Day 93 ~ Tugs and Barges

We are here. Elizabethtown, Illinois

Bruce makes sure Mike has everything he needs.

Two tugs with up to 10 barges each pass right out in front of the Inn. We watched the tugs and barges off and on throughout the day. Our cottage porch faces the Ohio River.

Just hangin' out with my Gregory

Hunter or Knight?

Great Blue Heron ~ I love this picture taken at dusk.

High Water Marker on the Ohio River

Tug and Barge at Sunset ~ Not easily visible but on the left

Date: October 20, 2009

From: Elizabethtown, Illinois

To: Elizabethtown, Illinois

Route:

Miles Today: 0 miles

TOTAL MILES: 2, 616 miles

Top Speed on this trip: 54.1 mph

Weather: High of 70 degrees, clear blue skies and breezy

License Plates Collected: 5 Montana, 8 Wyoming (2 motorcycle) and 1 Idaho (found in WY), 2 Colorado, 1 Kansas (gifted from David of Baldwin City), 1 Missouri (To be sent to Grammy’s by our new buddy, Kansas City firefighter Shawn), 1 Illinois

Flats: 8

Broken Spokes: 3

Cracked Rim: 1

Gregory and I took advantage of the down time today to catch up on correspondence, do some school work and play cards. We also enjoyed watching the tugs and barges going up and down the Ohio River from the front porch of our cottage. It was a gorgeous sunny day with a high of around 70 degrees and a light breeze.

Since Bruce didn't have any guests at the B & B last night (except for the three of us out in the Magnolia Cottage) we decided to all sleep in and make breakfast at the Inn a team effort this morning. Bruce let us put in a couple of loads of laundry and Mike decided to take advantage of the fine weather and try to get some more painting done for our host. Mike always does a quality job and his paint work is turning out wonderfully. I think Bruce is very happy and would probably like to have Mike do as much as possible while he is here. I think Mike has every intention of using up his 5 gallon bucket of "barn red" paint if he can. It is just one way we can show Bruce our appreciation for all he has done for us.

This evening I spent a relaxing hour in the lounge chairs on the patio that overlook the river. I read my book and entertained several visiting ladybugs, itsy bitsy spiders and a couple of ants. They didn't seem to mind me and I didn't mind them. I still feel touched by luck when a ladybug lands on me and I must be doubly luck today because I had two within an hour.

While waiting on the front porch swing of the Inn to go to dinner with Bruce, Gregory and I met Julie coming to the front door. "Are you checking in?" I asked. "Well, I'm actually looking for the Eagle's Nest," she said. "You've found it," I assured her. "That is the name of your room." We explained that we were guests also and continued to chat for a bit before Bruce came out to the porch and before Julie knew it she had our story. Gregory even invited her to see our bike later. After she checked in, and while I was in the cottage, Gregory lead her and her husband Howard out to the garage to see the bike. Later I had to explain that he should have checked with Bruce first before taking Inn guests back to his garage. Fortunately, Bruce is very relaxed and didn't seem to mind. I still felt a bit awkward.

We said goodnight to Julie and Howard and said we'd visit more at breakfast and give them our blog. We then joined Bruce for dinner at the E-Town River Restaurant. We were very surprised when he insisted on treating. Mike has been working really hard to get as much painting done as possible, still it felt a bit strange to have him pay when we are staying in his Inn. We thanked him profusely and bid him goodnight. However, he came out to chat with Gregory and I for a bit when we went in the jacuzzi. Gregory wanted him to join us but with so many last minute guests he had to do his chores and get ready for breakfast in the morning.

Tomorrow we will drive his car to the nearby town of Rosiclare to have it serviced by his back door neighbor Buddy who is the mechanic there. Buddy was going to drive Bruce's car to work but this way we can see the museum there and check out the playground by the river. The weather isn't expected to change until tomorrow at midnight so we are looking forward to another nice day here in southern Illinois.