...an easy trip of some 250 miles or so...
...of course we start singing Sweet Home Alabama in unison...except Opie and RJ who don’t know the words.
Factoid: Did you know that the song was written and sung not by an Alabama group, but rather by Florida’s own Lynyrd Skynyrd from Jacksonville. (They couldn’t say Sweet Home Florida, as it has one too few syllables, making the rhyme awkward)
Anyway, after an uneventful 76 mile ride on a secondary road whose lanes were exactly too freaking narrow (think bike path) for a lady as regally wide as the Queen, we entered onto I-10 west. It was at this time that the decision was made to stop at the first Love’s Truck Stop we saw to get fuel.
It was while waiting in line to fuel up that the piercing sound of a tire pressure alarm shook your Captain’s sense of serenity. Oh dear, we have a serious air leak in an INSIDE rear tire.
Love’s technicians direct us to Southern Tire Mart which is about 400 yards away.
We were shocked to be taken into the building immediately. (Didn’t even have to detach the Jeep)
After 90 plus minutes, the technician here found a bent core in the inflation valve which for some reason did not show the leak with the soapy water test. Now for the larger surprise...they replaced the core and didn’t charge us a cent!!! Your grateful Captain gave a nice gratuity to the man who had done all the work and we departed to continue our trip to Orange Beach, Alabama.
Leslie at our spectacular site at the Heritage RV Resort and Marina. This may be the best view we’ve ever had, as it overlooked the marina and the bay.
While not as large or as lushly landscaped as Pelican Lake in Naples, the brick pavers even on the main road add a touch of class...
For our second night here, Leslie made dinner reservations through the OPEN TABLE app at what is reputedly the absolute best restaurant in all of Orange Beach...
Yep, this great gustatory delight serving joint is immodestly named BIG FISH. I told some of our neighbors at the park about this and they were in awe that Dear Leslie had secured the reservation at all, let alone during the COVID-19 crises!!! I told them about how she uses OPEN TABLE, and nearly always gets us a great table at a time we want. (Now everyone there has the app.)
Feeling particularly sassy now, your Captain retired to the inviting bed in the Queen for an afternoon nap, so as to be fully refreshed in time for our 6:45PM reservation.
Then somewhere in the echoing recesses of his sleepy brain, the Captain hears the Commodorable (Leslie) saying into her phone, “Well do you have anything for 7PM or later?”
Coming fully awake, the Captain wonders why his able life partner is making still another reservation...
It was then that your beleaguered Captain is informed that while Leslie has successfully made a reservation at BIG FISH, this particular BIG FISH is located (inconveniently) in Calgary, Canada, some 2,450 miles away.
...ya gotta admit, it would be an interesting place, for sure...
Note that at this juncture, all hands (and paws) in the Mawyer/Sheldon clan are truly famished, ravenous, and colossally hungry!!
Dutifully your faithful Captain sets about to find the local Domino’s Pizza store where he can purchase (wearing the ubiquitous mask, of course) a life supporting pizza bearing upon it pepperoni, sausage, onions and of course PINEAPPLE bits.
After a short drive, the Domino’s shop is found. It is situated NEXT DOOR to the elusive BIG FISH, where we do not have a reservation!!! (Don’t tell me the fates have no sense of irony).
Upon returning to hearth and home, Your cheerful Captain decides to uncork a present given to us by great neighbors Rita and Ray...
...Coopers Hawk Sangria, a tasty accompaniment to pizza anytime...
...Rita and Ray, great neighbors who simply refuse to leave Chicago and move permanently to Naples...(the sounds of gunfire must somehow be a soothing reminder of home).
...gratuitous post-prandial photo...
The following day your fastidious Captain (swabby, really) washes and details the Queen for her long journey to Music City, USA...NASHVILLE.
Yeah, yeah we know, it COULD rain again...
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