West Virginia - Days 27-30

Tomlinson Run State Park
Saturday, 27 and Sunday, 28 and Monday, 29 and Tuesday, 30 April 2019

My right hand and arm have been hurting again intermittently and I took some time off to give them a rest.

It rained much of these four days, or was overcast and windy and chilly.  But there were 2 afternoons I could put the dogs outside on long leashes and let them lie in the sun, which was good.

There are only two camping loops, a total of 51 campsites, so the places to walk are limited.  They have several trails, but I just couldn't work up any enthusiasm for them because of the mud from the rain.  Too bad because there were so few dogs here I could have taken my pups down a trail without worrying about who we'd meet.

I haven't seen deer here but know they're there, especially early in the morning because of the dogs' reactions.

This campground is on a narrow ridge with valleys on each side.  And it's really pretty, even in bad weather.  I keep thinking one of those valleys includes the Ohio River, but I know we're a little too far away.  Actually, it's not the distance but another ridge between us and it.

Dogwoods are still blooming here, and they show up like a bright white against the growing green and the dark wet tree trunks.

what it looks like now

what it'll look like soon

At the entrance to the park, which is at the base of the ridge, I've seen what I'm pretty sure is Skunk Cabbage.  I haven't seen it since Alaska so I'm not positive, but it looks like these photos I saw online.

There's a bird here with a call just like one of Dexter's squeaky toys.  I keep thinking he'll react to it, but so far he hasn't.  There's another one whose song is like a chord - it sounds like 2 or 3 notes at once.  I know it can't be possible, but that's what it sounds like.  Really pretty.

Towhee

The bird I can identify is a Towhee.  I've published a photo of one before but I'll do it again.  You'd think they'd look like Robins but they don't.  Their red's much redder than on a Robin.

I spent an entire day sorting through months and months worth of receipts, checking them against my credit card statements (I found one restaurant that added a few dollars onto the total I'd designated), figuring out what could be put into a recycle bin and what needed to be shredded.  Now all I have to do is find a shredder.  But it's a chore that's been bugging me so I'm glad I got it done.

I found out what I need to do to update my vehicle registration, only I ran into a snag when I did it.  Texas DMV says online I have to get a self-certification form for "seasonal Texans, RVers" that will say the vehicle is out of state.  But it also says to call my county tax assessor's office.  When I did that, they said forget the form, just go online to register.  And online there'll be a screen that asks if the vehicle is in Texas or out of state, and when I say I'm out, it'll know not to expect me to provide a current inspection form.

The snag happened when I went online, followed all the screens to register, got to the end and still nothing about where are you.  So I went back to the beginning and checked all of them carefully and still no where are you query.  So I went ahead and submitted the registration form, and then I called the Help phone number.  She couldn't believe I hadn't found a where are you screen but I assured her I'd looked carefully.  She said what will probably happen is, in a few days I'll get an email saying too bad, we've rejected your registration, and then I can go back through and use a different website - she said to use www.TxDMV.gov, which wasn't the site I used before.  She assured me there'd be the screen I need on that website, and emphasized that I need to use the "www" part of the address to get the right site.  So we'll see what happens.

I spent time looking up laundromats in Ohio, and propane dealers for RVs, and Jiffy Lube type places (I'm overdue).  I figured out the driving routes to get to everything - got a lot of stops to make tomorrow to run errands before settling into the campground.

I made an appointment to get Gracie her Lyme shot - I got the first one last year but can't find any record that I ever got the booster, and it doesn't matter that I'm sure I did if I can't find a record of it (good reason to save receipts).  Gracie's health depends on me doing right by her, which means getting the two shots all over.  Actually, Dexter needs one too, but he did get his booster last year so will only need one shot this year.

I've been coughing so much lately that I worry about the effect on my throat, which matters because I've been diagnosed with a pre-cancerous condition in my esophagus and I don't want to mess with it.  I decided Ohio's bound to have decent health care available, and it's a small enough state that I can afford to make a doctor appointment, and then keep it.  Which is what I did.  I have an appointment with a gastroenterologist in Toledo on May 10th, so I know that's when I'll be in Toledo.

And of course, I've gotten the blog mostly up to date.  Finally.  It's hard when I can't get a wifi signal.

The rain we've had off and on for days is scheduled to continue for much of the week.  I think tomorrow's supposed to be pretty and hot - up around 80° - but there's a 40% chance of thundershowers tomorrow evening, and rain's expected for most of the rest of the week.  Oh well, I need some time to get oriented to Ohio, which I haven't even really tried to do yet.  Wonder what Ohio's state parks are like?

Now my hand's sore again so I'm getting offline.  I'll finish catching up another day.