We are on our way "down yonder" as of 11/5/2010! We packed the rental car, drove to Iuka MS non-stop, arriving at Aqua Yacht Harbor a little past midnight. Veda L had an overhaul, was freshly waxed and shiny, new bottom paint, cap-rails in perfect condition, now to unload the gypsy wagon (rental car) which was packed to the hilt. While returning the car the following day I saw a sign that said "Coon Dog Cemetery"......now who could resist? BOB could! He does not share my affinity for cemeteries which I love to meander through at every chance I get. Now....a coon dog cemetery, "come on! As you can see, I did make it there, albeit the next day, sans Bob. The top tombstone was one of my favorites out of the 185, "he was good as the best and better than the rest"
Every single one of the plots had flowers on it, so it was really beautiful up on that ridge overlooking the valley below. Now getting there was an adventure, and without google maps I would not have found it as directions given also rely on road signs, which there were none. So I followed the squiggly line and when I saw my dot stray, I turned around and corrected. I passed over Lurleen Buzzard Roost Creek, which was not a lick away from a sign posted on a gate with the scrawled message of "Nothin' here worth yer life!" which did stop me from snapping a photo, keep on goin' Linda Lou... A ramshackle barn next to an almost as bad house held a beautiful metallic bass boat glittering in the sunlight; the man has his priorities. Bless his heart.

When Bob and I spotted the sign to the Coon Dog Cemetery I had commented that it was probably the ONLY one in the world, and you are going to miss this once in a lifetime opportunity? His response was "Yes" Well, can you believe it; when I arrived at the spot, what sign should I see...Yep, "Only Cemetery of its Kind in the World" It was a beautiful drive getting there, I was wishing for my Audi to take the tight turns, hills and valleys, rather than the lumbering Aqua Yacht Harbor van, but you know what they say about beggers being choosers. At least it gave me a local look! On the way back to the boat I stopped at the Piggly Wiggly for provisions, the young man bagging my groceries looked at my Beefsteak Rye Bread and said "This is sure good with gravy on it" I said "just what is not good with gravy on it? "

While Bob was checking out the new engine on the tender, he sees a 32' Island Gypsy Trawler dock three boats up from us; could it be? Yes it is! Our first boat, (my training wheels as he called it) our first boat where we had gotten married on the aft deck, sold to my Sis and Hubby, now owned by Will from Chicago, renamed her Therapy. You can imagine the fun reunion as we introduced ourselves as the original owners and showed wedding photos of us being married on her. He thanked us for having heat installed as we were experiencing 28 degrees that morning. Therapy is heading for Key Largo for the winter to have rehab work done, but will live in Chicago.

Ah, a little fall color at Midway Marina as we came in to dock, I had to hurry with the dock lines as I could see the low light hitting the trees along the shoreline, I caught this just as the sun set behind me. Then it was a rush for the running shoes so I could finish a run while I could still distinguish goose droppings from mud.....As I write this we are at Columbus Marina where we ended our trip in the spring, tonight we will anchor at Sumter Landing, if we can get in the entrance which can be silted in, otherwise we will anchor atCooks Bend, then on to Demopolis. As we say...Life is Swell on Veda L!

We are on our way "down yonder" as of 11/5/2010! We packed the rental car, drove to Iuka MS non-stop, arriving at Aqua Yacht Harbor a little past midnight. Veda L had an overhaul, was freshly waxed and shiny, new bottom paint, cap-rails in perfect condition, now to unload the gypsy wagon (rental car) which was packed to the hilt. While returning the car the following day I saw a sign that said "Coon Dog Cemetery"....now who could resist? BOB! He does not share my affinity for cemeteries which I love to meander through at every chance I get, now...a Coon Dog Cemetery, com'on....not to be missed. As you can see I did make it! The top tomb stone was one of my favorite, of the 185, "he was good as the best and better than the rest" Every single one of the plots had flowers on it, so it was really beautiful up there on a ridge overlooking the valley below. Now getting there was another thing, if it were not for google maps I would not have found it, I had directions on google but of course the roads were missing all the signs; so left on "Coon Dog Cemetery Rd" didn't mean much. So, I followed the squiggly line and when I saw my dot stray from the line I turned around and got back on track. I passed over Lurleen Buzzard Roost creek, which was not a lick away from a sign posted on a gate with the scrawled message of "Nothin here worth your life" which stopped me from snapping a photo, keep on a goin' Linda Lou... A ramshackle barn next to a almost as bad house held a beautiful metallic bass boat glittering in the sunlight; the man has his priorities.

When Bob and I spotted the sign to the Coon Dog Cemetery I said "You are really going to miss the only opportunity you may ever have to miss what is probably the one and only Coon Dog Cemetery IN THE WORLD??" His response...."Yes" Well, can you believe it, when I arrived at the spot, what sign should I see...Yep, "Only Cemetery of it's kind In The World" A beautiful spot, a fun drive...just wish I was driving my Audi around those tight curves and up and down the hills instead of the lumbering Aqua Yacht van....but you know what they say about beggars not being choosers! On the way back to the boat I stopped for provisions, bought a nice little ham to slice up for ham sandwiches and some Beefsteak Rye Bread, the darling checkout lad commented as he put it in my bag "This shure is good with gravy on it" My response "What isn't good with gravy on it?" Nice place Iuka!

While Bob is checking out the new engine on the tender he sees an Island Gypsy dock three boats up from us; could it be? Yes it is! Our first boat (my boating training wheels) our Island Gypsy 32 that we got married on, sold to my sis and husband, now owned by Will from Chicago, and the boat is renamed Therapy. You can imagine what a fun reunion we had as we introduced ourselves as the original owners, showing Will wedding photos of us being married on the aft deck. He said he was glad that Therapy was from MN and had a heater as they were sure enjoying it in our 28 degree morning. She is headed for Key Largo for the winter and rehab work, but will live in Chicago. We hope to stay in touch.

Ahhh, a little fall color left, a brilliant scene as the last sunlight hit this stand of trees just before sunset as we pulled into Midway Marina. A few minutes later I was finishing my run around the lake not knowing if I was hitting or missing the goose droppings...time to quit. As I write this we are at Columbus Marina where we ended our last trip, tonight will be Cooks Bend, then on to Demopolis. As we say....LIFE IS SWELL ON VEDA L!

This is not a typical post to "Life is Swell on Veda L" but a fitting spot to place a tribute to our Dad who was better known as Judge Howard B. Turrentine! (The Honorable H.B. Turrentine!) Our boat Veda L. was named after his Mother, Bob's Grandmother, so I believe that they would approve of my posting this here.

Obituary follows:

Influential Federal Judge Howard B. Turrentine, a veteran of WWII, passed away August 20, at his home in Point Loma, CA at the age of 96. The former Chief Judge of the Southern District of California became just the fourth federal jurist in San Diego when he was appointed by President Nixon in 1970. Turrentine was also a former intelligence officer for the Navy, giving information to Gen. Douglas MacArthus in the South Pacific during WWII.

"He was the dean of our court" said Senior U>S> District Judge William Enright, who worked alongside Turrentine on the Federal bench. "He'll be greatly missed, he was a wise and intelligent Judge."

Turrentine left a lasting imprint on the local court, most distinctly in developing the rule limiting the number of interrogatories per case. "He was a great role model for younger judges in terms of his approach," said retired Judge J. Lawrence Irving, who also served with Turrentine. "He was a very practical kind of guy" He is survived by his wife, Marlene; two children and four grandchildren.

Below is a link to the album showing the still photos of Howards Military funeral at Fort Rosecrans.

http://picasaweb.google.com/lindabesk
/FortRosecransMilitaryFuneral?authkey=Gv1sRgCPT86Iup5MzMTA#

The very moving video of the military ceremony will be attached to an email.
Thank you very much for taking the time to honor Howard B. Turrentine...aka Dad.

Valley Outreach "First stop for the next step!" Thanks to SO MANY local business's who contributed raffle prizes that helped raise the total of more than $5,200! It all started with facebook reaching 10,000 friends, Ted and Rachael Kozlowski (Administrators of the Stillwater facebook page) decided it was a great reason to throw a party, but wanted to use the party as a fundraiser. Success! Thank you Sean and Joe at Smalleys for donating the space to party, Chris Aamodt/St Croix Vineyards for the wine tasting table, Lift Bridge Beer and Ted Kozlowski for donating the free beer! Kate Krisik and her volunteers for greeting guests and helping with the raffle, and explaining to guests what an intregal part of our community Valley Outreach is. Not just a food shelf, and not just "Dawn's Closet" which is a place to find clothes to go on that important job interview, etc., but also a place for students to go and receive all the proper "tools" for school, including a new backpack!

Ingrid Grahek of Twin Cities Game Theatre gets a hug of thanks from Linda Besk, Edina Realty, who was also one of the organizers of the event, she also helped her son Ted and his wife Rachael with the fund-raiser details. Ingrid brought the semi-trailer loaded with video games and such to the adjacent parking lot and gave free admission to all guests. Yeah Ingrid!

Rachael Kozlowski, with new baby Evelyn, watching the lucky winners of the raffle drawing, and showing a big smile when she found out we met the $1,000.00 mark which meant that Chuck & Judy Doughterty of the Water Street Inn, and Laura Bachmann/Chef's Gallery were each matching the first $1,000.!!!! Let's support their business the way as they support the community! Another regular anonymous donor who was not able to make the party also contributed $1,000. to the cause!

One of the many baskets of backpacks and school supplies that were donated. This basket was donated by Linda J Besk, Edina Realty...who found the Dollar Store a good source as was T.J. Maxx, 250 local students were requesting help with backpacks and school supplies, let's give these students the best possible start on this school year! Valley Outreach is still in need of supplies and backpacks, so don't delay! Check the Stillwater facebook page for items still needed!

"Ain't been no shrimpin' for 'bout a week now, oyster'n neither" is the response to my question asked at Buddy Grass' shrimp and oyster "shop" that is just around the corner from the Dog River Marina. I thought I might get lucky and get a half bag of oysters before the fisheries shut it down. These two pictures were taken a couple years ago, actually, as I remember.... just before we got the call that my Mother was failing fast and we needed to turn around and go back to Mobile so we could fly back to Madison. Mother was a very interesting person, not afraid to try new things, she really enjoyed Veda L, and we took her for a Mississippi 2 wk cruise when she was 85. Always wanting to have her breakfast with a newspaper to read, she starts eating her breakfast the 2nd day out and says "I can hardly enjoy my breakfast without a paper" I went to my cleaning cabinet and took out a newspaper from 2 years earlier from somewhere in Tennessee and handed it to her; her response "Well, I guess it's news to me!" Every morning we would do a "dumpster dive" into my cleaning supplies for some old news, but she was happy!

These two photos show a shrimp boat above and an oyster boat below; all the times we have left Mobile to either go north or south, I have never seen a prettier sight, I believe a bit of haze made these photos unique.

We are on our way to Bates Lake for the night, it will be about a 7 hour day so will take turns at the wheel. We hope that the entrance to Bates Lake is not silted in so we can make it through the cut. We got in last fall due to high water, but if we can't get into Bates we will spend the night in the Alabama cut-off, or as I call it....The Dismal Swamp. The picture of the floating fish shack is in Bates Lake and has a sign above the window IRA LEWIS. Reminds me of the old song "Drunken Ira Hayes..." Probably some whiskey has been drunk on this front porch I would guess....

Another photo taken in Bates Lake; we put the canoe in and took a little paddle into the back waters, that was until we saw a huge alligator basking in the sun lit water a few yards away, being he was almost as big as the canoe I thought it might be a good idea not to get close enough to get a good picture.

Right now we are going through Mobile Bay, then through the port of Mobile where we see ships from every foreign land docked alongside the channel, always makes us feel very small!

Once docked at Dog River Marina we enjoyed watching the shrimpers come into the river from Mobile Bay, the booms are out to catch any oil that might be drifing out in the bay, but so far it seems like the water here is oil free. We have been watching the coast guard and other huge boats with pumpers on them staging for cleanup when needed in the area from Panama City to Mobile, booms (long bumper type floatations) have been anchored around protected environmental areas to attempt to keep them safe from harm should the oil drift this way.

This was a fun scene to watch while coming into Dog River as we crossed Mobile Bay, Coast Guard helicopter doing airlift drills, amazing how the helicopter kept so completely still in one spot during the excercise. They would lower a diver into the water, turn him loose, then hoist another diver down "to save him" and hoist them both back up to the chopper.

Coming home through the tunnel last night after a dinner with the in-laws! We had seafood at Felix's on the causeway between Mobile and Dauphin Island where Rachael's parents live and of course I had to snap a picture going through the tunnel on our way home!

Good Morning from Dog River! I awoke at 5:13 to get my camera and tripod across the street overlooking Mobile Bay, of course I almost got the courtesy car stuck in the sand as I was more intent on my photo op that my parking spot! We are having Veda L hauled today as we believe we may have barnacles in our water intake which showed up as some AC problems. If you have to have a problem, this is a great place to deal with it! Tomorrow we hope to anchor in Bates Lake, then on our way to Demopolis and on to our final destination of Columbus, Mississippi........ Life is Swell on Veda L!