Update On Our Elberton Georgia Property (Rusteria Acres)

Hi Friends! Welcome back to another edition of my blog. As I stated in the last post I made, Google made it impossible for Gary and I to access or post here for literally years. We finally broke through, and we're apparently back in Google's good graces.  I'll try to catch you up on what's been happening. There's been a LOT going on. Not much with me, since I have basically retired after nearly 50 years of traveling and camping. But Gary and traveling companion Casper (a 2003 Dodge Ram Van) have logged a lot of miles from our current home in Florida to our future home in Elberton. Gary has done an immense amount of work on his own at the property, especially clearing away decades of overgrowth, and burning all of the debris. That is nearly an everyday job while he's there. He has also worked on the 100+ year old house he lovingly calls "The Mansion", and a new addition known as "The Mini-Mansion".  The Mini-Mansion is a 12x24 wooden shed that Gary designed online, and had custom built by local shed company. It looks more like a little house than a shed, and that was exactly the idea behind the design. It will eventually become the place where Gary stays when he's at the property. He converted Casper into a no-frills camper several years ago, and that's been his home away from home during these many trips. Casper isn't as comfortable (or as handsome...HaHa!) as I always was on trips, but he has served the purpose. The Mini-Mansion sits on a 26 foot square concrete pad, poured by a local contractor. It's located near the front of the property, just a few steps away from the original Mansion. 

The driveway that stopped at the entrance to the woods behind the mansion, has now been extended through the woods, and ends several hundred feet back at what will eventually be the main homesite. Nearly one acre of woods was cleared for the homesite area. Power was run to a second power pole in the homesite area. The first power pole was installed a couple of years earlier behind the Mansion. A well was also drilled in the homesite area, and Gary built a little wooden shower enclosure close to it. After years of having to pay to stay in local Elberton campgrounds, now that both water and power are available on our own property, Gary and Casper can camp there comfortably. Over time, that will save literally thousands of dollars. The next addition to the homesite area, will be a combination outhouse and well pump cover. Gary is building it here in Florida now, and will transport it in pieces to Elberton for reassembly in the near future. Temporarily, there is an R/V style porta-potty located in the mini-mansion for use when needed. 

Without further ado, here are a bunch of photos with captions of the happenings in Elberton. By the way, our property finally has a name. Gary loves old rusty stuff, and has grown to hate the invasive Wisteria vines that he has removed MANY miles of on the property. So, he came up with the name Rusteria (a combination of Rust and Wisteria) as the unusual name. As far as we know, nobody else has used that name before. Rusteria Acres it is! 

Casper the hard working camper van. 23 years old, & 258,000 miles

The heavy equipment for tree removal and clearing of the driveway and homesite areas

Heading into the woods for tree removal where the driveway will be

The driveway starts to take shape

This is looking like a REAL driveway! 

Approaching the area where the future homesite will be

Clearing the future homesite begins! 

Making great progress in the future homesite

Over 50 of the largest trees from the homesite area were taken to a sawmill. The small branches and roots were burned onsite 

Many tons of granite gravel were delivered and spread to form the driveway

Straight driveways are boring, so we made ours with some gentle curves in it

The cleared future homesite

Casper's first ride on the new driveway

A look at the driveway with some greenery on the trees during spring

Well pump and pressure tank installed

The outdoor shower stall

The new power pole with camping hookup outlets

The freshly poured 26ft square concrete pad for the Mini-Mansion

The Mini-Mansion

Now that we have a mailbox, we're REALLY legit! 

Added an actual door and a little porch to the back door of the mansion

Playing around with logos and font. Digging this one! 

My Blogger Account Has Been Inaccessible!

 

OMG!!! Hello, everyone! Our Google Blog account has been totally inaccessible for nearly 2-1/2 years. We've tried everything to get back into it, and I'm not at all sure how we managed to get in just now, but here we are. We might not be able to get in for another 2-1/2 years, so I just wanted to say that Gary and I are doing just fine, and we have missed all of you immensely. If we can continue to access our account, we will post updates as to what's been going on with us for all this time. Our account seems to have gotten lost when we got a new computer. We can see our blog online, just like all of you can. But, we haven't been able to get in to post or check our daily viewership statistics like we did for many years. For now, I posted this one old photo of Dodge and I back in our traveling days. Consider it a "test" photo. When Gary hits the "publish" button, we'll find out quickly if this is working like it used to. Happy belated New Year to you all, and we hope you are doing as well or better than we are. Our love to you all, and thank you for sticking with us during our extended inaccessibility period. Hope we can blog again soon and often. Take care! Your old pal Toaster, and older pal Gary. 

Stuck In St. Augustine.....For Now

 Hi, everyone! It's me, your old pal Toaster. Let me set the record straight. I'm still alive, contrary to a few rumors I've heard. I just don't do much or go anywhere anymore, so there isn't a lot of exciting things to share with you like I used to when I was traveling and going to new places. I'm 51 years old now, and I know that life slows down quite bit whenever you get older. I just didn't think I'd be stuck here in the Green Acres Garage with piles of junk around me, and not even be able to go outside to see the sunshine and maybe get that bath so I so desperately need. At least I'm in a safe place, and I know I'm still very well loved and appreciated by my owner and best friend, Gary. That's more than a lot of my vintage trailer friends can say. For now, I live vicariously through all of the travel videos I watch on YouTube. I'll be patient. I know that many more fun days are ahead for me, I just don't know when. 

The last time I blogged, I told you about the 34 acre property that we (Gary and I) bought in Elberton, Georgia. Did you notice how I include myself in on this purchase? HaHa!!! There was some good progress made there last fall and winter. A granite gravel driveway now makes the property accessible from the road, and a section of fence with a gate crossing the driveway helps keep any curiosity seekers out. A temporary power pole was installed, and a separate new power pole was also installed, with a bright LED nightlight to light up the entrance area. Where the driveway currently ends behind the 100+ year old house that sits at the front of the property, Gary worked on chopping his way through the woods. Smaller trees and vegetation were removed and burned. Larger trees will be removed by professionals with the proper equipment. There's limitations on what Gary can do with a small chainsaw and hand tools. He's trying to keep safety in mind. That's a relief to me, since I'm not there to keep an eye on him. 

Clearing and cleaning continue around and inside of what Gary refers to as the "Elberton Mansion". Originally, only the back of the house was accessible at all, but now there's no problem getting all the way around it. Accumulated piles of cut debris have been burned, and so has water damaged and termite eaten old furniture that was piled up in all the rooms of the house. All of the metal junk was hauled away for recycling. A few choice useable pieces are still in the house, while other pieces were brought back here and sold on Marketplace. 

In October (less than a month from now), Gary will head back to Elberton to continue working. He will hire those professionals I mentioned earlier, to do whatever he can't do himself. He plans on making major headway in the coming months, and maybe even have a homesite cleared by the time next spring arrives. He hasn't actually chosen a homesite location yet. He just knows he wants it to be somewhere further back from the main highway. The property is roughly 2200 feet long, so he can go as far back as he wants to. Right now, he has only cleared back as far as where the blue dot is the following photo. He is attempting to keep the future driveway extension very near the center of the two 17 acre properties. The former owners names (Moss & Wells) still appear on the properties in the photo. Not sure why, but it takes the Counties in Georgia a LONG time to update property ownership names. It took over a year for Gary's name to finally show up via online property records searches, even though he had paid taxes and gotten permits. 

I guess that pretty much catches you up with the lives of Toaster and Gary for now. As you can tell, rumors of my demise were totally false. I'm still here! Gary and I hope you are all doing very well, and enjoying your lives to the fullest. We will try our best to do the same. Thank you all for being so patient, and continuing to read my blog and about our past adventures, even though I very rarely post anything new. I'll do better if and when I can actually get out of this garage! Take care, my friends. 

ELBERTON!!!

Hey, my friends! Since I don't blog as often as I used to, lots of things happen over time that I forget to tell you about. I definitely have plenty to share with you, even though I'm not traveling and visiting exciting places like I used to. I hope you'll still enjoy the somewhat Adventure-less Toaster as much as you used to enjoy the Adventurous Toaster. I'll hopefully be traveling again in the future, but when that will happen remains unknown. 

Here's what's been going on over the past few months. First, Gary and I celebrated our birthdays in February. Neither of us are thrilled with getting older, but there's no escaping it. I don't feel any different being 50 than I did being 40, or even 30. They say that you feel as good as you act, so I still act like a kid as much as possible. Gary puts up with my childish behavior, but I am seeing more eye rolling on his part than ever. 

As I previously told you about, we bought three properties in Georgia last year. They are various sizes (acreage) in different parts of the State. The original plan was to simply own some Georgia property. But Gary decided (after spending lots of time in the area), that the northeast part of the State is where we will live someday. Who am I to argue? Over the years, we camped all around the area he's decided on settling down in, and it's my favorite part of Georgia as well. One of the three properties we bought last year is in the area we really love, but it just isn't big enough to build what we want and have the privacy we also desire. So, all three of the properties we bought are going up for sale this week. While on a camping trip without me in February (with Casper the cargo van instead), Gary found a 17 acre parcel of land in Elberton that he instantly fell in love with. An offer was made and accepted, and we got it! A short time later, the adjoining 17 acres went up for sale, and we bought that one too. So now we have an enormous 34 acres in the Granite Capital Of The World, Elberton Georgia, and we are BEYOND excited!!! We also sold our second (and last) 1-1/4 acre lot here locally in March, so all we have left in Florida is our property here at Green Acres. We have to hang onto that one for awhile, since we don't have anything built in Elberton to actually move into yet. We'll work on that, but we need to sell the three properties we bought last year first. 

After buying the first 17 acres in Elberton, and while in the process of buying the second 17 acres, Gary and Casper went up there to camp for 10 days in April. They stayed at nearby Richard B. Russell State Park, a place I've never been to, but hope to visit whenever I get to travel again. Campsite 18, overlooking Lake Russell, was theirs, and it looks BEAUTIFUL!!! There's a VERY old house on the property (uninhabitable) that Gary spent time cleaning up around, and he dug up a bunch of "treasures" in the yard, some of which he brought back for me to see. He says there's a lot of "stuff" there, and we all know how much Gary loves "stuff". The garage here is full of it. 

As I write this, it's an 84 degree Florida morning (with a feels like temperature of 90), and this is only the beginning of the typical hot and humid summer that we reluctantly endure every year. It will only get worse as the days roll by. Oh goodie! It gets hot in northeast Georgia too, but it doesn't stay that way for as long as it does in Florida, and it stays cooler up there for longer. Elevation makes a big difference in the temperature. The elevation of here in St. Augustine is ZERO, and the elevation in Elberton is 702. I get cooler just thinking about that higher elevation. 

That's about all that I can think of to tell you about at the moment, but isn't that enough? It's been a very eventful year thus far, and I doubt if it's going to calm down at all. I'll try to keep Gary in line. Lord knows he needs the help. I'll blog again whenever something really exciting happens to tell you about. Have a wonderful summer, stay cool if you can, and be safe out there. Until next time, this is your pal Toaster. Over and OUT!!! 

 

Junked In

 

I'm about a month late in wishing you all a Happy New Year. Sorry about that! I hope your 2022 is off to an EXCELLENT start. All is well here at Green Acres. The last time I blogged, it was roasting hot here in north Florida. I was spending some time outside under the big oak tree in the back yard with my little sister Poppy. I spent a total of 104 days out there. Now I'm back inside the garage, and "junked in" behind a bunch of Gary's "stuff". That's pretty typical. There's always more "stuff" in here than there's room for. At least the weather has been amazingly nice, and I'm not sweating to death. Gary and Casper the cargo van went on a three week trip in December. Casper has been transformed into a part time camper that transforms back into a cargo hauler whenever the need arises. They visited five different Georgia State Parks, and lots of antique stores to buy more "stuff" to clutter the garage with. Buying "stuff" is what Gary likes to do best of all. I guess he could be doing worse things. If it makes him happy, then that's fine with me. I would've been lonely while Gary and Casper were gone if not for my buddy Dodge. He kept me company. I can always count on him. I miss going camping, but I've got some frame issues that keep me from traveling right now. These things happen when you get old. Speaking of getting old, I'll be FIFTY on February 19th. Can you believe it? I'll be eligible to join A.A.R.C. (American Association of Retired Campers). I was thinking I could join A.A.R.P., but that's only for humans. Gary and I have the same birthday, but he's MUCH older than me, 17 years older to be exact. He still does pretty well for an antique, or should I say Mid Century Modern? HaHaHaHa!!! I told you previously about the 4.39 acres of land we bought in Lexington Georgia. Well since then, we also bought an 8.91 acre parcel in Dry Branch, and a 3.00 acre property in the Georgia mountains in Ellijay. We've become land barons! We also sold a 1 acre lot that we owned here in Florida, and have another 1-1/4 acre lot that is currently up for sale. The goal is to eventually move out of Florida. We're working on it! That's the latest news from an unusually crisp and cool day here at the Green Acres Garage. Until next time, have fun and stay out of trouble! Your pal, Toaster.

It's Been Over A Year, But I'm Still Here!

Hello, my friends and fans! Have you been wondering what happened to me? Did you think I had died and gone to that big campground in the sky? Well, I'm happy to say I'm still here, and still relatively healthy in my old age. I'll be AARP eligible in just 6 more months! Can you believe it? After a year and a half of being cooped up inside the garage, I've finally escaped to the back yard. I'm enjoying the fresh air, the rain on my skin, and hanging out with my little sister Poppy. Not sure how long I'll be out here, but it's the closest thing to actual camping I have done since February 2020. Except for some early morning sun, I'm totally in the shade for the remainder of the day. It's still hot out here, after all, this IS Florida, and this IS summer. At least it's slightly cooler than being inside my big steel garage. I was filthy dirty from all these months of confinement and inactivity. The rain has helped wash a little of the "crud" off of me, but I REALLY need a thorough scrubbing and a good soapy bath. I'm hoping that my buddy Gary will see how nasty I still am, and will do something about it. I'm embarrassed to have my picture taken right now, but I probably don't look too awful from wherever you're seeing me from. As you know, it's been over a year since my last blog post. You probably thought that I've been off camping somewhere, and just too busy and having too much fun to write. Far from it. I haven't been ANYWHERE!!! We had camping reservations for this past fall and winter, but Gary cancelled them all due to the COVID situation. Will this ever be over? Maybe we can do some traveling this coming fall and winter, but I'm not going to get my hopes up. Gary only goes out once a month or so for supplies, and he buys enough stuff when he does go out to keep him home for long periods of time. His record amount of days staying home in a row is 56, and there was another time he stayed home for 49 days straight. He drives Casper the cargo van on the rare occasions that he does go anywhere. My camping pal Dodge, the third member of The Three Camp-A-Teers, (along with Gary and I), stays home with me, and has only gone on one trip since we came back from camping in February 2020. Where did he go to? Gary found a 2001 6x12 red Haulmark cargo trailer on Facebook Marketplace that he wanted to buy, and it was all the way over on the west coast of Florida. So, Dodge and Gary drove all the way across the State to get the trailer and bring him home. That was only a couple of weeks after I blogged for the last time in August of 2020. Everybody around here has a name, and we couldn't think of anything fitting for a red cargo trailer. Our friend Ron Roberson suggested "Caboose" for a name, and it stuck. Since train cabooses are usually red and are always behind all of the other train cars, the name fit perfectly. Thanks, Ron! Caboose is quite unusual. We haven't seen any other trailers that have four doors, one on each side and two in the back. The folks at the Haulmark factory told Gary that Caboose must have been a special order trailer, because they don't normally build them with four doors, normally just three. He is very airy and more accessible with that extra door. Gary is in the process of insulating Caboose, and also adding some shelving, an electrical hookup, and some lighting. In December of 2020, after 49 years and 11 months of being a part of Gary's family, "Mr Dart" (the 1971 Dodge Dart) went to a new home. It was hard for Gary to let Mr. Dart go, but he was deteriorating just sitting here, and we were running out of covered storage space to keep him under. Our pal Chris, the body shop craftsman who repaired Dodge so well after his accidents, is Mr. Dart's new owner. Chris has the skills and desire to make Mr. Dart as good or better than new, and Gary likely wouldn't have sold him to anybody other than Chris. Plus, Gary will get to see Mr. Dart from time to time, and I know that's important to him. In more recent news, and VERY exciting news for us, is that we are now Georgia property owners. WOO-HOO!!! We (notice how I include myself) now own a wooded 4.39 acre plot of land in the little town of Lexington, very near Athens. What Gary does with the property is still undetermined, but after a long search, I'm glad he found some land he wanted. It was a great price too. Those are all the major events that have happened around here since I last posted. Like usual, Gary has literally hundreds of projects in the works, and I'm always around for moral support, since I'm not much help with physical labor. It's an overcast and rainy day here, Poppy has on her rain hat, and I think she and I have caught up on everything that's been going on since we last spent time together. Gary has been suggesting that I get everybody caught up with our activities, and this seemed like the perfect day to do it. Mission accomplished! It's almost time for "People's Court", so I'm going to scoot. Thanks for checking in, sorry it's been so long, and I hope you all are safe, healthy, and having fun. Catch ya later! Love, Toaster.