Sunday, October 27, 2013

McIntosh, FL - 1890 Festival 2013

When we were out at Payne's Prairie weeks back we saw the sign for the McIntosh 1890 festival. I had never been and it sounded cool. I even mentioned going at work and someone said it was huge and to bring something to tote your purchases.

An old sign 

They did not lie. It was packed with people. There were rows and rows of vendors. More arts & crafts than food. It was tough to walk there were so many people. They parked along the highway for miles. People and organizations charged for parking. We paid and parked at a school. At least the money goes to a good cause.

We wandered around but didn't buy anything. I was too busy thinking we could make the stuff we liked. The husband is not big at arts and crafts so we didn't stop at too many booths.

Photo: #mcintoshflorida #1890sfestival

I also like checking out what people were buying. A lot of plants, hand made stuff and iron art items. There were also a lot of people with dogs. I always say "We could have brought the dogs" at events. The husband always says, "No!"

We even checked out a couple of the McIntosh antique stores. The husband found a license plate for the 1976 Jeep he bought a couple weeks ago. I am amazed that we found it so quick. We only paid $3. Online they are pushing $20. I am excited to finally have a vehicle that is an antique. Antique registration is super cheap. With all the 1980s trucks the husband has it is only years away from them being an antique.

Photo: Look what we found Patrick Robertson

It was so crowded we figured we could check out the other antique stores on a different day. On the walk back to the car the husband saw a broke down truck blocking one of the lanes on that busy highway. Of course he helped push it out of the way. I am sure the owner and the police directing traffic appreciated it.

Then we had lunch at Sweet Mel's in Gainesville since it was close by and I still have a couple groupons for them that need to be used. It was the busiest we've seen the place since the Gators were playing. So the husband caught some of the game and had a big burger.


Then we went off to a few Gainesville thrift stores. At my favorite, the Haven Hospice Thrift, I found a poncho and an inflatable emergency marker for a car. Ends up it was never taken out of the plastic in the box. We looked online and only found one for sale and it was in the same condition - beat up box but never used.

After a couple more thrifts we came home with a 1950s aluminum jello mold and some books. It was a great day out and we did a lot. Next weekend has us on another adventure. The husband is very excited for a car show. 

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Vacation was Awesome! - Part 2

We decided to stop at the Jack Daniels Distillery since it was still early enough in the afternoon. I had almost gone about a million years ago on a strange road trip with a friend, but decided to head home instead.


The tour is free. The tour guide was a character. There were a bunch of people there even though it was the middle of the week. Just as at the Incline Railway most of the people there were older. Either it was just timing or we are starting at an early age for the elderly traveling circuit.


We even wandered down the road to the stores selling Jack Daniels merchandise. We didn't find anything interesting. We did check out the Moon Pie store. The husband tried a mint Moon Pie.


We took the countryside route to Nashville. I am no good at randomly choosing a motel. I ended up finding a deal on a remodeled Motel 6. The husband liked that we got a bigger bed as I am known to punch in my sleep. 

Since it was early when we got up we checked out Cooter's and the Dukes of Hazard Museum. The husband loved seeing Daisy's Jeep since he just bought a 1976 CJ5 Jeep to restore. It's just a shame they didn't sell anything Jeep there. 





Then we went to my choice for a tourist attraction... 

Lane Motor Museum. They had me at rare and unusual cars. 


I LOVED IT. I would go again. They change out the cars periodically. Here are some of my favorites: 











After the Motor Museum the husband chose lunch at White Castle. We don't have them where we live. 


We ended up heading home that afternoon. A short trip, but definitely relaxing and a great getaway. I cannot wait to go back to Tennessee. 

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Vacation was Awesome! - Part 1

We went on a short vacation to Tennessee. I had been plotting and planning and researching and wondering where to go. We decided not to reserve a place to stay. Good thing since we left a day later than we thought we would. One of the dogs has been ill for some time. We ended up going for a few days.

We went to Chattanooga first. I had no idea it was only 6-7 hours away. We ended up buying the in-laws a set of 4 tires before we left so we had a tighter budget. We picked the things we wanted to see the most and tried to not spend too much on food or lodging.

We got there in the afternoon. We checked out the visitor's center and got some more info. Then we found a place to stay. I used google to find what was in the area. It even said the range of prices. I paid more than I wanted to but it was pricey right outside of town. I did find a good BBQ place down the road.

The Hickory Pit


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The people were friendly and the food way good. The prices were reasonable. They had signs all over the place saying to rate them on ubanspoon. So I did. I would have eaten there again if I was there longer.

They are even on facbook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hickory-Pit/128901373839462


The next day we went to the International Towing and Recovery Museum. The husband used to be a tow truck driver, so we had to go there.


This was a nice museum. We had fun walking around looking at so many tow trucks, tools, toys and history. It was $9 a person for the museum. The people running it were very nice. Here are some of the trucks. My favorite was the fastest tow truck. 




 The American/Canadian truck

Bottle nose

The tiny tow truck

O'Hare's tow truck


Then the Incline Railway. The husband picked it because he saw something on it on TV not long before the trip.




We enjoyed the backwards ride up. The views were amazing. I thought $15 a person was a bit high but they need to keep it up and all. We wandered around the top. Due to the government closer last week Point Park was closed. 

View from the top



We saw a road on the way up that we had to check out. The husband found the Lookout Mountain Scenic Highway on the map and we found the spot that crosses over the Incline Railway. It was awesome. I think I liked it just as much as the top of Lookout Mountain and it was free. I wish the store was open. It looked like it has a lot of character. 



We wandered across the street to Mr. T's Pizza & Ice Cream. It was just okay. The husband was proud of himself by finding a lunch deal. I loved the giant ice cream cone. 


View from the street up to the mountain

We want to go back to see Rock City and Ruby Falls. There are also tons of caverns around Tennessee. 

That evening we decided to drive to Nashville and stay the night there. But that is for part two of the trip. 

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Paynes Prairie

The husband surprised me on the other Sunday morning by saying why don't we go for a bike ride. We went out to Paynes Prairie near Gainesville in Micanopy, FL. We keep saying we will go and don't get there.

Paynes Prairie is a state park and preserve.

http://www.floridastateparks.org/paynesprairie/

Florida´s first state preserve in 1971. It had tons of animals, trails for hiking, biking and horses. They have camp sites, a lake and you may get lucky and see a buffalo. I was hoping to see a buffalo since I am a huge fan. They are elusive. We did see a bunch of deer. 


It was a huge place and well taken care of. We biked down a trail. We walked up the observation tower. We walked through a trail. We checked out the lake boat ramp and the campground. 


Old honeymoon house

Oh deer

cool roots

From the observation deck

The observation deck

Afterwards we were hungry. We ended up checking out Blue Highway. It's a pizzaria down the road from Paynes Prairie. The husband said a coworker said they were good. Thank goodness we got there not long after they opened. After we got a table the place was full. People were waiting for tables. 

The Sicilian pizza was good. The husband loved it. He said it was the best in that area. He is very picky about pizza since he is from New York. I would go there again. 

Also while we were out we saw that Mcintosh, FL is having a 1890s festival next month. I have never been to that festival and it sounds fun. I put it on the calendar. 


From the website: Each year the 1890's Festival raises money to fund additional projects in the community.  The most noteworthy of these is the creation of an a scholarship fund to assist local and area young people pursue their scholastic careers.  Others have included a front-porch addition to the Community Center; the installation of playground equipment for the children; the Victorian-style lamp posts in the main park in the center of town, Van Ness Park; the clock in the Mini-Park; and the purchase of the old Carriage House adjacent to the depot. The Friends of McIntosh also support various organizations through donations, to organizations such as the American Heart Association, the local Emergency Assistance Fund, the Salvation Army and the Cub, Boy and Girl Scouts."


13 in 13: September Update

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1. Sell 150 items: 
47 items sold in 2013. Ugh.



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2. Weekly Blog Posts: 
Missed posts this month due to limited internet.


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3. Read a Book Per Month: 
I read several: Amazing & Unusual USA, Weird Pennsylvania, Roadside America and Florida Curiosities. In preparation for vacation. Research can be fun!


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4. Track my Food to Lose Weight: 
No changes.

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5. Monthly Adventures: 
Paines Prairie. Post coming next.


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6. Get serious about starting a family: 
No change in this one.


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7. Save Money: 
I had over $1000 in saving. So far tires for the in-laws and next vacation will deplete it.

      
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8. Watch More Movies:
The Girl Can't Help It (1956)
Splender in the Grass (1961)
To Paris with Love
Iron Man 3




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9. Improve at Work: 
Well I caught up on filing and kept it under control. I also made sure everyone was seen without tearing out my hair.


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10. Take a Real Vacation: 
Coming October!
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11. Try Something New: 
New group I'm doing at work: Resentment and Forgiveness.


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12. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: 
Still recycling like a fiend. I freaked out a coworker when an umbrella went inside out I stuffed it in my car rather than let him leave it in the parking lot.


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13. More home improvement: 
Nothing new this month. I am sure I mentioned a new kitchen to the husband at least 25 times.