Off to Florida (Finally)

Old Queen Anne House in Valdosta, Georgia

 Finally, almost two months later than planned, we are off to Florida! It has been seven weeks since Louise broke her hip, and she is doing well. She walks without difficulty and without a limp, but tires easily and sometimes is more comfortable using a cane or a walker.

We have been staying with a lifelong friend at Fayetteville, south of Atlanta, for the past week while repairs to our trailer were being completed (principally to replace one of the awnings).

In the morning we are leaving for Valdosta, where we'll spend one night, then on to our campground in west central Florida, where we hope to spend at least a month.  

The old house above was photographed in 2011, on my tour around Georgia for my limited-edition book Georgia: A Backroads Portrait. The house is a few blocks south of the courthouse and I have been told it's still standing and may even still be lived in. I can't find any other information about it.

Photograph and text copyright 2022, David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo

For the glory of God alone

The Japanese Magnolia at the Graysville House

Japanese Magnolia blossoms carpet the lawn

of the 1800s Gray House, Graysville, Georgia

 

From 1970 to '75 we lived in a subdivision in the East Brainerd section of Chattanooga, about a half-mile from the Tennessee-Georgia line. We were a young family then, and very active, frequently taking long walks or bike-rides around the area with our two boys.

Just over the state line was the village of Graysville, laid out in the 1840s by John Gray, the English-born contractor who dug the railroad tunnel at Tunnel Hill and liked the Northwest Georgia area so much that he bought 4,000 acres on Chickamauga Creek. He built the Queen Anne-style Gray House, dammed the creek, and built a large, three-story mill.

Every spring we rode our bikes to Graysville, hoping to find blossoms on the magnificent Japanese magnolia tree which sat beside the Gray House.

Most years we were disappointed, because those were the days when the environmentalists had their undies in a wad because of global cooling. Frost usually bit the blossoms before they could reach full bloom. Fortunately, global warming came to the rescue, and now we are treated most years to the sight of the largest Japanese magnolia I've ever seen, in glorious, full bloom.

(Speaking of global cooling/warming/climate change, I have one question for environmentalists: What, exactly, is the ideal temperature for the earth?)

Photograph and text copyright 2022, David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo

For the glory of God alone

 

On the Road Again (kinda-sorta)

Florida Sunset (Key Biscayne)

Louise broke her hip on January 5th and had surgery the next day. It's now been more than six weeks and she has been released by her doctor. She is walking very well, but sometimes still finds it more comfortable to use a walker. We both feel she is well enough to continue our trip to Florida, so on Monday we left the campground near Chattanooga and headed south.

Unfortunately, this leg of our journey led no farther than Atlanta, where we had some unfinished business with an RV repair company. This week they are replacing our damaged awning and mechanism and doing some other repairs. We hope they will be finished by Friday, as we are due to arrive at a campground at Wauchula in southwest Florida on Monday. Meanwhile, we are staying with a lifelong friend in Fayetteville, just south of Atlanta.

As you know if you've been following this blog, we had hoped to spend at least three months in Florida this year. If that had worked out according to plan, I would probably have undertaken to photograph and write a Backroads and Byways of Florida book. Now, with so much time lost, I'm thinking I most likely will not attempt it. It would tie up a lot of time, and at age 84 one has to be careful what one commits to. But it would be a lot of fun!

Not, however, so much fun for Louise, who does not enjoy driving around with me when I'm working on a project. I leave early, work until there's not enough light for photography, and don't take much in the way of breaks. I usually eat cheap and on the run. Fun for me, but not so much for Louise.

But we'll see. We agree that we want to get around and see some places and things while we're in Florida, and I will probably grab a few pix as we go. Maybe enough for a start on a book?

Maybe. We'll see.

Photograph and text copyright 2022, David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo

For the glory of God alone

 

The Fire-Breathing Dragon

The Last Gasp of the Fire-Breathing Dragon

Continued from Friday's post.

I hooked a log chain to the tree that tried to kill me, then dragged it to the burning pile, where I cut it into sections and rolled it onto the fire piece by piece.

At the last, it revealed its true nature: the tree that tried to kill me was actually a disguised Fire-Breathing Dragon!

Photograph and text copyright 2022, David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo

For the glory of God alone