ANDREWS, SC AT SADLER'S CREEK STATE PARK

7-22 May 2012
Andrews, SC
Dahleen

Sadler's Creek State Park on Lake Hartwell 

After being home a little less than a week, we are headed back out.....this time to Andrews, South Carolina.  Greg starts work in a few days and will be working another extra 4 days on the end of this hitch and then will get just 2 days off.  

We have settled in at Sadlers Creek State Recreational Park Area, a short 20-minute drive from the hospital where Greg works.  Sadlers Creek State Park sits on 395 acres on a peninsula that extends into Lake Hartwell, one of the Savannah River reservoirs.  It has good fishing, while the park itself has hiking and biking trails, boating, horse trails, and nice beach area, and much more.  It reminds us of the county park in Hixson, where Greg grew up.  It is a neat place and it will be our home for the duration of our stay here in Andrews.

The weekends are very busy here in the park with other motor homes, campers, tents coming in on Friday afternoons and setting up camp. There are fishing boats, ski boats, jet skis, pontoons boats, and a beach full of people playing in the water.  Greg is working nights so I have to do something  quietly during the day so not wake him up.  I usually spend time gathering firewood for our nightly time around the fire pit, walking the beach and the walking-trails during the weekdays, and on the weekends I people-watch..... the kids swimming, people grilling while listening to music playing, etc.  It is funny to watch, on Sunday afternoons/evenings, the mass exodus of people headed back home to start another week in the rat race.  

The weekends compared to the weekdays are a stark contrast here in the park.  I have to admit, I enjoy the solitude and quiet of the weekdays better.  

When Monday rolls around it is me, the wildlife, and a few motor homes in the area.  Sometimes, while Greg is at work at night, I will build a fire in the fire pit and sit outside listening to music on my iPod for hours at a time.  When Greg is off we play scrabble, roast marsh mellows, grill out, and just enjoy the campground.  I love to hear the sound of the waves of the lake pounding against the shore; it reminds me of our time on the boat.  Very nice and pleasant.  

Here are a few more pictures of one of our favorite State Parks:

The View From Our Bedroom Window 

 Relaxing Before Going to Work.....On the Night Schedule

Our Lakefront Home ...     :-)

JOB INTERVIEW

11 May 2012
Anderson, SC

Ready for my Interview...How Do I Look?

It has bee a few days since the last blog entry and we are a little behind.  Let me catch you up. 

It has been no secret that I am actively looking for another job.  Specifically, I am trying to get hired as a pilot flying in Iraq or Afghanistan as a civilian contractor. 

Huh?  Do what?  Yeah, that’s the reaction I get when I mention it to someone.  Hey, it’s either work a year or two over there, OR work another 5 or 6 years here in the States.  We don’t want to wait that long to get back out there cruising.

Well, I have sent out multiple resumes and I have gotten some responses back, but recently I was selected for an interview by a company (I won’t tell you which one……well, maybe just the initials AAR). 

The unique thing is they wanted to do a Skype interview….. interesting.  The critical thing about Skype is you need to have a good internet connection…….and we didn’t.  We were/are staying in the Sadler Creek Campground, just outside of Anderson, SC on Lake Hartwell.  It is an absolutely great place for us to stay and we love it here….except the wi-fi (which they do have) stinks.  It is intermittent and slow.  So, since it is kinda critical to have a good connection we made a point to book a night at the Holiday Inn to utilize their internet connection and to enjoy “a night out on the town”. 

After getting checked in early in the afternoon, I am checking my “Skype skills” by skyping with Dahleen (who is sitting right next to me), and studying regulations for possible interview questions, etc., when I get a call from AAR telling me the Chief Pilot was tied up with the FAA and would have to reschedule the interview.  Darn it!  It was just an hour before the interview.  We just wasted $135 bucks for the room and would now have to go thru the same process again in a few days.  So……what to do? 

We went to eat.  When in doubt, eating is always a good answer.  We ate at a great little Thai restaurant called “Thai and Spice”.  We both loved it.