Happy November!!

November – the month of “Thankfulness” (plus the other 11 months of the year)!

It seems boat life has been at a standstill for the past couple days – we are still in Demopolis at Kingfisher Bay Marina.  But today is the “magic day” when our insurance policy will allow us to move further south – hurricane season has an impact on travel plans, even in the midst of a drought!

So...while we have been in idle I had the great opportunity to explore Demopolis by foot.  From the marina it’s only a mile to the city limits via Hwy 43.  The park and downtown square area have provided some GREAT running routes and have I mentioned the super friendly folks??  Incredible!  I’m usually trotting though town before any business are open but the city employees are already out and about.  I now know why the town and park is so neat & clean – unsung heros!

Yesterday was Laundry Day Monday, so I loaded the wagon (3 loads of laundry) & headed to the washing center at the marina – it was a busy place but we were able to get all the laundry done & head back to the boat in a couple hours – Charlie was a GREAT help, he really was!!  It’s important to find things to do while in a “holding pattern” so he was intrigued that the machine had timers!  And at $2.00/load it’s nice to see where the money goes! Hahaha…

Does your laundry room come with a water bottle holder?  Mine does!  Thankful!!

After laundry, Cathy (Southern Cross) & I were headed to the busy side of town via the marina loaner car.  While waiting for the key another lady walked by & asked how to sign up for the car.  I told her that we were headed to the grocery store…wanna ride?  SURE!!  We all jumped in the car & headed out…no A/C, VERY dusty and Cathy had to sit on a pillow because the seat was so wallowed out!  AND there were two keys – one for the door and one for the ignition!!  It was a back-in-the-day kind of commute – and kids, there was no keyless entry and don’t even ask about a navigation system…it’s called a map!!  We survived and enjoyed getting to know Jodi on Country Dancer.

Tuesday morning brought a little cooler sunrise so I was on the road again…praying we would be moving down the river tomorrow!  I’ve enjoyed Demopolis but I’m also ready to get moving so today I decided to slow down and drink in some of the local beauty.  This path to City Hall on the square just spoke to me and the fountain at the end was so pristine.  Plus it reminded me of a special time in Texas with a precious toddler…

The Vine & Hoof has intrigued me since my first sighting – I had an idea of what it was but decided today I would go back during business hours to “get the story behind the name”.  After lunch Charlie & I hiked to town (easy 3 miles) for a mid-day guided tour…I promised him we wouldn’t get lost!  Sure enough, the owners were there and seemed happy to see us and share their story.  The original concept was a wine store (Vine) and hand cut steaks (Hoof) to take home for cooking.  Then the wife merged her business (Spec –tacular) with his.  They changed the Hoof part to a bistro & now they have onsite dining with a different special each night.  Today is Winey Tuesday – neat marketing and great to see a husband/wife team with such a creative business.  I doubt we will make it back for dinner (lots to do with an early departure) but I did share the info with a LOT of ladies at the marina.  They were happy to hear of something so unique and close by.

Unique business concept & locally owned

 We also stopped by The Mustard Seed – a quaint, eclectic locally owned business.   Jewelry, accessories, baby clothing, china, etc. And it the back was The Mustard Seed Kitchen!!  Made to order, carry out or even frozen dishes to take home for later – lovely idea!  Again, we were greeted by the most kind and congenial ladies – a very nice experience.

I have a 5:00 briefing to attend this afternoon.  It provides up-to-date information for anchorages at 40, 50 and 60 miles downriver – given the extreme drought conditions current local knowledge is the best information to have.  We will get fuel in morning – you have to make an appointment because they can only accommodate one boat at a time. After that, we will top off the fresh water tanks.  We may be at anchor for 3-4 days, so preparation is important.

So until the next post…bye, bye Demopolis – thank you for your hospitality!!  We enjoyed our stay!