Oh Deer!

So, yesterday, we hung around town with Staples and Tim, and today, they've got things to do, so we have a bit of time to spend catching up on our own cleaning.  And sewing!  Next week, we are meeting up with our own square dance camping club, along with several others from around the country, and I had promised Dolly a roll of embroidered TP and I haven't made it yet, so I need to get on it!

I posted a picture of this in a Facebook group for embroidery, and to be honest, some people were flummoxed by it.  Most thought it humorous, but others just didn't see the point.  Well, in my book, that IS the point - that there IS no point to it!  Typically, I give them out as jokes or gag gifts.  We do a Dirty Santa gift exchange at Christmas, and I put lottery tickets down in the tube.  That went over pretty well, once the recipient noticed.  Gotta be honest, though, up till then, the disappointment was obvious.

We were getting ready to go out and meet some long-time friends for dinner, when this happened....This young lady just wandered right into the site directly across from us.  She was just moseying along and didn't pay us any attention.  Dick told me there was another one, with a baby, down by the shower house.  They're much bigger here (NC) than back in Florida, but still not nearly as big as the ones we saw up in Virginia.   BUT, we did pull 3 ticks off Bailey while we were here, so there's that side of 'em too.  She's on Trifexis, but that doesn't do a thing about ticks.

We did manage to carve some time out and go into Clemmons, to see what's changed, and take a ride by our old house.  It was amazing!  The house looks just the same, except for the shrubs have grown up so much!  My peony is still there, just bigger, my wisteria is doing well, all our groundcover is still there, and more, even my tulip-shaped garden path lights are still lining the entry sidewalk.  The trim on the house is still painted the same colors and looks great (Dick had used 20 year marine paint, so it was no surprise to see it holding up so well), and my specially-made handpainted mailbox is still there.  A bit faded, but all the flowers are still colorful and visible.  It was like we'd never even left! But, I guess none of it's really *mine* anymore, is it.

We ventured downtown, and lookee what we found!  A K-Mart still open and doing a heck of a business, no less.  And THEY'RE HIRING!  We really couldn't believe our eyes, but pictures don't lie! 

After a wonderful Chinese buffet dinner, including Hibachi and sushi, and way more food than any two people needed to eat at one sitting, Tim & Staples brought a Chinese Lantern back to the camper to release into the night sky.  Apparently, the children in his Catholic confirmation class had written prayers on slips of paper that he taped to the lantern. 

Look how many prayers are attached and how long those streamers are.  Think that will make it too heavy to rise up?  

Tim appears to be giving that some thought.  Perhaps...nah, it'll be fine.  Let's go on out and send it up!

If we hold it up long enough, the air inside will heat up and the lantern will rise.  Just not sure how long "long enough" might be.....

Well, remember those long streamers?  Let's just see....Here's a video of the first try (yeah, that should tell you something...)  If you're reading this in email, and you can't see the video, click HERE.

Obviously, it just wouldn't rise as expected, so we removed a few of the prayer slips.  Still didn't go up, so we removed a few more.  Now they were more evenly spaced, plus the streamers were now a lot shorter, and what do ya know?  The air inside the lantern heated up and up she went!  Here's the video to prove it...

And that little speck way up high, right in the center, is our lantern.  Floating higher and higher, and heading over to the grocery store parking lot.  We decided we had better send a few more prayers up now...mostly just hoping it wouldn't land on anyone or create any problems for anyone else.  We didn't hear of any repercussions the next day, so I guess all's well that ends well, and it apparently, ended well.

What a great way to end the evening and our week in Tanglewood, visiting with our long time friends.