Dallas Park

Gaston County held a household hazardous waste collection on Saturday at Dallas Park. We have been collecting used batteries for awhile, and I thought it was a good opportunity to get them out of the house. It was beautiful Saturday morning, so we decided to take the 35 minute drive to the park and dispose of the batteries.

We were the only ones pulling into the drop off location at the time, so all the employees rushed to the car to get our materials. Several hustled to the back of our SUV, expecting me to pop open the back for them to unload items. I felt really bad just rolling down a window to hand them a plastic bag partially filled with batteries. I think they were quite surprised and disappointed.

After the drop off we drove through the park. What a surprise it turned out to be! It has three ponds you can fish in or walk around, a couple of playgrounds, a splash pad, ball fields and tennis courts, an equestrian center including a camping area, and numerous pavilions. Especially of interest to us were the numerous historic building located there. There was a history of each one listed, and a QR code you could scan to see photos of the inside of each building. 

The beauty of the park made it worth the drive to properly dispose of our batteries. I hope to be able to take my granddaughter there the next time they come for a visit.

Dallas Park

Out of Gas

Following a hack of the nation's largest fuel pipelines, right now 70% of the gas stations in the Charlotte area are out of gas. Fueled, if you'll pardon the pun, by the media making an even bigger deal of the situation, panicked drivers rushed to the stations whether they needed to fill up or not. The parallel to the run on toilet paper at the start of the pandemic cannot be ignored. 

I've no doubt that a number of people filled every available container (legal or otherwise) with gasoline while they could. Both of our cars are, of course, low on fuel. Jim was unsuccessful in finding gas today. Had we known yesterday, we were playing tourist in a couple of small towns somewhat close to us, and there was plenty of gas and no lines. We could have filled up then. A day late and a dollar short...We have nowhere we need to be, so we can sit tight for a bit. I feel sorry for people who do not have the option to wait it out.

I'm happy we were able to play tourist a bit yesterday before we knew there was going to be a fuel crisis. We went to Dallas, NC where they have the Gaston County Museum. We wanted to learn more about the county we now call home, and this was the perfect place. This whole area is heavily influenced by the mills that once operated here, and it was cool to see the equipment that was used. The museum also houses the largest collection of horse drawn carriages in North Carolina, and that was interesting as well. We had lunch in Dallas before heading to Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia. We took a nice hike around the lake to walk off some of our lunch. 

Dallas NC and Rankin Lake

We learned that there are 13 towns that make up Gaston County. We decided that it will be fun to explore each of them.

Covid Voting

Today was our first time voting in our new state of North Carolina. In Missouri you had to have a stellar reason for not being able to vote in person before you could obtain an absentee ballot. Here, no reason is necessary. In light of Covid-19, we decided not to risk voting in person. We had submitted via email a request for absentee ballots, which arrived in the mail in a prompt manner. Then we studied the ballot and researched our various choices for the different offices or positions. We are quite unfamiliar with the various candidates for state and county offices since we haven't lived here that long.

After we completed the ballots and had them witnessed, we drove them to the Gaston County Board of Elections office so that we could drop them off in person. With the contentious nature of politics these days, I did not trust putting the ballots in the mail. When we arrived, the parking lot was a zoo! There were no spots, and cars were circling the lot waiting for others to leave. There was a long line of cars, and a sign that said "Curbside Voting". What the heck is that? We assumed it didn't mean us since we were just dropping off. 

On my second trip through the lot, I asked a man sitting in a chair behind his car if he knew where we were supposed to go. He was dressed head to toe in support of his presidential candidate, so I guess he was trying to influence the long line of folks waiting to vote in person. He was very kind in telling us which door to approach, and even offered to let me park next to him while we dropped the ballots off. "As long as we were voting the right way," he added with a smirk.

outside the Board of Elections office

We headed to the proper door, masks in place. We rang a bell, and a woman came out with a clipboard and a piece of paper we had to fill out, establishing who was dropping off the ballot(s). Once we completed that, we were on our way. Easy-peasy, once we knew where to go. The only thing I felt bad about was the fact that we didn't get an "I Voted" sticker. I like to wear mine with pride.