Mom likes best about our lifestyle is eating out on weekends.  They normally eat out twice on Saturdays and once on Sundays.  Sometimes, they eat out twice on Sundays.  Mom usually reads reviews on restaurants before they go.  She is a regular contributor to TripAdvisor.

This past Saturday, they ate a restaurant they saw on Food Network.  I think it was one of those shows that have the top 100 restaurants, but I don't remember the name of the show.  The place that was number three has a location in this area. It was not the location that was on the TV show.  It is called Primanti Brothers.  The restaurant was different than Mom expected.  This location has waitresses. The one on TV was where you ordered at the counter. 

The sandwiches are served with coleslaw and fries on the sandwich. Dad ordered a hot sausage & cheese sandwich with double meat and egg.  He said it was good.

Hot Sausage & Cheese Sandwich

Mom ordered the crispy chicken sandwich.  It comes with a fried chicken breast and a chicken thigh.  It has a Cajun sauce on it. Mom said it was good.  She really liked the thigh because that is what she prefers on a chicken.  She didn't care for the fries.

They also ordered fried pickles.  Dad thought they were good.  Mom was not impressed.

Fried Pickles

The music was extremely loud in this place. The prices were reasonable.

Mom chose a BBQ place for dinner.  It is called Corner Stable.  They are known for their ribs and and crab cakes.  The place was packed when they arrived at 5 p.m., but they were seated immediately.

Mom ordered a slab of ribs with sides of mac & cheese and hot apples.

Dad ordered the crab cake rib dinner. He had green beans and hot apples for his sides.  His ribs are not shown.

Mom thought the ribs were good. They were very tender.  Dad said they were overdone.  Dad did like the crab cakes.  He said it had big flakes of crab meat.

They were in and out of the restaurant in 30 minutes.  Mom said the food appeared about five minutes after they ordered.  She wasn't impressed by that.

Inside the restaurant.  It is pretty small.

 Sunday, they went to Quaker Steak and Lube.  Mom has seen these around and always wanted to try one.  It looks like you are going into an oil change place.

Motorcycle rotates on the ceiling.

They are known for their wings.  The folks decided to order wings as an appetizer.  Guests choose from a long list of sauces for their wings.

$6.95 for 5 wings. Yikes!

Mom said the wings were good, but the sauce they chose was bland.  She can't remember what they chose.  On Tuesday nights, they have an all you can eat wing buffet for $12.95.  Mom would love to try it.  Dad doesn't get home from work until late, so that is probably not going to happen.

The folks both ordered the Lube Burger.  It has a wing sauce on it.  Mom said it was good, but it could have used a little more wing sauce.  She liked that sauce.  It also came with fries and the fries were excellent.

Lube Burger

Women's restroom

Women's restroom.

When the waitress brings the bill to the table, she brings our Twizzlers (licorice) too. We are not sure why, but Mom liked it.

 Would you believe that I did not get a single bite of any of this food?  I need to check my adoption contract. It may have been violated.  BOL!

I did this while they were gone.

 Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Going To Demand A Doggy Bag This Weekend