Paynes Prairie Revisited, Day #1

We're back at Paynes Prairie State Park again, and I am one happy camper! We had such a great time when we were here in December, that Gary booked us for another visit before we left. He originally booked us for three days, but decided to change it to five. I can tell already that our time here is going to FLY by. We're in the same campsite that we had in December. It's one of our favorites in any park that we've ever been to. It's cozy and peaceful here, and I guarantee that we will be coming back from time to time. We arrived around 10AM, and was greeted by familiar faces as we pulled in. Gary is pretty good at recognizing people he has seen before, but he's terrible at remembering names. As it turned out, we had met our camping neighbors Ilona and Joe, at Blue Spring State Park this past Christmas. They recognized us (well they actually recognized ME) and knew our names because Gary had given them one of my business cards. I was pleased to see that they still had my card. Gary set me up and made lunch, and then finished up some additional things here at the campsite before heading out. He had designed a portable outdoor camping clothesline before our last trip, that ended up working okay but not as well as Gary wanted. Back to the drawing board as they say. He used electrical conduit for the poles as he did last time, but designed new brackets to hold the poles to the seat of the picnic table. Made from a piece of scrap deck board and a 4x4, he cut the brackets at a 30 degree angle. The brackets are held to the picnic table seat with a c-clamp, and the poles are held to the brackets with plastic conduit clamps. Simple but effective. Three lines allow space for up to six towels. He seems pretty pleased with this new design, and the only change he will make is to add a support pole at the top between the two upright poles. I think it looks fine just like it is, but you know how picky Gary can be if you've read my blog before. Once everything was settled here, I took my afternoon nap while Gary headed to a large antique mall by the interstate. He was gone for a LONG time, and came back with some postcards for his collection, and a couple of items for a new collection that I didn't know he was starting. You probably can't tell what they are in the picture, but they are two salt and pepper shakers that look like toasters! I've got to say that those are the most handsome things he has ever collected. I'm pretty sure that the next addition to my interior will be a shelf to display my salt and pepper likeneses. I just can't wait to find out what happens tomorrow. I LOVE this place!