We left Jacksonville and headed north to Myrtle Beach for a couple of weeks. From there, we headed over to Charlotte and stayed at the Carowind’s Camp Wilderness for a week.
Myrtle
Hung out with our friends, TJ & Luke (and Dave), and generally walked the beach with Gizmo and hung out. I took Melinda to a Oak Ridge Boys concert (there are mixed reviews on how their talent aged) at the Alabama Theater. We also did this Murder Mystery thing where you had to drive around Myrtle and gather clues. Eh, it killed an afternoon.
The Storage Room Blues
One of the main reasons for staying in Charlotte was to change the storage room situation. We had been using Prime Storage in Rock Hill for the last 4 1/2 years and even though we had reduced the seize of our unit a couple years ago, their incessant price hikes has doubled the price of our storage. Then there’s the ;ate fees! Because it takes our mail about a month to get to us, the letters telling us that our rate is going up was always late and even though we paid it, they still charged us a $25 late fee. There prices went up about every 4 months. Do the math. I had had enough. I did some research, rented a truck and a couple guys to help move the big stuff, and moved our stuff out of there for a unit about half the size. Melinda has some sentimental Christmas stuff and I have some desks that are irreplaceable. We moved our stuff (that we will need SOME DAY!) into a 5′ x 10′ unit (packed to the gills) and cut our storage costs $1000 per year.
Calendar Jenga
In the 7 days we were there, Melinda and I tried to get into see our preferred providers for doctors, dentistry, dermatology, optometry, etc. Between the two of us, we had about 10 appointments, plus her work, plus trying to visit old friends. Our calendar looked like a someone blasted it with a shotgun. We got it all in. We even met Herman and Jill for dinner, Mike & Sue Murphy for dinner and a boat ride, and the Knapp family for a ballgame and some quick motorcycle rides. Lily Knapp shared the same birthday as Jake and she’s taller than Melinda or I now. Evy Knapp is about 13 and is so much like the mischievous Melinda (at that age…and now) that I worry about the future of civilization as we know it. Patrick Knapp won their baseball championship. I’m sure it was because were there watching!
Poker? Run!
Ed Wolfe hosted a poker game in my honor that Friday and all the old Charlotte poker cronies showed. I have to say that out of all the things we did in Charlotte, this was the most fun. Put 8 smart asses in a room, add the competition of a poker game, mix in some premium bourbon, and it can’t help but be a good time. Ed purchased 10 copies of one of my books, Concepts of Texas Hold’em, and gave them out to the guys as door prizes. Which immediately put a (good natured, but dick-headed) bounty on my head. I was the first to bust out, but after a brief break, came back with a passion and spanked JP Knapp in one hand with a royal flush, and my favorite win, busting out Vernon Jackson, who had been after me all night. I ended up more than doubling my money when it was all said and done and happy to redeem myself. I want to thank Ed again for hosting such a great time.
Advance, NC
We spent two weeks after Charlotte in Ad-Vance, NC. Except for the Metheneys, there is nothing in Advance, NC. It was close enough to Charlotte (80 miles) that we could run down and finish up some work and medical stuff and close enough to Winston-Salem to get some work finished up on the bikes. We got our work done at Honda of Winston-Salem and the same mechanic we used at the previous location years ago did our work again. I have to say that Steve O. is one of the best Can-Am mechanics in the country and we have been all over to try out a few. He has been there 20 years! Plus, I bought a new helmet that matches my bike, visors out the sun, and allows me to smoke a cigar while I ride.
DATE: April 18 – May 2, 2023 2 WEEKS
RV PARK: Apache Pier Campground
THOUSAND TRAILS: N $874/2 wks
ADVENTURES: Murder mystery with Hiltons, visit with TJ & Luke, beach Oak Ridge Boys in concert,
CITY: North Myrtle Beach, SC
RETURN: Maybe, not permanent, but good to visit
DATE: May 2 – May 10, 2023 1 WEEK
RV PARK: Carowinds’ Camp Wilderness
THOUSAND TRAILS: N $460/wk
ADVENTURES: Poker games at Ed’s, Knapp baseball game, doctor’s, storage room
CITY: Advance, NC (about 290 miles south of Winston, 60 miles north of Charlotte)
RETURN: Maybe, storage room check in
RVonTheRoadYet.com is a blog to keep our friends and family informed of our latest adventures or misadventures. We are NOT RV professionals, doctors, lawyers, or travel guides. We are a couple of people who have decided to embrace the full-time RV lifestyle of idiots and gypsies.