In our travels, we’ve seen a lot of Veterans of Foreign Wars posts that had an Army tank or an artillery piece out front, but in the little town of Marcellus, Michigan, VFW Post 4054 has a tank, and a whole lot more!

Located on State Route 40, a couple of miles south of town, the VFW post has an awesome collection of military equipment outside of  their building, and a museum of military weapons, uniforms, and artifacts inside, to honor our nation’s veterans.

The formidable M-60 tank was used by the military from about 1960 to the early 1990s. During the Cold War, Vietnam, and even in the early days of our involvement in Iraq, this was the Army’s main battle tank. Weighing 52 tons, and powered by a 750 horsepower engine, the M-60 was armed with a 105mm cannon and a .50 machine gun. You definitely didn’t want to face off with this big guy!

Next to the tank, mounted on a tall column, is an UH-1 Iroquois  helicopter, better known as a Huey. This was a workhorse during the Vietnam war, used to ferry troops into landing zones, as a med-evac aircraft to get the wounded out, and as a gunship to provide fire support to troops on the ground. A lifetime ago, I spent a lot of time riding in these fine machines.

Burglars beware, somebody may be watching you!

In the rear of the building, flags honor the different branches of the military, as well as our POWs and MIAs.

There is also an M-56 Scorpion self-propelled 90mm anti-tank gun, which was first introduced in the 1950s, and saw a lot of action with airborne and infantry units in Vietnam. Soldiers always slept a little better at night if there were a couple of these weapons on hand.

A sidewalk leads from the VFW post’s parking lot to a shrine in the rear that honors our fallen troops, and includes monuments to the Marine Corps and Navy.

About halfway down the sidewalk, a sign warns you that you have entered an ambush site, for unwary visitors who did not notice three hidden gun positions.

If you’re a military history fan, and/or appreciate the men and women who serve our nation, the next time you’re in the area, stop and check out the displays at the Marcellus VFW post. If any of the post members or maintenance crew is around, they’ll be happy to take you inside and show you the displays in the museum as well.

Thought For The Day – If you love your freedom, thank a vet!

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In yesterday’s blog, I wrote about a couple of bad experiences I had here in Morgan Hill, California. But those were petty little inconveniences in the overall scheme of things. Just remember that old saying  “I complained I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet.”

Compared to what fellow Escapees Mel and Charlene Schwartz just went through, getting a bad meal or being hassled by an overzealous cop is nothing!

Mel wrote me that about 3 p.m. on June 29, they were driving east on U.S. Highway 50 just outside of Delta, Utah, doing about 55 miles per hour, just enjoying the scenery on the two lane highway, when this limb broke off a tree beside the highway, crashed into the hood of their Ford truck, and then through the windshield, showering them with glass.

Their guardian angel must have been riding with them that afternoon, because unbelievably, Mel and Charlene were not injured. It’s a wonder they weren’t killed! Look how the limb slammed through the driver’s side of the cab and out the window! Mel said that aside from being scared and shook up, they were unharmed.

Mel said their Excel fifth wheel was not damaged, but the truck is going to need extensive repairs. They are currently in an RV park in Delta, and the truck is in a local body shop, waiting for the insurance adjuster to show up. Mel said that once they were set up in the RV park, they spent an hour vacuuming bits of glass out of each other’s hair.

As a side note, Mel told me that the sheriff’s deputy that investigated the accident said that he had been notified of a tree limb that was about to fall, but hadn’t been able to get to it yet. As Mel said, timing is everything.

This is a perfect example of why I believe that while we can take every reasonable precaution in the book, sometimes things just happen, and when they do, all we can do is roll with the punches.

We never know when the car or truck coming toward us down the highway may cross the centerline and hit us head on; or when a tire on the eighteen wheeler passing us may blow and wipe out the side of our RV; or when some tiny speck of plaque in an artery will break loose and block the blood flow; or a million other things that probably will not happen, but can at any instant.

What quirk of fate determines who will dodge the bullet, and who won’t? Why did I have friends who survived Vietnam, only to come home and die in traffic accidents? What keeps that semi tire from blowing when the truck passes me and makes it blow when passing some other poor guy? As I wrote in yesterday’s blog, life is a crapshoot. Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose.

We can’t live our lives in fear of everything, so all we can do is cherish every moment we have, and thank whatever higher being we believe in when we have a close call and survive.

Thought For The Day – When life sends storms, remember to dance in the rain!

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We have had a population explosion of mosquitoes here in Elkhart this summer. We’ve been coming here to Elkhart Campground for years, and I don’t ever remember them being so numerous or so hungry.

I have heard about a million and one ways to keep the bloodthirsty little parasites at bay, and trust me, none of them work. We have tried so many commercial sprays that my blood type is now A+DDT. We bought little battery operated electronic gizmos we can clip to our shirts that emit a high pitched noise that is supposed to keep bugs at bay. It hasn’t worked, but the good news is that nobody’s yappy little dog pees in our RV site anymore!

One time a bunch of us were sitting around telling lies and swatting skeeters, and a friend of mine who flew med-evac helicopters in Vietnam and worked as a prison guard, mentioned that if you put Avon Skin So Soft on, it will keep them at bay. Another gent, with a dry sense of humor, asked “Jim, how does a guy like you discover that?”

I long for the good old days, when we didn’t worry about the environment or our lungs, and the spray trucks would come through the neighborhood sending out clouds of gas guaranteed to kill mosquitoes, gnats, and flies. We kids used to chase the trucks, dodging into and out of the mist. Sure, my weird cousin Terry ended up with that third eye, and his son Patrick was born with nipples on his knees, but we didn’t have to swat mosquitoes!

But alas, we don’t have spray trucks anymore, so we have to make do. We’ve tried several types of citronella candles, with no success. However, I have found that if I fire up the old Detroit diesel engine on our bus conversion, I can lay down a fog that will wipe out an acre or two of mosquitoes in record time.

One person who never seems to be bothered is my pal Ed Allard, who stopped in last night with his lovely wife Alice. Ed is an honest seven feet tall, give an inch or so, and while the rest of us were brushing the bothersome critters away from our faces, Ed was perfectly comfortable. I guess mosquitoes don’t fly that high. Either that, or they get a nosebleed at that elevation, get lightheaded and crash before they reach his neckline. 

The latest thing we are trying is a concoction that our friend Billie Barker came up with, a solution of Downy fabric softener and water in a spray bottle, which the ladies sprits over everybody. It smells much better than Deep Woods Off, though the other day I turned my head just as Brenda Speidel was squirting some at me and took a shot of it into the eye. The cops ought to throw away their pepper spray and use this stuff! It’s a lot cheaper, and belligerent prisoners would smell wonderful once they wrestled them into handcuffs.

Oh, how does it work as a mosquito deterrent? Not worth a darn. There are just as many as before swarming around us when we sit out every evening. But I will say this; I haven’t spotted one yet with any wrinkles!

Thought For The Day – It’s not hard to meet expenses, they’re everywhere.

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Terry and I love this area around Traverse City, Michigan. It is absolutely gorgeous is the spring, summer, and fall, though we like to be long gone before the first snowflake falls. Having spent part of a winter here years ago while Miss Terry was being treated for cancer, I can tell you it’s no place to be in an RV!

Grand Traverse Bay, with its amazingly blue water, is a playground for swimmers, boaters, and fishermen. The hills are covered in lush forests, and I think we have seen more wild turkeys here than anyplace in the country. The shops in the charming downtown area offer some neat shopping opportunities. If you like to tempt Lady Luck, there are three nearby Indian Casinos operated by the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.

We return here ever year for Terry’s annual visit with her oncologist, and also to visit with my cousin Terry Cook and his family. When Miss Terry was so sick, we squatted in their driveway for a couple of months while she was undergoing chemo and radiation, and they treated us just wonderfully. Before then I had not seen my cousin Terry in close to 20 years. We had planned on only a quick visit before Miss Terry got sick, but they made us feel right at home and were a major source of support for both of us during the cancer ordeal. For that we will be forever grateful.

When we first came here, so many years ago, my cousin’s kids, Michelle and Patrick, were teenagers, and now Michelle is a grown woman and Patrick is almost finished with college. That makes us feel old sometimes!

For us, one of the great things about the fulltime RV lifestyle has been the opportunity to connect with family members we had not seen in many years. My cousin Berni Frees and her husband Rocky, whom many of you know from this blog and the Gypsy Journal, have become much more than family, they are two of our best friends in the world.

Berni is about ten years younger than me, and the last time I had seen her she was a little girl when the family came to see me off to Vietnam. We had had no contact in a lifetime, until she somehow learned we were fulltime RVers. She and Rocky were interested in the RV lifestyle, so she made contact and a friendship grew from there. They tried fulltiming for a year or so, and decided it wasn’t the right time in their lives for it, but we still see them a couple of times a year at their home in Muskegon, Michigan.

RVing has also given us the chance to get to know Berni’s sister Vanessa and her hubby Mickey and their kids in Ohio, and allowed us to spend time with my cousin Beverly in Tucson.

Terry was also able to hook up with a cousin she had not seen in years, Carolyn Henley. Carolyn and her husband Mel were also interested in fulltiming, and now they just started on their grand adventure a week or two ago. In Idaho we were able to visit an uncle that Terry had not seen in a long time.

There are many facets to the fulltiming RV lifestyle, and as you can see, the chance to get to know your extended family can be one of them. With relatives scattered from coast to coast and border to border in our modern society, many of us don’t have the close family ties that our parents and grandparents had. RVing can help us renew those relationships.

And of course, the great thing is that if we happen to find a few fruits and nuts on the family tree, we have wheels under our house, and we can drive away!  

Thought For The Day – Faith is a journey, not a guilt trip

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Yesterday Miss Terry had her annual checkup with her oncologist, and we’re pleased to report that everything is fine, and she is still cancer free after almost nine years now. It is always a very frightening and emotional ordeal for Terry when this time of year comes around. I’m sure I’d feel the same way if I were boarding an airplane back to Vietnam. We appreciate everybody’s e-mails and positive thoughts for a good result for Terry yesterday.

After reading my comments on our recent experience with the FMCA, the things I said about Fleetwood a few days ago in the blog, and in view of past criticisms I have made about things in the RV world (namely, the poor quality of too many rigs), a longtime industry insider told me that the problem is that Terry and I are outsiders and can’t see the whole picture.

It’s true. After 10 years on the road and publishing the Gypsy Journal, almost nobody in the RV industry has ever heard of us.  We don’t go to the trade shows like the big Recreational Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) event in Louisville, Kentucky every winter to rub shoulders and hobnob with the movers and shakers, so we have little credibility with them.

We are not a part of the RV industry as much as we are a part of the RV community. We live in an RV 365 days a year, and we have for over a decade. We’re not in an office or a boardroom somewhere deciding what RVers want and need. If you want to find us, look in your nearby campground or at an RV club potluck dinner, where the real RVers are! Those are the folks who have to live with the junk that so much of the RV industry produces.

Maybe I can’t see the big picture from the viewpoint of the RV industry, but from where I sit it’s pretty simple: build a decent product, sell it at a fair price, and stand behind it if something goes wrong. That’s not rocket science folks, it’s pure and simple Business 101!

I have been accused of putting down every RV manufacturer out there. Not true at all! There are some very good companies producing excellent rigs, and I have applauded their reputations many times. Companies like Heartland, Winnebago, Tiffin, and Newmar, who have been able to withstand the downturns in the RV industry because of the loyal customer base they have earned.

Notice that I said earned. Customer goodwill is not something that just happens when a salesman hands over the keys to a new RV to its owners. It’s easy for any company to smile and pat you on the back when they have your check in their pocket and the ink isn’t dry yet. The telling point is when you have a problem, and how they deal with it.

Do they solve it without a hassle, like Bob Tiffin is famous for doing at his company? Or do they give you a runaround, and tell you it’s your fault their workmanship was not up to par, like too many outfits in this industry are famous for?

By the way, I’ve never met Bob Tiffin, I don’t own an Allegro or Tiffin coach, and his company has never spent a nickel advertising with us. But I am very impressed with the way the man does business, and someday I’d like to shake his hand.

Thought For The Day – People are more violently opposed to fur than leather because it is easier to harass rich women than motorcycle gangs.

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