Travels and Walmart’s and Cracker Barrels

Last New Year’s Eve was spent in Montevideo, Uruguay aboard the Majestic Princess.

This  New Years’ Eve was spent in the parking lot of the Cracker Barrel of Bristol, Tennessee aboard the SS Winnebago.

No complaints…..

Just comparing…..

Our hasty exit from the frozen tundra of Northwestern New Jersey proved to be a wise decision albeit fraught with the detritus of that choice, namely we did not get to visit with everyone that we had planned on spending time with.  And that was the reason that we ventured northward to begin with!

We are now in the parking lot of the Cracker Barrel of West Monroe, Louisiana where it is currently 58 degrees and it is 2:20 AM! When we went to sleep it was a balmy 70! These temps, while very comfortable for us, are even more satisfying for Miss Biggie who wallows in delight whenever we do not have to run extra electric heaters in her belly in order for her innards not to freeze!

                        And…. it will be markedly easier to work on that power cable that went POOF a few days ago. It is obviously made from rubber and plastic, neither of which are very obliging when the temperature is down in the Uncooperative Range. I can’t wait to land at our Texas Home Base midday today, pull that cable out of its compartment and let it sit in the sun for 30 seconds after which it will be as pliable as a pack of Twizzlers left on your dashboard on a sunny day!

                        Driving yesterday, New Year’s Day, was about as pleasurable as long-distance driving can get. Minimal everything, cars, trucks, no construction, throw in some bright sunny weather and we had a great day on the road. We packed 735 miles into about twelve hours of driving, and we even gained an hour when we exited Georgia and entered Alabama. This is the stuff you don’t think about….. take a look at the map in your phone. Go ahead, I’ll wait……… now draw a line northward from the top corner where Georgia and Alabama meet and follow it up until you almost hit Chicago! It’s that far west! Who’d a thunk that?

                        You’ve probably noticed that we’ve spent more and more time at Cracker Barrels than Walmart’s. This is deliberate and somewhat a matter of overnight self-preservation. Back in the day, when old man Sam Walton was still alive, he decreed that the traveling public, i.e. RV’s, motorhomes, etc. were welcome to spend the night in ANY of his parking lots. A certain decorum was asked, please keep it clean, don’t “set up camp” and just be overly courteous in your deportment. This worked for quite a while until Sam went to that Super Walmart in the sky and the powers that claimed his throne were not as adamant about the Traveling Public. They left it up to the local managers to make the decisions on this topic and as the Nasties proliferated and trashed a few parking lots….well, you can guess what happened. More than a handful of Walmart’s became Anti-Overnighter’s and posted their decisions on the light poles outside. So, it is a spin of the proverbial roulette wheel as to who allows it and who doesn’t.

                        Now….. on the other hand, we have Cracker Barrels who have actual extended-length parking spaces for RV’s and busses. These extra-large spaces are not only to park and have a meal but are also available to spend the night in the lot! It is a lot less stressful knowing that at closing time there won’t be a knock on the door with the Mall Cop asking you to vacate the premises. We always go inside for a meal (dinner or breakfast) ask for the manager, introduce ourselves as the Overnight Parking Surveillance Team and thank them for their hospitality.

                        Since we went to bed around 6:45 and I’m up now, I have a feeling that we will get another rather early start on the road. We have about another five-plus hours in front of us before we can throw out the anchor again, but when we do, the temperature is forecast to be about 84.

                        But who’s counting.