Life Continues On!

The project I currently at is probably not going to have any issues leasing out...it is almost literally sitting on top of a light rail commuter station! 

The rail line is running about 6 mos behind completion...but it is due to factors that are really out of their control. And to make it a little easier to take...the project is running about $57 million under budget! That is just awesome!!  LOL!

There is a kinda decent view from the top of the project. So the apartments that are on the top floors do have fairly decent views. Sunset from the top of the parking deck is actually pretty nice. 

And as I was driving around the other day, there are areas that still have the old city flavor to them. When I go to "shop" (get things that I need...LOL) I actually get to see parts of the city that I would pass up staying on the main roads & highways. This is why I run the back roads just a much as is feasible.

When you get off the main roads you find areas that have either been overlooked/passed over....or areas where the folks living there are not willing to give up their life style. 

But the other thing that I have been noticing here is that there seem to be quite a few places that where they are taking the older buildings/houses and "restoring" them. They are really working in some neighborhoods to "update" the houses and also seem to be updating the land...and it is quite pleasing to the eyes! 

The older houses really do have a lot more character...even the little "plain Jane's" from the 40's to the 60's have a style/flavor all their own.  And it is really a nice feeling to see these older neighborhoods being "resurrected".

And last night we had some pretty good storms pass through here. There were some very high winds and lots of lightening and thunder!  It was glorious!

It's another Friday night in the "NODA" area here...and the music is thumping already! And all the parking spots are basically full! So it will be a long night here! And a cold front is moving in! They are calling for snow here! And I keep coming south to chase the "warm weather"...wonder where it wandered off to!! LOL!

Have a good weekend and looking forward to getting  back on the road one day!

A Peaceful Sunday!!

Today was laundry day, and drive around Charlotte day!!  Got all my laundry done, so that "task" is done for 10-14 days! I hate doing laundry, but can't afford to buy new clothes each week!! But I found a really nice & clean Laundromat about a 15 minute drive from the site. And since I had to go that far...it was also a good reason to make the drive along the back roads and housing areas along the way and have another look at a different part of Charlotte.

 I didn't get any pics of the houses, but as usual, if there is "unoccupied" ground around here, there are apartments! And I mean everywhere around here....

 These apartments are headed into the downtown part of Charlotte, and I really was amazed to find so many buildings that have been fairly recently built in the fashion of the older buildings in the areas. But they are still apartments!

But I am also kind of amazed, still, even with all the traveling that I get to do, and all the different cities that I have traveled through, the majority of the apartment complexes looking amazingly the same, overall!! Even the ones that are going up where I am will, in general, have the same appearance of these above and below! I just really have a hard time understanding how they can all look so similar, and yet as I talk to people, they see so much variation in all these complexes! I just can't see it!!

And as I wandered through the city on my way back to the house...I passed the stadium for the Panthers. It is quite a site...I have to admit that it is a very nice looking building, "Bank Of America Stadium"...but Carolina Panther stuff all over the place!

This post was supposed to go up this past Sunday!  Oooppppssss!  I apparently never hit the publish button!  Sorry!  

And I Thought DFW Was Bad!!!

I'm in the Charlotte, NC area, and this area is growing at a remarkable pace! No matter where you drive there are apartments going up! 

And they apparently can't build them fast enough! If there is "open" ground...they are building! And in a some of cases, they are tearing down old structures that are on the ground and then building up with apartments!

 Even though they are tearing down a lot of the "old Charlotte" to make way for the "new Charlotte"....as you drive around, you will see pieces of the old city still struggling to hang on in the middle of all the "New"....along with green spaces that they are keeping with a lot of the old trees.

 The spot where I'm at for the next couple of months is a project that is 344 units going up right next to the new light rail line that is being put in...and they apparently been working on that rain line for a couple of years. There is a stop right next to this complex...so I have a feeling that it will be rented out in a very short time!

I'll be doing some driving around the area in the coming weeks to see what it has become since I lived here back in the early 1970's! But I can already tell that the changes are pretty major!!

Working Again!

I have made it to my "work location" all in one piece! Got here late Friday night...and looking at the spot where I was supposed to park, I didn't think I would be able to get level..in fact, I wasn't sure that I would be able to get up "the hill" to park! But the next morning the world was looking a bit better and I thought I had a chance! So, after driving from Alabama (about a 10+ hour escapade) and then pulling a shift for the rest of the night, once the sun was up things looked a bit better. So after pacing off the wheel base of Europa, I decided to give it a shot!

It was a pretty good pull getting up the slope...as you can tell from the picture above....from the parking lot to the spot where I'm parked, the rise is close to 3 feet in a span of about 22 feet. Pretty steep when you think about it. Plus there is an old R/R siding track there, which I ended up getting on the old timbers...and thought for a few minutes that I had wedged Europa between a couple of them and wouldn't be able to get her loose! But...got out of that tight spot, did a little tweaking of her positioning and with the "help" of about 3 boards under the wheels on the left side of her...level is within a 1/4 bubble in both directions, which is quite close enough to "perfect" that I do believe we will be fine...if there isn't too much settling!

There were a few hours of rain pass thru in the afternoon yesterday...and once it had passed and a little sun came out...there was a beautiful rainbow! I sorta took that as a "good omen" for the next few months that I will be here.

Now, being an "old truck driver", I know better than to try to go thru Atlanta any time other than Midnight to 4am!! Well, on a Friday...and on the beginning of a long weekend holiday...I decided to go across in the middle of the day!   DUH!!  Guess who spent the better part of THREE hours getting across Atlanta?!?!?!?  YUP! You guessed it! Me, Abbie, Snickers & Europa!!! Dumb move on my part! Ended up parked under an overpass for over an hour and a half waiting for traffic to clear! Of course, I did see a few nice old cars come by! And the El Camino above if one of my all time favorite vehicles. The pic below is how the road looked for over 2 hours!

So that brings us up to date with the travels of "The Lilypad" Herd and our "new to us" Europa! She made the trip just fine, and we averaged over 9mpg!! Which is about twice what we were getting with Bertha! So I'm very happy with that. Europa has little things that need fixing and updating...but mechanically she seems to be in better shape than I had hoped for!

Stick with us...I'll  be traveling around the area here to see what there is to see and getting it up on here and on our YouTube channel (America, You Need To See It).

Take care & get ready for Summer!!!    😎😁🌈

Meet Europa!

Just thot I would bring you up to speed with a couple of changes here at The Lilypad.

I've acquired a new house...'93 Europa, 22', excellent condition...and as of right now giving me +/- 13 mpg, even while pulling Sidekick. So very pleased with that.

Also, will be headed out next week to complete a security job on the east coast. I'll be there a while  and I plan on doing some "quick day trips" to local sites.

And that about does it for getting up to speed on The Lilypad....everyone take care & more to come soon!

 


👍🐸😎🚙

Blizzard 2017!!

Well, we've had our "first blizzard" for 2017 for Texas!!!

This is why I come south for the winter....

all the warmth!!!  Heheheheheh!

But this is also one of the draws to this area...it's a lot like Idaho in the fact that the weather & the weather forecast changes every 4 hours!!

Now I'm just hoping that maybe this will have been our biggest storm for this winter! They're calling for the Hi temp for middle of the week to be back to chasing 70f!!

We also had a portion of the Alabama contingent of the Carlson herd out here for a Christmas visit. 

It was fast, but it was fun!

Hope this finds everyone well & having a great start to the 

New Year of 2017

Stay tuned for more to come from Texas & Alabama this winter!!

Save us both some $$$$$$$

Use my link to get $5 for signing into the Amazon App the first time: http://amazon.com/mrp?refcust=G3009N&ref_=mrp_10005_shr_ss

A Nice Christmas!

This didn't publish on time! Sorry! 

It was a good Christmas weekend.  The G'parents had the great-grandchildren over to their place for the afternoon & dinner. The kids did great. I even survived pretty well.  🐸😉  

The dinner was excellent!  So another Christmas has passed,  New Year's is almost here! 

Picnic time at grandparents! 

A good meal! 

In the garden.  Christmas Eve....close to 70°!

Ride time! 

'Tis the Season!

It is " 'Tis the Season"! And the kiddies are getting ready...and the temperatures are falling! LOL!

For this part of the country, it has been cold the past couple of days. The "official" Lo this morning was 13*. And it is going to be cold for the next couple of days. But it never lasts too long down here, and Christmas is looking to be pretty good.

I'm hoping that each and every one of you has a great Christmas, lots of family time, and you get to eat too much!!  ;-)

LEAVES!!!!

FINALLY!!!!!

Enough leaves to jump into!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULIA!!

Today is Julia Kate's birthday. But the party was yesterday...and it was a house full!

All I can say is.....all my kids are growing up too fast!  And as soon as I'm able to get Bertha II I'll be able to make it around to ALL the birthday's!! I can't wait!!

Tiffany did a good job with the "Legos" theme and "Uni-Kitty"!

(If I'm spelling it right!!  LOL!)

I have to admit...it was really cute!   

And Cary did a great job with the background poster!

It was a full house and the adults barely outnumbered the kids!!  

And the kids seemed to have a good time and for the most part...got along very well!!  :-D

For a quick update about my little traveling circus...Abbie, Snickers & myself are set up here at Tif & Cary's for the near foreseeable future.  I'm slowly getting Bertha emptied out and getting ready to get serious looking for Bertha ll after the first of the year.  In the meantime, I'm on the hunt for sites and parks and "history" in this part of the world to put up on AYNTSI and my YouTube channel. 

So hang in there with us...the plan is slowly coming together!

North/South Commute!!

And why do I "commute" North/South seasonally??  LOL!

Well, just look at the weather forcast shots here! As I always tell folks, my optimum temperature range is 47-60 degrees....and these two weather screenshots are a very good example of why I "commute" North & South seasonally!

Add caption

It looks like I should be back at work doing the security gig within a week, so plan "A" is about to begin...to be able to get into "Bertha II" in the next 2-4 months! Bertha has given her all for the past 2 1/2 years...gotten me to Idaho twice...and back to Texas! Along with some side tripping also! But after 41 years...it is time for her to be able to relax in the pasture of retired RV's!

So think good thoughts, say a quick prayer...the next Bertha will be my "tiny house" for the foreseeable future!

Stick around for this continuing saga!!

Made It!

Bertha got me to Texas....kinda just barely!  LOL!  She had a tough couple of last days on the road, but she made it!

I'm at the kids here and parked and now comes the ...."do I work or just sit"!?!?!?  I've got to get "Bertha II" before I can do any more traveling.  Bertha has done me well since I had to move into her. But her age is showing and I'm no longer really into "projects" as large as she if becoming.So time will tell time, as in the next couple of weeks,  just what my next move will be.

But it is nice to be back where the "lo"is 50 and the "hi" is 70!  My kind of weather! I'm back into shorts again so I'm happy!  LOL!

Just wanted to bring you guys up to speed with my travels and I'll get back on here soon as I know what directions I wll be headed in the next weeks/months!

Hope everyone had a great Turkey Day and you're getting ready for Christmas!

C'ya soon!