To the Mothership, and Beyond

We set out for our first planned visit to a national park in 2016 with a quick trip to Jackson Center, Ohio, home of the Airstream factory. Referred to, affectionately, as “the mothership,” it is THE destination for many Airstream owners who want to get warranty and other work done on their rigs by the…

A Fine Romance

When Jon worked on the real estate sections at The Dallas Morning News, he often had to deal with “romance” copy — content written by realtors to evoke emotion and speak to the dreams and aspirations of their target market. You’ve probably read “romance” copy in some form or fashion. Here’s the romance copy for…

What a Difference a Day Makes

We arrived for our weekender at Loyd Park on the hottest day of the year. With the mercury climbing to 107°, we wondered aloud “what the hell were we thinking?” Yet by Sunday morning, the temperature had dipped to 77°. The weather was actually pleasant! When we left for the weekend, we received dire forecasts of…

Summer Sizzler

We returned to Cedar Hill State Park, after nearly a yearlong absence, to enjoy a lakeside site on the Coyote Crossing camping loop. The mid-June temps soared into the upper 90s, prompting heat advisories and indoor activities. The sites in this loop are relatively shallow, so most occupants were tent campers. We noticed several tents…

Rainbow Rally at the River: Day 3

The third day of our Aluminum Under the Rainbow rally began with authentic French Quarter-style beignets, prepared by our hosts from Louisiana. Our water heater repairman, from Florida, gave a very helpful and informative tutorial on awning maintenance. Yes, we have to lubricate all the various parts every 30 days with spray silicone. We have…

Rainbow Rally at the River: Day 2

Day 2 of our Aluminum Under the Rainbow rally greeted us with a mechanical failure: our water heater wouldn’t work. An investigation indicated an obstruction in the flue, about which we had no clue. We joined the group for breakfast and began pestering people asking for advice. As it turns out, one member of our group…

Rainbow Rally at the River: Day 1

Memorial Day Weekend found us attending our first Aluminum Under the Rainbow rally at Tom Sawyer’s RV Park in West Memphis. Sponsored by the Friends of Dorothy camping group, it’s the only official rally of GLBT Airstreamers in the nation. A couple of cultural references may be helpful here: “Friend of Dorothy” is a slang…

Enchanted Forest, Magic Lake

We spent the weekend at Caddo Lake State Park, where we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Heart of Texas Camping Unit of the Wally Byam Caravan Club International. The park was an enchanting, magical place, made even better by good company, lively conversation, and a memorable early-morning boat trip amid Spanish moss-draped Cyprus trees.…

April Showers and Birthday Flowers

We planned to visit Jon’s mother in the St. Louis area for his birthday weekend, but a bedbug infestation forced us to postpone our visit. Still, we used our vacation days for a long weekend at our favorite backyard park. The weekend weather forecast called for a major rain event. Fortunately, the rain held off…

Signs of Spring

Spring weather beckoned us to our favorite backyard park for a weekend get-away, and we happily obliged. We arrived on Friday evening with plenty of daylight to set up and settle in. Chef Cliff prepared a perfect filet mignon for Date Night, along with grilled asparagus, baked potato and caprese salad. An always reliable Ravenswood…