July 17-July 21, 2016-Still in Minnesota~Faribult repair?~On to Prior Lake~Mall of America~Maintenance day~

Sunday July 17, 2016- OMG!!!!! Our last night in Lanesboro was a real nightmare......for Otis anyhow! Sometime after midnight it started raining.....HARD, with strong winds & LOUD thundering & lightening. Otis just couldn't handle it. He's still sleeping with us, because he's still limping😖 but even if he wasn't, he'd been in our bed because of the storm! Otis is Lennie's dog until it comes to a storm or firecracker & then he can't get enough of me!?!He's like second skin! He was besides me, on my pillow, trying to get behind my back, burrowing under the covers, poor dog, there was just no reassuring him that everything was going to be okay......I was thinking about going out to the couch just so I could get some sleep but he finally relaxed!

                                                                         Get Ready......

                                                                           Get Set......

                                                                           GO!!!!!

                                                    Here we go.....down that country road!

                                    Can you imagine riding a bike up or down this road????

                                     Okay....time to get on the Interstate & make some time!

                                                                 The good thing is.....

                                                    Even tho we're on the Interstate,

                                                         The Country is still around us!

                                                                    We're almost there!

                                                                       We're here!

                                                 Len, checking out our "CAMPSITE'!

                                                Obviously this is NOT our destination!

 

We are here at ABC Bus for a possible Alternator repair? It isn't open right now, today being Sunday, we have a 7:30 am Monday morning appointment, not sure what we'll do the rest of the day & night, but we'll definitely be the first ones here in the morning!!!

Poor Otis, he didn't get much sleep last night because of the storm, he's trying to make up for it now!

July 10-July 16, 2016-Still in Lanesboro,Minn~Side trip to Austin~Pie in Whalan~Bike ride to Lanesboro

Thursday July 14, 2016- Today we have a little adventure planned!!! This is the part of our trip we would have had to miss out on had we had to go to court in Michigan!😖 We're taking a little side trip, a distance of about 50 miles to the town of Austin, Minnesota.The bridge being out has nothing to do with the country roads we had to travel on!

                                                  What are they growing up here!?!

Austin is a BIG town, almost 25,000 in comparison to the little town of Lanesboro. Austin is the home of HORMEL!!! We are here to see the SPAM Museum!!!! Even if you're not a fan of SPAM, such as myself, if you're this close to the Spam Museum, you need to go see it!

I thought there was only that one nasty can of SPAM, turns out there are 20 varieties of SPAM, first developed in 1937. The 13th flavor was created just for Hawaii, it's called SPAM with Portuguese Sausage. Years ago when Lennie & I were in Hawaii, I remember SPAM being a big deal there, they even had a SPAM Parade!!!

                                     

 SPAM was a given during the War. Khrushchev said the troops wouldn't have survived without SPAM! It's been joked that SPAM stands for:SOMETHING POSING AS MEAT, but maybe it really stood for:Specially Prepared American Meat or.....Specially Prepared Army Meat????

                                                                           NOT!!!!!!

A 390-foot SPAM can conveyor suspended from the ceiling runs through the museum with the 20 different SPAM varieties represented, & takes 18 minutes to complete a rotation.

I guess we've seen it all, time to find lunch. I wonder where we can go to get a SPAM burger!?! Oh BTW....in the gift shop....

                                      Lennie did buy a can of SPAM!!!! Turkey flavored!

                                                    This is the HORMEL Museum

                                                                   Culver's was lunch

                                            & there was no SPAM Burger on the menu.....😋

       On our way back to little ole Lanesboro & the Campgrounds. How'd you like to live on this road!?!

Otis is always glad when we return. He just wants us to relax with him the rest of the night! Okay Otis....it's a deal!

July 10-July16, 2016-Enjoying Historic Lanesboro, Minn.~Relaxing drive~ A down day....

Tuesday July 12, 2016- This morning after after breakfast we are going to pack a picnic lunch & just go for a nice drive! Otis hopes there's no hiking involved!!!

                                Poor Otis!!!! He didn't know we were in Amish territory!!!

           We only saw one Amish buggy on the road, not enough to get Otis all upstirred!!!!

 There were several small towns close by on today's ride. The largest town had a population of a little over a thousand, the smallest town had a population of 62!!!! I enjoyed the miles & miles of acres & acres of open farmland, it is just beautiful up here!!!

                                                Our picnic at a roadside picnic pavilion!

 Otis wasn't interested in the picnic!?! He wasn't leashed so he could have wandered anywhere, but he's NOT going anywhere unless Lennie is going too!

                                                       Had to stop for a "MISSION"!!!

                                    

                                            Another "MISSION" stop of a different kind!!!

Oh Boy!!!! What a way to end our day!!!!