Another busy day for both of us, separately this time…

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Tom was checking out this 1966 Oldsmobile 442 convertible. I have no idea how he can identify many old cars.

Yesterday afternoon, my dear friend Chere stopped by the hotel while we sat in the lobby and chatted as we had earlier during this visit and other visits in the past. With Chere and I, the conversation flows as if we’ve never been apart. We have a lot of similar interests, mainly centered around health, fitness, and wellness, and it’s fun to share our thoughts and ideas on these topics.

Next week, toward the end of the week, she and I will be getting pedicures at a local beauty school, where she explained sanitation is of the utmost, as compared to some salons. This appealed to me since I’ve heard of many instances where patrons encountered infections from less-than-ideal sanitary conditions. Student standards may be more stringent at a beauty school than at an unfamiliar salon.

After our pedicures, we intend to go to lunch. Like me, Chere is into healthy food, and I’m sure we’ll go to a restaurant that caters to our mutual interests and needs. It will be fun to see her this last time since she and her husband will travel after that get-together.

As for Tom, yesterday, TJ picked him up around 3:00 pm to head to a small town, Henderson, Minnesota, for a weekly car show. TJ has a classic car and particularly enjoys going to car shows throughout the season. It was delightful for him to go with his dad.

This is a 1967 Oldsmobile Cutlass convertible.

Information about the car show in Henderson, Minnesota:

“About

The Henderson Classic Car Roll-In is a free weekly event along Henderson’s Main Street.

Every Tuesday night from May – September, the streets will be lined with 275+ vehicles and 150+ motorcycles, with a different variety every week!

Visitors from all over the region show up and walk, enjoying vehicles, atmosphere, and food.

Many food choices are available from the food vendors and restaurants, farmers market, and food trucks.

Businesses along Main Street are typically open and welcome visitors in to see what they have available.”

I’d planned to order my dinner through Grubhub, but when I started looking online to see what was available within delivery distance, I was shocked to see how much it would be for me to order a Cobb or similar salad. I have a year-long coupon from Grubhub and don’t have to pay a delivery fee. But, with tax, service fee, and tip, a salad would cost over $30.

On principle, more than anything, I refused to pay that much for salad. Instead, I ate the one remaining hard-boiled egg in the little refrigerator, which we keep from breakfast a few times a week for snacking and two little packs of Wholly Guacamole on the side with a few of those tiny red and yellow bell peppers. Later, I ate a pack of crispy seaweed snacks we bought at Costco, a favorite treat I love while close to the warehouse store.

Soon, we’ll return to Costco to purchase more seaweed snacks since these have zero carbs and lots of nutrients, and maybe a few more items using more of our remaining gift cards.

Year unknown…a Chevy Camaro convertible.

Our grandchild, Madighan’s birthday, is tomorrow, but we’re celebrating with her tonight. Greg will drop her off at Champps at 4:15 for an early dinner and then head to a movie. We would have observed the date of her birthday, which is tomorrow, but we are attending a memorial dinner for our friend Jeff, who passed away at our holiday home in Marloth Park one year ago as of tomorrow’s date. Connie planned this special dinner, knowing we’d be here on that date.

This morning, we went to the hotel next door to do our laundry, which will soon be done. They only have one washer and dryer at the hotel across the parking lot, where this hotel has a cooperating agreement for their patrons, and it takes us a few hours to complete one load. Having this done and out of the way is a relief for another five or six days.

Tom went through all the bins with the stuff he picked up at his sister Patty’s house. He went through everything and sorted all the railroad memorabilia he’ll put online for sale on a Facebook group with railroad memorabilia enthusiasts and possibly eBay for the entire lot. It is too time-consuming to sell each piece one by one, and we don’t have enough time until we depart for South America.

Today, we’ll book a domestic flight in South America from Quito to Manta, Ecuador, where we’ll head for the new holiday home. Also, we must rent a car at the Manta Airport for our arrival.

Time is moving on quickly, and soon, we’ll be on our way.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, September 20, 2013:

As we pulled away from the project, Tom alerted me to grab the camera. The battery was almost dead, but I was able to get this parting shot of cows walking along the road, a common occurrence in Kenya, new to us. For more photos, please click here.

Memorable evening and dinner with new friends in Brownwood Paddock Square…Antique car show photos…

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We had a fantastic time meeting this lovely couple, Terry and Rich, last night. We met at the bar and City Fire and then walked a few blocks to Cody’s Original Roadhouse for a great dinner and conversation in the lively establishment.

We recently mentioned that we couldn’t meet people in The Villages as easily as in Marloth Park. Last night was the exception, and I can eat my words today.

When we noticed weeks ago that few people approached us when we were sitting at any bar at one of the many restaurants in The Village’s various town squares, on several occasions, we initiated conversations, but usually, it was a person by themselves, not a couple. Generally, couples were with other couples, and we didn’t interrupt.

Here is a mid-1970s Cadillac Eldorado, my favorite. Tom identified all the cars shown today but wasn’t sure about a few of the dates.

But last night was different. Since the antique car show was going on, many people were busy walking around looking at the cars, and for a Saturday night, we wondered if we could get two seats at the bar. No sooner than we walked up to the outdoor bar, we found two barstools and plunked ourselves down, thrilled to be able to sit.

This is a mid-1970s Cadillac Eldorado Convertible.

I ordered a glass of Wiliam Hill North Coast Cabernet Sauvignon, and Tom ordered his favorite new beer, Yuengling, popular in the US. We talked and laughed, reveling in our time in The Villages and how much fun we’ve had seeing so many friends since we arrived.

This is a Pontiac Firebird Formula One the late 1970s.

Two barstools opened up next to us a short time later, and a couple sat down. After getting situated and ordering their drinks, Tom leaned over and said, “How are you two doing?”

They both responded enthusiastically and from there, a lively conversation ensued between the four of us ensued. They are Terry and Rich, a lovely couple who lives in Maryland but purchased a house in The Villages last January. They are going back and forth between their two homes until they decide to make it more permanent.

By 6:00 pm, we were getting hungry and asked if they’d like to join us for dinner at Cody’s Original Roadhouse, a three-block walk from City Fire. Again, Terry and Rich enthusiastically stated they’d be happy to join us. We’d chosen that restaurant after reading their menu online, and each of us liked several options.

From left to right, a 1930s Ford Convertible, then a mid-1950s Ford Thunderbird, and the orange is a 1958 Chevy Impala.

We walked a few blocks until we reached the restaurant. Without a reservation on a Saturday night, it could be busy. We only had to wait about ten minutes and were seated at a table. The conversation continued while we munched on peanuts at the table and enjoyed our drinks. I also switched to iced tea, as Terry had, while the boys continued enjoying their beer.

This is a mid-1950s Buick Century.

The restaurant’s ambiance was playful and lively, and we’ll be returning there soon. The service was excellent, and the food was good, better than we’d had at some other nearby restaurants. When the bill came, we realized Rich planned to pay for us. We often insisted we pay our share, but he stayed firm on his decision.

We’ve been to so many antique car shows over the years we spent little time perusing the vehicles. This is a Chevy Caprice, maybe 1969 or 1970, according to Tom.

As we left the restaurant to walk to our respective vehicles, their car, and our golf cart, we stopped to do a group selfie, as shown in today’s main photos. We hope to see them again before we leave, but they only come to The Village every so often on weekends and may not return while we’re still here. In any case, we hope to see them again and be able to reciprocate for the dinner.

We said our goodbyes with warm hugs and were on our way. We didn’t return to the house until almost 9:00 pm. Shortly later, Terry sent me the photo she took of the four of us on Facebook Messenger. We’d already friended each other earlier in the evening.

What a great night!

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, June 25, 2013:

This old, well-preserved bridge, Ponte delle Catene, was the highlight of our visit to Bagni di Lucca, Tuscany, Italy. For more photos, please click here.