Day 23 – Tuckertown, Rhode Island

Lots of excitement today, starting with a really nice, long walk with Don through a portion of this huge RV Park, which appears to be principally a weekend getaway place for the site holders.  Hardly anyone is actually here, and it’s like walking through a deserted village.  There are lots of squirrels, though, all of them in need of a good chase.  Some good grass for rolling, too.  We spent most of the rest of the morning getting our laundry together to take over to Joanne’s to wash, and it occupied the whole space in back of their seats. 

When we got there, Joanne was in a real tizzy; the electrical inspector had just been there to inspect the pool installation, and had found something that he didn’t like, which had to be fixed before the concrete was poured on Friday.  Joanne had called her electrical contractor, who was working on a job up in Providence, and convinced him to run down here to do a fix.  Then the Inspector would have to be summoned to complete his inspection and sign off on the job before the concrete work started on Friday.  These people sure make life difficult for themselves. 

Did I mention that Gracie and I were scheduled to go the groomer today?  Well, we were, but a minor problem arose for me, in that the groomer required certification that my shots were up to date, and we (not me, but Geri and Don) had neglected to bring this information.  Geri called my Vet back in Ventura, though, and they emailed a copy of my shot records to Joanne’s computer.  Geri and Joanne were scheduled to get their paws worked over this afternoon, also.  Don saw that the ladies had the situation well in hand, and took off to get the truck washed and get a bite of lunch downtown in Wakefield. 

While he was gone, everything they had planned turned to doo-doo.  Joanne’s electrician had shown up and fixed the minor problem that the Inspector had cited, but now she had to wait for the Inspector to appear to finish the job.  She couldn’t leave to take us to the groomer, so Geri loaded us into Joanne’s car and headed out.  When Don returned after a leisurely lunch and a nice drive through some attractive areas, he found the situation in a state of chaos.  Geri was lost, and Joanne was making like an Air Traffic Controller trying to guide a non-pilot into a safe landing on the phone.  The window of opportunity for the grooming and the pawdicures was closing, and Joanne was making calls for rescheduling these operations in between calls from Geri for more directions.  Don told me it looked like a scene from a B movie domestic comedy, whatever that is.  But soon Geri made it home with us in tow, and Joanne had successfully rescheduled our appointments for another try tomorrow.  I should also mention that I have found Gracie to be a very positive and pleasant companion in these adventures, though she shows much more enthusiasm for our involvement in them than I’m inclined to express. 

To celebrate the successful accomplishment of all of their planned activities, Geri, Don and Joanne went out for dinner at a local seafood place, while Gracie and I were left to watch over the house.  Don reported to me that the food was great, and they had a fine time at the restaurant.  The only negative was that on the way home, Joanne’s car had an encounter with a chipmunk who had claimed the right of way erroneously, resulting in an entire family of the little beasties becoming orphans.  Joanne was particularly bothered by the murderous encounter, as she had performed the same act just a couple of days ago, and was now over her state-allowed quota for the week.  No singing of Chipmunk songs this year, Alvin’s gone.

When they returned to Joanne’s, a thunderstorm was making it’s way across the area, with lightning, rain, and some occasional hail.  The TV was reporting tornado activity in western Massachusetts, and we felt that the weather may be catching up to us.  We got the laundry loaded in the truck, and headed back to the rig, having to fight our way through a real downpour of rain.  By the time we got home, the rain had stopped and we were able to load the laundry and ourselves into the coach without incident.

I must tell you that I’ve been collecting information from a variety of sources, including both Geri and Joanne, that shed some doubt on the story that Don had given me regarding his relationship with Joanne many years ago; as a Fair and Balanced Reporter, I intend to continue to investigate this story, and give you any credible alternative report to the one I got from Don and posted yesterday.  Hopefully, I’ll have my information together tomorrow for posting.  But it sounds as though I didn’t get a complete picture from Don’s recollections.  Your faithful Reporter never gives up!  Hope you have a good night!