Da Boys from Chicago and Wild Times at the Waterfall

Things started out peacefully on Saturday morning, but around noon Tena and Keith showed up with two of Keith’s “homeboys” from Chicago. We had met Tena and Keith, who live in this area, the previous weekend when everybody was pitching washers at the waterfall.

Now, when I use the term “homeboys” it is definitely a term of endearment. These guys (Paul “My Hubcap Man” and Mike) are brothers who grew up with Keith on the south side of Chicago. For those who don’t know what a “Hubcap Man” is (like us), we were told that it is someone who can get or find for you anything you would ever want or need. Did I mention that these two guys are very, very Italian - a.k.a. Paulie and Mikey? Did I mention that they arrived ready to cut loose? Did I mention that it got wet and wild? Did I mention that we pegged the fun-meter, perhaps even broke it???

Needless to say, the Captain hit it off with the boys from the moment they arrived on the beach and it didn’t take long for the Admiral to catch up. Well, the beer and Bloody Mary’s flowed stronger than the waterfall until about 4:00 p.m. when the storms they were predicting hit. Tena and the boys headed back home with the promise of seeing us in the morning with fresh supplies of ice, vodka, Bloody Mary mix, and plenty more cold beer.

After they left, we quickly set a second anchor to keep us from swinging into the shore because of the strong winds. It blew and rained for the next eighteen hours, and as the sun was coming back out, so did all our friends on Pickwick Lake, loaded with supplies, and Kelly and Melissa brought food for an army. Let the party continue! I’m not even going to try and talk about the day; I’ll let the photos speak for themselves The fun has begun!

L. to R. Roger (friend of Bud's from New Albany, MS), Paul (Chicago "Hubcab Man"), Cindy (wife of Steve, friends of Kelly's and Melissa's), Kelly, Melissa, Tena (wife of Keith), Steve (husband of Cindy, friends of Kelly's and Melissa's).


The girls built a fort while the grown-ups enjoyed the day. These girls are also responsible for all the face paint on the adults, it was our "warpaint"!

L. to R. Cindy, Carlin, Caroline, Hilary. Cindy and Hilary belong to Keith and Tena; Carlin belongs to Cindy and Steve; and Caroline belongs to Kelly and Melissa.
 

What are you looking at Melissa? Another nice pose Tena!



The Hubcap Man & The Captain... quite a team!



Just trying to enjoy ourselves!

L. to R. The Cap'n, Hubcap Man, Keith (Tena's husband) & Tena, and Mike (Paul's brother)


The Admiral gets in on the fun!



Are we having fun yet?

 

The Admiral & Kelly welcome Bo & Terri.



Da Boys from the South Side! Will we see you in Florida this winter?


Kelly gets sandwiched at the beach!



Is it Paulie or Bono?
















Though we didn’t get any photos of this particular event, it is important to note that my homeboys and I did experience the 25-foot rope swing on Sunday, so the guys now have bragging rights back in the Windy City.

Since the boys from Chicago weren’t flying back until Tuesday we decided that we should shoot for three days in a row, but trust me when I tell you that Monday was a much shorter and somewhat more sober day at the waterfall. I do, however, think that Paulie wimped out just a little too soon on Monday as he spent most of the day napping... for such a stud he sure was a candy-a** that day (Paulie - you were never there for me, man ). By Monday, all the Hubcap Man could do was snore... lightweight! :-) However Mike was still going strong... like a true Chicago Italian!



Needless to say we have made two great new friends up north and we hope to see them next fall when we go through Chicago. That or perhaps in Florida this winter where we hope that some (or all) of our many friends in this area will come for a visit.

Tuesday was spent “drying out” and working on getting “Life’s2Short” washed and waxed in addition to changing oil and filters for the upcoming trip back down the Tenn-Tom to Mobile and points south. About 3:00 p.m. our fresh water pump sprang a leak so I spent the afternoon trying to get it fixed; however, this issue will have to wait until I have access to proper tools.

The Iceman stopped by late in the afternoon and plans have been made to possibly meet him in Memphis on our way back from Missouri. Speaking of Missouri, Kelly will be taking us to the rental car company tomorrow morning and we should arrive at Lake of the Ozarks late tomorrow afternoon. We will spend five days with the Admiral’s parents and then head to Springfield, arriving sometime Tuesday afternoon, October 3rd, for four nights. After that we will head back up to Lake of the Ozarks for a few more days before returning to “Life’s2Short” on October 11th or 12th.

The nights have really begun to cool off and fall is definitely in the air. The water temps have also begun to drop so one now has to be careful of “shrinkage."  I want to end this session of the blog by letting everyone know how special it is in this part of the world. Not only is the scenery beautiful and the wildlife abundant (I’m not talking here about the people), but the quality of life around these parts is second to none.

Speaking of people, I don’t believe you can find better folks anywhere. As our friend Keith told me: “The type of people that live here would do anything for you at anytime, without hesitation ” It is this type of environment and attitude that is really going to be hard to leave; however, it will soon get cold here so we must continue our journey south and just look forward to getting back up this way sometime next year. I hope that all of you who are keeping up with our adventures are doing well and life is also treating you as good as it is us.  Live your dreams, Cap’n T