So, yesterday started out great. Mr. FixIt discovered his great grandparents are buried less than a half hour’s drive from the campground. We got up in time to grab breakfast from the Golden Arches and travel upriver on the West Virginia side. Find-a-Grave told us exactly where to go and gave us a picture of the headstone, to boot.

With McMuffin and drinks in hand, we glided up the old State Route and turned up a hill side road. At the top was a sprawling cemetery with nearly 4,000 Memorials on Find-a-Grave. Mr. FixIt lamented at the sheer size and said it would take forever to find the headstone. I pulled up the picture of it from online, looked around to match the background profile, and drove straight to it. Sometimes I impress the heck out of my husband!

We stood there quietly, staring at the headstone. Mr. FixIt walked around and brushed away the dead grass clippings from the mower. He told me stories. He never met that great grandfather, but he distinctly remembered his great grandmother. She lived with her daughter in Portsmouth, VA. He remembers she had white hair that went way down to the backs of her knees. Her daughter would brush it for her every night before bed. He figures there hadn’t been any visitors there since his great aunt was buried beside them in 1988. Here’s something we didn’t know. His great grandmother and my great grandmother shared the name Sabina! Middle name on his side…first name on mine!

We soon left and drove on up the river, crossed the bridge, and came back down the Ohio side. When we returned to the campground, Mr. FixIt gathered his fishing gear and went down to the river’s edge to try his hand. After a few hours in the hot sun, he caught a little blue gill, no bigger than five inches long. I ran over to take the traditional trophy picture and we laughed and laughed.

The neighbors on the other side of us called out what a great job he did. I went over to visit her for a while. They live in Lewisburg, WV…one of my favorite little towns in the Mountain State. I asked if she knew my friend, Nan and her family. They once owned The General Lewis Inn. And, of course, she did. I met Nan back in the ‘80s when she was a nurse at the hospital my husband was practicing in a little resort town near Aspen. She pulled out a beautiful harp like the one Nan played for the meditation class she had attended. She strummed it for a bit and I could see why she loved it. The notes were soft and soothing…perfect for an afternoon under the shade trees along the river.

I said fair well and went back to our campsite to fix supper. I warmed up pot roast, steamed some broccoli and cauliflower, and heated up pre-made mashed potatoes. It was a meal fit for royalty, even if it WAS served on paper plates! Mr. FixIt went back to the river’s edge for a little more fishing time and I sat by the camper to knit. 

This is the time of year when the stink bugs start swarming and they were driving me crazy. They get up on the side of the camper, then fall off on me…on my hair, down my shirt, and finally…one landed in my lap. Well…to be more exact…between my legs. I didn’t want to grab it because those things give off a wicked stench. It’s their defense mechanism. So, I tried to stand up. 

We have these chairs. Great chairs, by the way. Big, round club chairs that are ever so comfortable to sit in and knit by the river. Which is what I’d been doing for about two hours. Those of you who are in my age bracket…you know what it’s like to sit for a long time in one position, then try to stand up. It didn’t go smoothly, and soon I recognized the malodorous reek of Eau de Brown Marmorated Stink Bug. Ugh! I quickly brushed the pest aside and sat back down to knit.

Then…within a minute or so…things started getting kinda warm down there. It wasn’t long till things started going from bad to worse and I was frankly “on fire” in the netheryea region. And…NOT in a good way!

I ran to the camper and jumped in the shower to rinse off. We have very little cell service here at the campground, so I texted my dear friend Sue, and said, “Don’t laugh at me, but my hootie is on fire! Can you look on Google and see if the liquid emitted by stink bugs is an irritant and what to do about it?”

It took a little bit to hear back. I pictured her rolling on the floor laughing, yelling to Ben…”You’re not going to believe what she’s into now!” She finally responded with a polite lol and said to give her a minute. Turns out, people can be really sensitive to these nasty little buggers…as I can personally attest! Fortunately, the fire calmed down after about thirty minutes and I had already treated it correctly.

I’ll be living in a bubble for the next few weeks, thank you very much!

We’ll be packing up and heading home today. This has been a wonderful three days away at one of our favorite campgrounds. I can’t wait to get out again!

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“And all winged insects are unclean for you; they shall not be eaten.”

Deuteronomy 14:19 ESV