Friends/Family Northern Swing, Pt 3

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We left Kim early on Tuesday morning and headed north on I-81 towards Harrisburg, PA. There was a Flying J gas station where we were able to: get gas at a discount, dump the sewage tanks, fill up with fresh water and, get a fill up of propane. With all that done, we had gas and were able to keep warm with the furnace at night and have water for cooking and drinking. We were headed for NJ to see Trish's brother Jack at the Erickson Retirement Center in Butler, NJ.

Erickson is a great organization and have awesome retirement centers and services. But they have no place to park an RV. I had called over 2 months ago and asked about staying there and it threw them for a loop. Finally, after a lot of discussion and explanation, I got a concession that we could park our RV at the back of the lot near her brother's building for ONE night. I would think a lot of boomers would have RVs and family in retirement centers and want to stay for one or two nights. Hospitals now are making arrangements for RVers to stay at the hospital parking area while family are patients. Seems retirement centers ought to catch up and offer this as well.

Since we could only stay one night, we decided to get close to NJ, spend the night, then get to Erickson early the next morning. That would give us all day and evening, then the next morning to spend without having to drive back and forth to a campground (the nearest one being over 25 miles away.) Since we had time to kill on Tuesday, we decided to stop at Roadside America in Hamburg, PA on IS-78. Roadside America is a tourist attraction of a bygone time that is still impressive. Maybe not to a kid today who likes electronic games, super roller coasters, and all the glitz of an ocean-side boardwalk. But this is REAL America. It is a huge warehouse that has a miniature village of hand-carved homes, cars, trees, and buildings with rail lines, trolly lines, gondolas, and light shows, all depicting scenes from America ranging from the mid-1800's to today. The cost is modest, about $6 per person to spend as long as you want walking around the building, watching the trains, reading and looking at the town scenes. Remember the scene in Back to the Future where the attendants rush to service at car at a Texaco station? You can see a similar station in one town. There are scenes of farms with fox hunts, mining towns, oil towns, and early Appalachian settlements. Most amazing is that all the building and scenery were hand carved in intricate detail by one man. His family is keeping the Roadside Village alive and it's a good thing. Well worth the cost and about 40 minutes of your time.

We spent the night at a Cabella's in PA and found it to be much better for a layover than a Walmart. They have large spaces reserved for RVs, dog kennels if you want to put you dog in while you shop, parking lot lights which go out about 10PM, and great security. Wish there were more on our routes.

Wednesday we got to Erickson and found a place to stay exactly where they had recommended. Security came and approved of our site and after getting set, we went in and saw Jack, chatted a bit, then had lunch. After lunch Jack took his scooter chair out to the parking lot to see the RV and then decided to take a short nap. That gave us the opportunity to go to the local WalMart to get a few supplies. In the late afternoon we were back and chatted some more. Then Jack's kids came. Lynn came first then Rob with his wife Linda and daughter Erika. We hadn't seen Linda or Erika last year, so were glad they could make it this time. We all had some pizza and salad Jack had ordered in then headed down to the common room and played a rousing game of Mexican Train (dominoes). What fun we all had as we caught up on the news of one another. Rob had a long drive home so we broke up early with hugs all around.

The next day we spent the morning with Jack and showed him pictures on our computer of our new home in Alabama, of our kids and of our grandson. He was grateful to get a chance to see these. Rob had showed me how to hook the computer to his TV, so we had really big pictures. We had lunch with Jack in the dining room and had a chance to meet one of the food administrators. We told him how good the food was and how much we enjoyed it. Erickson has a couple of great dining halls with executive chefs who turn out great meals. But when Jack moved to the assisted-living section, we noticed that the food took a definite down turn--bland, plain, and no spice or flavor. Yes, many of these folks have medication issues, but that's no reason not to provide the same level of interesting food they do in the larger dining halls. Well, this trip we were pleased to see that the food was much better--different types, tasty, even a zest (without heartburn spiciness) that made a real difference in the outlook of the residents. Following lunch, we took our leave. We were driving north and west in New York and hoped to get as far as Binghamton.

We spent the night at a WalMart parking lot and on Friday drove to Jamestown, NY to see Tim and Hiroko Walters. We first met Tim in 1990 in Japan and adopted him as a "surrogate" son. (Or maybe he adopted us as surrogate parents.) He took our kids hiking and swimming, was over to the house for home cooked meals, and he even house sat our pets for a number of weeks when we came back to the states in 1993 for Trish's surgery. We met Hiroko through the Japanese American Society (JAS) on base and attended Tim and Hiroko's wedding reception in Japan. When we came back to the US in 1996, we stopped and visited them in Jamestown, NY on our way to Ohio, so it's been a long term friendship. When we were back in Japan in 2000, Hiroko came to visit her parents with their daughter, Mika, and we had a chance to see her then as well.

We got in Friday afternoon and Hiroko met us and helped us down their drive. It was a tight fit and when Tim came home, we took a ladder and trimmed a few trees to keep from scrapping the RV roof and sides. Tim has talked with me on the phone and said he had tickets for an event and I knew....wrestling. So after quick hellos around, and meeting their exchange student, Asako, we hopped in a car and drove to Erie, PA for an evening of wrestling. All the kids came as well as a friend of Tim's. We had front row seats and there were about 200-250 people in attendance. This was my first wrestling match and it was...fun. Yep, it really was family entertainment. It was good theater. At this level, it was like watching a small town community play: some good actors, some fair, props OK, sets adequate. Even I could see the difference in the more experienced wrestlers in terms of showmanship and talent. No, no one was really hurt; Yes, the outcome is predetermined; Yes, they do take hard (judo) falls and are probably sore afterwards. All well staged and played. Not sure I'd seek it out on my own, but really an interesting experience and glad for the opportunity to go.

Saturday Tim and Hiroko had to work in the morning so we relaxed, the cats ran in and out of the coach and eventually all 3 kids came out to the RV and we sat and talked, had Nashi (Japanese Pear-Apple) and then Hiroko came home and brought out bread and lunchmeat and we all had lunch in the coach. That evening she made yakiniku (grilled meat and vegetables you cook yourself) and rice. She also had an absolutely AWESOME homemade cake roll served with green tea. The roll was made of green tea and had a whipped cream center with bits of red bean. Because we liked it, she made another one for us to take with us when we left.

Sunday we took them out for breakfast. I had spotted an announcement in the paper about a pancake breakfast at the Thule Lodge, to support the Swedish heritage in the community. Since my great-grandfather immigrated from Sweden (and Trish's grandfather immigrated from Norway), it seemed like an appropriate cause to support. After breakfast, we drove to the Chautauqua Institute, where I had spent many summers visiting my grandparents and where my folks had an apartment for over 12 years. It was a real trip down memory lane. We got out at the Bell Tower and then walked the grounds of Palestine Park, marveling at how many of the places are still in the news today, for all the wrong reasons. We drove the grounds and I was shocked to see that: it wasn't as far as I thought from point A to point B, the bridge over the gorge was shorter than when I was a kid and, the "gorge" had obviously filled in over the years as it wasn't as deep as it used to be. Yeah, guess age does that to you. We went to the book store and the first steps in brought a lump to my throat and tears to my eyes; the place smelled musty and of books and paper--just as I remember from all those summers ago. Some scents evoke powerful emotions. We looked through the bookstore and bought some Christmas presents; I took pictures of memories around the grounds, and then got some pictures of Tim, Hiroko and the kids on the grounds. It was a great visit and brought back of flood of fine memories.

Time for lunch and Tim and Hiroko insisted we try Johnny's Hot Dogs. This is a landmark place in Lakewood and we ordered a box of dogs with mustard, sauce, and onions as well as a couple of orders of fries with the sauce and cheese. Clearly, these dogs were tasty and spicy and sure to have a lasting (for 24 hours) impact on us. But Hiroko wasn't through. For dinner that night she made okinomiyaki. This is a dish we had made just a week earlier for Kim and Kris and watching a master at work was inspiring. We picked up a few tips and hopefully next time I make it, I will come closer to matching the sensi's art.

It was a great visit with the Walters and the next morning, we were going to be off to Ohio to see my Mom and our niece, who share a November 8 birthday.

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Photos

Adding NJ to the map
The tradition is that we can not add a state to our map until we have actually spent the night in the state in the RV. Visiting Trish's brother in NJ finally gave us the opportunity to add NJ to the map.

Hand crafted village scene
This is just one example of the many beautiful hand crafted homes and yards created for this attraction. It is well worth the price of admission.

For my Dad
My father has always loved fire engines. This beautiful hand carved sculpture was in one of the villages at Roadside America.

Comedic (?) wrestling
The very first match featured a boot placed high on a pole. If a wrestler got the boot, he could use it on his opponent. Here a manager tried to illegally get the boot. The competing manager "exposed" his nefarious plan.

Up close at wrestling
Tim got us front row seats. Yes, it is "fake". Yes, it is sort of pre-planned. Yes, the outcome is preordained. BUT....it was entertaining, family oriented, and amazingly difficult. These guys (and girls) worked hard to earn a pitifully small paycheck.

Tim, Hiroko and family
Kinley family has always taken a group photo here at the door of the Bell Tower. I got the Walters to pose.

The Ashland
The Kinley family stayed here one week in the 1950's. This building has seen several renovations since then. It is right on the road leading to Miller Park.

Looking at Miller Park
Fall is past and the leaves gone, but Chautauqua is still beautiful. We are looking down the hill to Miller Park and the lake and Bell Tower.

Hiroko, Mika, and Kenji
I had the kids sit on the fish, just as I had done as a young boy several years ago.

Dinner with the Walters
Asako (exchange student), Mika (9), Kenji (5), Hiroko and Trish, Tim and John in their log home following dinner of okinomiyaki and yakisoba grilled at the table. YUMMY!