Archive for February, 2005

>This is the best bargain in town – oceanfront accommodations amid palm trees and live oaks, for $18 a night. Per party.

Which is why a dozen or so people are jamming into Ray and Marie Flickinger’s 35-foot Winnebago this week, the one decorated with the Eagles blankets, Eagles popcorn maker, Eagles beads, Eagles mini-helmets and mascots, the banner that says “You’re in Eagles Country,” and the window signs that say “Jacksonville Or Bust.”

“It’s freezing,” shuddered their son, Eric Flickinger, 27, of Folsom, N.J., greeting the Florida morning at the Hanna Park campgrounds yesterday in green fleece. Full Story…

>Hitting the Road With Mom is this winter’s theme for Myrna Oakley, 68, and her mother, Doris Murdock, 91, of Gresham, Ore.

It’s also the title of a column Oakley is writing for Lifestyles Northwest, a newspaper “for baby boomers and beyond.”

The two are trying their wings in Thelma, a 27-foot 1988 El Dorado motor home.

“Some people think we’re completely nuts, doing it now,” Oakley said, sitting inside her home-away-from-home at Venture Out in Mesa. “But Mum wanted to, and if we ever were to do it, it should be now.” Full Story…

>Arizona is covered with snowbirds this time of year. In the little RV park where I stayed in Yuma, I saw license plates from Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Minnesota, and other places serious about winter. From Arizona or Southern California, you would think there are no seniors left in the northern part of the continent.

Maybe I will be a bit more qualified to write about seniors after spending a month or so among these snowbirds. My early impressions are that they are friendly, unpretentious, and helpful. Full Story…