I'm still here!

     Greetings, and my apologies for an almost a month off line.  There is really no excuse.  I have not been incapacitated in any significant way.  Below is a picture of my old Corvette taken in front of the Charleston Balance, Mobility and Dizziness Center.

     For a few years I have been dealing with peripheral neuropathy which means that I have less than normal feedback from my feet which makes balance more difficult and transfers the burden to the larger muscles in the hips and thighs and creates fatigue and stiffness in that area.  Shortly after returning to SC in the fall, the problem was compounded by     something called polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) which is an inflammation of the muscles in the shoulders, neck and upper arms.  It may also affect the hips, which were already a problem.  A combination of neurologist, hematologist and rheumatologist have combined forces to sort out the problem.  The first order of business was to eliminate the possibility of some more sinister cause, which they have done.  The rheumatologist has now taken the lead and is prescribing a low dose of Prednisone.  Since it is a steroid, he is carefully watching for side effects.  In the meantime I have just completed a two-month regimen at the physical therapy center shown above.  I could go on at length about their competence, concern, and effectiveness.
     Suffice it to say, I have now returned to my normal activities.  For a while the shoulder pain limited sleep intervals to less than an hour.  Now we are back to 4+ hours which is limited by an old, tired prostate.  I am working with the power tools to build some cypress Adirondack chairs.  And I am taking evening walks with Durelle and Baxter, and I have lost 14 pounds since mid-December.
     I do not want my travel blog to become an intimate medical journal, but I owed my readers an explanation for my absence.  The camera still works, and I will try to do better.  Thanks for your patience.

First Day of 2013

          A quiet holiday season has come and gone.  Quiet except for last night, that is.  (More on that later.)  You saw the picture of the tree and the dog in the previous post.  You probably noticed that the tree was not heavily laden with gifts.  Durelle and I agreed not to exchange gifts this year, and neither of us cheated!  The presents you saw were to/from Cindy, plus a token or two for Baxter.  The New Years Eve fireworks started early and reached a crescendo at midnight.  In spite of Melatonin, Baxter did not do well with the fireworks.  To give you some idea of the extent and proximity of the fireworks, take a look at the next picture.

    You can see that their launching pad was immediately in front of our house.  I suppose that, since it is only an annual event and is a southern tradition, we can live with it.  The next shot shows the aftermath of Baxter's attempts to hide in a display space containing a carved chess set and a bunch of CDs.

     This morning he is back to normal (for him) and we are expecting a long day of Bowl games.   Here's hoping 2013 brings you health and happiness...prosperity may be a bit more difficult.

2012 Christmas Letter

     I decided that it might be a good idea if I turned our annual Christmas letter into a blog.  Of course, this runs the risk of redundancy.  If you are a regular follower of the blog (thank you, by the way) or if you have received a copy of the letter already, there will certainly be some things you have seen before.  Before I post the letter here, I'll do two things.  I'll include a picture of Baxter in front of our tree, and I'll wish all of my readers the most pleasant Christmas ever.

     Also, I must point out that the letter is Durelle's creation; I merely did the formatting and picture insertion.  So here it is:

Season’s Greetings from the Cloutiers’ 2007 Allegro Bus!

            Right now I am in the shop, duct tape and all, for a few repairs, so I guess I have time to write the Cloutier Christmas letter.  If you were driven by Frank and were transporting Durelle and Baxter all summer, you’d need some refurbishing, too.  I need a whole new back end.  It seems that Frank spotted some cheap diesel in an unfamiliar and cramped service station.  While leaving he scraped my backside against a concrete post.  The electric flush switch failed on the toilet; the refrigerator door seals failed causing a frosting problem; the stove top doesn’t always light; and the dishwasher occasionally quits too soon.  And...the retractable step doesn’t.  The main slide-out works poorly I think from the residue of that broken safety glass from when I was burglarized a year ago.  Rumor has it that I’ll be asked to get them up to Maine again next summer when I’m feeling perky again.  I’ve heard that I’ll be parked in a new spot, facing the old one but with a better view of Penobscot Bay.

     Thank goodness I won’t have to travel the routes and the miles I did this summer.  I started off by taking them from Hanahan, SC to the FamCamp at Nellis AFB near Las Vegas, NV for their granddaughter Melissa’s lovely wedding.

  Then I went to Cedar City, UT for a few days so they could check out Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks.  From there it was on to the Air Force Academy with a stop along the way for a visit in Parachute, CO to visit Frank’s cousin, Carol.  The piece of oil shale from her husband Tom’s homestead in DeBeque is now proudly on the mantle.  Crossing the Rockies at 11,000 feet was no problem, but my “Jake Brake” got a lot of use coming down the east side.  At USAFA I had to park “the wrong way” so the dish on the roof could see the satellite.  They left me with the dog a lot as they visited, wined, and dined with the Catalfamos, the Glenns and the Dills.  Fortunately, I got them out of there before the Wando wildfire forced the evacuation of USAFA.  

            We then proceeded across Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania until we stopped in Westfield, NY on the eastern end of Lake Erie.  They spent a couple of weeks enjoying sunsets, wineries, quaint villages and new friends Larry and Jane from the strangely named town of Boston, NY.       

     We then headed east on the NY Thruway until I pooped out in Glenville, NY at a lovely park on the Mohawk River.  My four, relatively new, AGM house batteries failed and had to be replaced with the old lead-acid type.  From there I carried the three of them to the Hanscom AFB FamCamp in Fourth Cliff (Scituate), MA.  I parked so close to the edge of the cliff that I could have easily jumped in the ocean. 

     They took a few day trips in the car to Brant Rock, to Plymouth to reunite with Durelle’s roommate Marcia and husband Peter, and to Lynn to visit Durelle’s brother Marty and sister-in-law Ann.  While there we met former acquaintances and fellow Allegro Bus owners, Bill and Diane Russell.  Durelle just loves walking around campgrounds with Baxter and hearing someone say, “I know you!” 

     The next stop was the owners’ hometown of Athol, MA which required squeezing over that scary old Millers River bridge by the old UTD factory.  I parked in the parking lot of the shuttered Silver Lake School so they could enjoy the festivities of Athol’s 250^th anniversary including a two-hour parade complete with the Clydesdales as well as several Athol High School reunions with friends from the classes of 1942 to 1965 but most importantly, 1956.

            I finally got to go to Maine on July 23^rd and enjoyed watching my owners reunite with their many camping friends and enjoy a visit from their daughter, Cindy.  I provide an expensive windbreak for many lobster feeds.  This is what Maine coast camping is all about. Note the barnacles on this old-timer.

     I also am a baby-sitter (with Rick’s help) for Baxter as Frank, Durelle, and Cindy went to Southwest Harbor to visit the vacationing Gobiens, a good friend and former co-worker of Frank’s.  They also went to Lewiston for an annual reunion with Durelle’s cousins Eleanor and Phyllis and her husband, Fred.  And, of course, they had to make a sentimental journey to New Harbor and Pemaquid Point which included a visit with another of her cousins Harold and his wife, Diane.  After seven weeks in Maine, we trudged on down to the Field and Stream RV Park in Brookline, NH and stayed three weeks so that my owners could spend time with their son, Mark, his wife, Heather, grandson Kevin, granddaughter Meghan, grandson Dave, great granddaughter, Brielle and her mother, Carolyn.  Granddaughter Melissa now lives in Sydney, Australia with new husband, Illia Zotos.  Durelle also really enjoyed seeing a lot of good friends from Nashua Country Club.  While in Brookline they checked out the status of Frank’s sister Marian’s and her husband Eldy’s “log cabin” in Royalston.  They have moved in!

     They finally let me start home on the first of October which included a couple of stops in Virginia to reconnect with the Looses, the Myers and the Wegners.  We got home on the 5^th at which point they off loaded a half ton of stuff.  Boy, did that feel good!  Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from this tired, sick, but happy camper.  

       That's our Christmas letter.  To those who have already seen it...my apologies.  To those that haven't...I hope you enjoyed it. 

Our eagle friend

     You have seen pictures of this fellow before, most of them crisper and steadier.  I am adding this one because it captures the almost intimate connection we have here.  This was taken through our living room window this morning.  It is kinda special.

Has it been a month?

     Nope, ONLY 28 days.  Tonight, at Durelle's insistence, we took a ride around the better decorated neighborhoods in our immediate area to look at the Christmas decorations.  The first stop was Park Circle in North Charleston.  This is a huge traffic circle with a park in the middle. It must be at least 200 yards in diameter.  The entire perimeter, both on the inside and outside of the circle are decorated by the city, by individuals and by local businesses.  

     As you know, night photography is a different ball game.  With low light and long exposures a tripod is required, and I have yet to purchase one.  It is a challenge with a hand-held camera to get a reasonably sharp picture.  For every one you see here I deleted several.

          So, what have we been doing for the past month in lieu of updating the blog?  Not much.  Durelle and Cindy have played golf about once a week.  The Christmas cards have all been mailed.  Some of you will notice that this year's card has been written BY the Allegro Bus.  Because of the peripheral neuropathy, I have been doing twice a week physical therapy with Alison, Stacey and Jennifer at the Balance, Mobility & Dizziness Center of Charleston.  It's helping, but it prompts me to recall the difference between a therapist and a terrorist...you can negotiate with a terrorist.

     This is the last picture from Park Circle.  The remaining pictures were taken on Dominion Drive in Hanahan which winds along the water as it empties into the harbor.

     At Christmas I'll get some pictures of our tree for the next post.  By the way, a few days ago I missed a super picture because I didn't take the camera along for our evening walk.  Cindy, Durelle and I were marveling at a particularly extravagant sunset when we heard the unmistakable sound of a C-5.  Sure enough, it descended right into the midst of that sunset as it landed at Joint Base Charleston.  It was one of those awesome fish that just got away.  Oh, well...we'll keep trying.

Academy Interviews

     Around this time of year I usually get involved in the selection process for the various military academies.  In NH my involvement was  as a field representative for the admissions department at West Point.  Here, it is quite different.  Senator Lindsey Graham (SC-R) puts a lot of effort into the responsibility of nominating candidates for the various academies.  Unlike the patronage days of a half century ago, most congressmen (-women) send a small set of nominees to the admissions departments of the academies and let them make the final selections.  It is a good approach.  The congressmen (do I have to keep doing this gender thing?) stay very much involved yet the superior ability of the admissions offices to predict those who will succeed serves to keep expensive attrition rates down.
     This opportunity to serve is a humbling and inspiring experience.  America is NOT going to Hell.  The young men and, yes, women are impressive, accomplished, and motivated people.  I heard more than one old grad say, "I probably wouldn't qualify today."  
     As we get older, our habits, acquaintances, and activities become more predictable.  Any activity that exposes you to the best of today's youth is a rejuvenating experience.  I recommend it. 

If you create a monster, you have to feed it.

     It has been brought to my attention by my mother-in-law's son that I have not posted to my blog in ten days.  The title of this blog comes from legendary Oklahoma football coach, Bud Wilkinson.  Aren't all successful football coaches "legendary"?  It's true, when we are not on the road there are fewer pictures and fewer new tales than when we are wandering around this (still) great country.  I usually build a blog around some pictures that I think might interest the reader.  While our back yard has yielded some nice pictures of sunsets, deer, eagles and golden retrievers, it certainly does not do it on a daily basis.  We have settled into our winter mode.  Durelle and Cindy play golf about once a week.  Let me predict right here that Durelle is going to match her grandfather by shooting her age one of these days.  I do not intend to turn this into "what are we doing today", Facebook-type narrative.  I'd prefer it to be a travel blog, or perhaps a Chamber of Commerce blog when we are stationary.
     I have now finished three of those previously described Angel Bus missions of picking up a cancer patient and bringing him to the Hollings Cancer Center in Charleston, and returning him home.  Each one involves about 750 miles of driving, but there is a lot of satisfaction that goes with it.
     I mentioned the back yard deer pictures.  Here is a very recent one.

      I also have a portrait shot of Baxter you might like.

     Speaking of Baxter, I also have a shot of him with Durelle's tomato plant.  As we were packing up to leave Maine, Durelle discovered a volunteer tomato plant next to the site's utility post.  She dumped out a small container of mums and dug up the tomato to bring home in spite of some disparaging comments from her unsentimental partner.  We don't know if it is a volunteer from our hanging pot of cherry tomatoes or what.  Perhaps Duane planted it some time ago.  At any rate, it has survived, and perhaps it will be set out next spring to see what happens.  Below is a picture of Baxter and the tomato plant.

     No, it is not a marijuana plant.  I thank my readers for their forbearance, and I will try to put together some good blogs exploiting the fact that Conde Nast has proclaimed Charleston to be the most desirable tourist destination in the world!