April Showers (April 2025)
Around Home
It was our honor to attend the Bob Jones University Faculty and Staff Retiree Dinner hosted by students in the Culinary Arts major. The students did a fantastic job of cooking and hosting the dinner. It was nice to see the 94 faculty and staff retirees who attended. My conservative guess is that those 94 represented about 3,500 years of service to BJU.
Of course, much of our time as retirees is spent not travelling or trying new things but just living day to day at home. One of my favorite places in our home is our covered deck. We make good use of our covered deck from March - November. Each spring, after the pollen has finally stopped falling, we clean the deck and the furniture, bring the plants that we moved indoors back outside, add the mood lighting, and begin enjoying the deck again.
Texas/Vicksburg Trip
Early April found us heading back to Pittsburg, TX to help Tammie’s mom with doctor’s appointments and further cleanup of her mom’s home that was still for sale.
Before getting to Texas, we decided to stop at Vicksburg National Military Park. We have passed through Vicksburg, Mississippi hundreds of times over the last 50 years, but this time we toured for the first time the Vicksburg National Military Park. The park has hundreds of monuments erected by the states, divisions, and regiments that fought here. One of the highlights is seeing the ironclad Cairo that was torpedoed in 1863. The Cairo was recovered and preserved in the 1960s. It was a bit dreary and wet, but we enjoyed walking and driving around the monuments.
Pittsburg, TX
We had a busy five days visiting with Tammie’s mom who was almost fully recuperated from her partial hip replacement surgery in late December 2024. We transported her to the beauty salon, out to eat, and to a half dozen doctor appointments. At her final doctor’s appointment she fell. She ended up getting x-rays and it was determined that she fractured her pelvis. After meeting with a surgeon, it was determined she didn’t need surgery, but she had to avoid putting weight on her hips for 90 days.
While in Pittsburg we continued to do some minor repairs and cleaning of the house which is on Lake Bob Sandlin. We also stopped by the Rose Hill Cemetery and paid our respects at the Thorsell family plot.
Every morning, we walked around the lake in the Cherokee Point subdivision. It was a regular occurrence to see deer and other wildlife as we walked. Tammie’s mom was in good spirits and being taken care of at her assisted living facility when we left.
Stumphouse Tunnel and Issaqueena Falls
Stumphouse Tunnel is located near Walhalla, SC. Stumphouse Tunnel was dug using hand tools prior to the Civil War but never completed. About 1/4 mile of the tunnel is open to the public. The tunnel maintains a temperature of 50 degrees year-round. Clemson University use to cure bleu cheese inside the tunnel. In front of the tunnel is an old rail car.
Issaqueena Falls is close to the Stumphouse Tunnel. We did drive to the Issaqueena Falls parking lot, but it is close enough to walk. The observation deck is 1/4 mile walk from the parking lot. The best view of the falls is at the bottom of a very steep unofficial trail. It had just rained when we arrived, and it was very slippery. We decided not to try the trail.
Golf Lesson
We ended the month by trying something new. We took a golf lesson at Topgolf Greenville. We signed up for a 1-hour lesson that included using a driver, iron, and wedge. We had a great time and decided to get a Summer Fun Pass that lets us golf any weekday from 9-5.
