The last to leave

They must get some big ones here in Minnesota.

Cousin Kate and I had talked and considered leaving early.  Better sense and a need to relax changed our minds, especially as a few others were also staying over until Monday.

It was a Sunday well spent.  Some went to church, I worked on a blog, some slept, I suppose.  But when we all came together to go back out to Jim and Susan’s, it was perfect timing.  We met in the casino hotel lobby and drove out together in two cars …

What we found out, though, as we were walking in the parking lot to the vehicles was that one of our group had gone to the parking lot in the early morning to get something from his vehicle and had gotten robbed.  It was horrifying to hear, and luckily there was no harm … just money gone, his casino winnings.  It was caught on camera, another dumb criminal.  Charges will be pressed as it appears it’s not the first time … and this person needs to be put away. 

A map of the lakes and how they connect.  I guess it's all one, but sure looks like many.

 At Jim and Susan’s, Jim took us on another pontoon boat ride.  This time we were out for quite a while and even the dog got to go … Sophie. 

John, Cousin Kate and Sophie. 

Mike and his hippie shirt.  He said it's very comfortable.

Mike's wife, Marsha, might be wondering about that shirt.

These are such nice people.  I sure do hope to see them again. 

Kate was relaxing after all the hard work preparing for the reunion.

Chris, Jim and Susan's daughter.

Jim, our happy captain, who safely piloted our boat.

Susan, Jim's wife.

Bill, King of Cheesecakes, and John resting.

We cruised around, in and out of the little canals leading to other parts of the lake.  We saw beautiful homes, and boats, and docks, and even a silver statue of a bear that reminds me of the one Barry had made for the House of Harley in Anchorage.  It was rather interesting to see it in someone’s yard.

Not my choice of yard art as mine tends to be toward pink flamingoes.

This was the prettiest little boat house, or whatever it is, I've seen.  Most folks could probably live in it.

We prepared a meal from the leftovers from the day before, along with burgers Jim cooked for us.  It was a great time and a nice, relaxing way to ramp down from the wonderful chaos of the day before. 

There are so many beautiful flowers.

I took photos of many, but couldn't really do justice to them except to share the endless colors.

Cousin Kate shows off some of the bounty from Susan's garden.  She also has blueberries that we used in salads.  It was all so tasty. 

Then it was time to pack up things into Kate’s vehicle and head back to the casino.  We needed to play a little before hitting the racks.  While I like slot machines, we also ended up playing three-card poker.  That's a fun game and easy to get the hang of.  Of course, it's easy ... the house almost always wins.  But I seem to have some very lucky cousins.  Another great day in the books.

I won a few bucks here and there on the penny slots, and pretty much broke even after a couple of days of playing.

On Monday (August 4), I was ready pretty much when I wanted to be.  I called Kate and she and Bill and Mike, Marsha and their son, John, came down to wish me a safe journey.  I’d spent time with all of them, enjoyed so much getting to know them, and now it was time to say good bye.  Hugs, a tear, and I was off.  Now it was riding … just getting to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to visit Will O., the swan I’d shepherded to the zoo there in January.

Down the road I went, running smaller roads and avoiding the Twin Cities.  Imagine, my road would take me to Red Wing, Minnesota.  I have a friend there and I called to see if she was available for lunch … yay, I was going to see Joanne.  I told her I thought I was about 150 miles away, but it could be more or less, and probably 200.  I think that was closer to right.

No matter, I found Joanne, after going the wrong way again.  Oh well.  That’s my life, and it ain’t all bad if that’s the worst thing that happens to me.

Joanne and me ... enjoying a short visit and a great lunch.

 We enjoyed a wonderful, leisurely, two-hour-plus lunch.  Then it was time for me to get on the road again.  I needed to get some more miles under my belt since the GPS in my phone showed it was about 1,400 miles to Baton Rouge.  Knowing my routes, it would be a bit more.

On I went, crossing over into Iowa in search of more barn quilts.  This time, however, I watched the road signs carefully so I’d not get off on a road I didn’t want to be on.  While I could enjoy the ride and stop to take some photos, I also needed to make time.

Then, there it was, the dreaded engine light yet again.  This was getting frustrating.  It came on a couple of times as I rode, and I was about 45 miles out of Waterloo, Iowa.  There’s a Harley shop there, so guess I’d be visiting it.  I’m starting to think that the great Harley dude in the sky was not happy with me passing up Harley shops, that I wasn’t buying enough T-shirts, so he was plaguing me with these motorcycle issues.

I got to Waterloo and checked into a hotel.  Then I was in for the night.

On Tuesday (August 5) I was up and at the shop … they took my bike right in and diagnosed the problem shortly thereafter.  A little green wire (he showed me) had stretched and was loose, thereby causing the engine light to go on periodically.  They fixed it and I was on my way … after buying my required shirt, of course.  Hopefully, the Harley dude figures I've met my quota for this trip and I don't need to make any more shop stops.

Barn quilts and corn.  That’s pretty much what I saw this time.  I needed to make time as I was taking too long, but I also didn’t want to pass up some nice roads. 

 

Each barn quilt is unique. 

Some have more color than others.

This one was probably my favorite ... blue and gold

And there were lots of corn fields.

And don't forget the trains, art included.

I crossed the state line and made Missouri my home away from home for the night.  I’d be back at it the next morning, heading south.  And my little gremlin light has remained OFF!!!