Interesting (?) stuff....

Day 9 - Friday, June 21

Heavy rain woke us up at 5am and the temp dropped 20 degrees.  The sun appeared later and warmed us up to 72.  That would seem appropriate for today, the summer solstice (which my sister reminded me of earlier today.) 

I made it to TravelFit at 7 am for more exercise and passed on the donuts today,  still nursing my guilt from eating two donuts yesterday!
 

Jim attended some good sessions on Cummins engine maintenance and Spartan chassis maintenance.  I avoided the session on "maintaining clean and healthy holding tanks" in favor of one on the history of Gillette.  Interestingly enough, the presenter grew up in Indianapolis, and moved out here when her husband got a job with one of the coal companies. She treated us to some great facts and stories about the city and the area, which was established by Edward Gillette who was a surveyor for the railroad.  (He wanted a raise, but since they couldn't give him a raise, they named the city after him! )
 

Today is our last day in Gillette.  I thought I would share some of the interesting things/sights from today:

The mayor of Gillette was thrilled to have our large group visit Gillette--the first time FMCA has been here.  He brought Gillette pins for everyone (Cowboy hats) to wear, and asked that we all become ambassadors for the city.






I mentioned earlier, that FMCA is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1963 in Maine.  Today I met one of the founding members Genny Jennings, member #26.  To put that in perspective, Jim & I have been FMCA members for 10 years, and our member number is 331,415.  What an impact this original group of "house car owners" has had.  They originally got together to watch a solar eclipse in Hinckley Maine, and discuss how to organize an organization for these house car owners...quite interesting, and pretty neat that Genny continues to participate in the annual reunions!.

The FMCA regulars have a quilting group that began a tradition of bringing quilts to leave in the city of the annual meeting.  The collection of quilts for Gillette was on display.  It included some great creations, from cowboy themed quilts to quilts for babies, to some with intricate workmanship. 

I visited an open pit coal mine today and was able to get a picture that shows how huge the operation is.  The coal mines are in production 24 hours a day, 365 days a year!   The mayor explained that this is some of the "cleanest" coal there is.  The coal is transported by railroad to various areas of the country.  Interesting that Texas is the biggest customer of Wyoming coal.

Check out this dog walking her owner on a scooter!   Seems like everybody here has a dog or cat.  Even the cats go for a walk on a leash.






More entertainment tonight at the Black Tie and Blue Jeans Dance following the 50th birthday cake. (Glad I didn't have that donut this morning!)  Don't count on seeing pictures of us on the dance floor!