The weather has been cool for this part of the country with the lows in the mid to upper 30's and highs in the upper 60's. Not bad considering we could be back in Indiana where it is much cooler and a bit miserable.
We have just been doing a few chores around the house, cut down a branch on one of the trees that is crowding the drive where we enter the RV parking area.
Eating seems to be one of our passions, at least two and generally 3 times a day. We are planning an outing to the Heart Attack Grille before long, as soon as our friend Clark is feeling better and lets us know when he can go. I am looking forward to a visit as well as the food.
We purchased a new Garmin GPS for Christmas. It is pretty neat in what it will do. Today, we needed to go to Staples to get some ink cartridges for the printer. I checked the
phone book and got the address of one that was fairly near, put it in the GPS and followed the directions, however, there was not a Staples at that address, Only a large Lowes. I remembered that there was one on Alma School Road, so we went there and drove around a bit, not finding it, so we stopped at a bank to get some directions. While Evelyn was in the bank, I just clicked on "points of interest" and typed in Staples and up came 8 or 10 addresses in the valley for various Staples. One was only around the corner from where we were. I did not know that that kind of information was available on the GPS. Just goes to show what I know about a GPS. Live and learn, I guess. It is pretty forgiving as it will re-calculate if you make a wrong turn or fail to turn when it tells you to turn. It certainly knows more about a strange town than you do, so just do as it says and all will be well.
Our photos are of the Orange tree in the back yard as seen out of our dining room window. Nothing like fresh oranges right off the tree for breakfast.

Well, here it is the day after Christmas. We have been in Mesa, AZ since the 18th and have been resting up and visiting with Nancy B. and her friend Harry. Not a lot going on other than some grocery shopping and just bumming around in general.

Christmas Eve we went to church for a nice candle light service. Then on Christmas day we went to visit a friend that was in an assisted living facility not too far away. In the afternoon we had a cook out. We had kabobs with beef, green peppers, onions, pineapple and tomatoes, quite tasty and filling. Finished that off with a nice piece of pecan pie.
Today, we are going to visit some friends from Cherokee Village and take them to lunch. They are in an assisted living facility in Scottsdale, not too far away. We have not seen them since last winter when we were here.
Our photos are of the Inter-mountain Expressway around El Paso, TX. It was obvious that we had to do something with that mountain in front of us and apparently that is where the name came from. As you can see it is a fairly steep grade and maybe 5 miles long, so it is a long grind, some in first gear in the steeper parts. It is a really nice drive but a bit difficult for a rig of our size. We did not see any big trucks on this road, they all stayed on I10 and fought the traffic through El Paso.
This was an interesting drive, but next time I think we will stay on the interstate and just bite the bullet and stay with the big rigs.
It is apparent that the interstate has to negotiate this mountain range, but apparently easier than this expressway. Cars and light trucks had no problem with the grades, but not for big rigs.

Sunday morning, after a quite cool night boon docking at the Saguaro SKP Co-Op, we woke up to a sunny day, but cool. We needed to dump holding tanks and take on fresh water, which we did, and finally got on
the road about 11am. Back on I10 toward Tucson and road construction that we encountered the last two years, but alas, the construction has been completed and we had a nice drive on newly paved and widened roads. What a treat compared to last year trying to stay between concrete barriers that were not very far apart, especially for a wide-body motor home. We picked up sr 87 and past Casa Grande and the National Monument, Casa Grande Ruins. A very interesting study of a culture of long ago. We finally arrived in Mesa about 3:30 and parked in the street for the night and sill settle in tomorrow.
Saturday the sun was bright as you would expect in the valley of the sun, and a high temperature in the low 70's. In the 40's overnight, but better than the night before. We parked the motor home in the space beside the house and in the back yard, and the Orange tree is loaded and about ready to start harvesting the juicy fruit.
We helped Nancy put up some decorations for Christmas and went to the hardware store for some light bulbs and a couple of bolts for the motor home. Tomorrow it is off to Church and a day of rest and relaxation.
Our photos are from our trip to McDonald Observatory near Ft. Davis, TX. the first shows a part of our route up the mountain. The second shows snow that was left after the road was recently plowed. The other photo is of the sun dial showing it is a little past 12 noon. A very interesting place to visit, especially for one of the evening star viewing sessions. The altitude is over 5,000' and it is quite cool and the buildings where the telescopes are is kept at 40 degrees to keep the glass and metal in a stable state as they both change with temperature. Hopefully we can get back and see more of this facility.

Wednesday we woke up to nice sunshine but cool temperatures. A good nights rest despite the RR track nearby. In looking at the map we found we could go north from Van Horn, TX on sr54 to US180 and west to El Paso and it is only about 10 miles farther. The 53 miles up sr54 was a nice drive, good road along the mountains and several ranches on either side of the road. We passed 2 vehicles going south, one a pick up with a slide in camper and another pick up. We did see a few cows, however they have all apparently been moved to other pastures this time of year. It really did not look like there was much to eat anyway. Along
the ridge of the mountains to our east, we saw many wind generators, the farther we went the more there were, maybe a hundred or more. We picked up US180 at the base of the Guadalupe mountains and headed west for El Paso. Evelyn found a bypass around the north side of El Paso that kept us out of town. It was called inter mountain expressway. Now, I know why the name. It was a nice 4 lane divided highway until you get to the mountain. There it is also 4 lane divided, but it goes over the mountain. The sign says "road may be closed during inclimate weather". Also, slow moving vehicles next 5 miles. Well, we were the slow moving vehicle this time. It was first gear a lot of the way and about 20mph, maybe a little of 2nd gear and 30 mph. What a grind. going down the other side was a breeze, just have to use the brakes sparingly to keep the rig under 65 or so. Next time we will take I10 and fight the traffic through El Paso.
We climbed in altitude the rest of the day until we got to Deming, NM. and the Dream Catcher SKP park for the night. Cold, only 29 degrees this morning and the heat really felt good. We could see snow on the mountains nearby. They said it came about two weeks ago during a cold snap.
With a change in time, MT, we woke up an hour earlier than usual and got on the road by 9am. On west of I10 with fairly light traffic until afternoon. We stopped in Wilcox, AZ for lunch and a quick power nap and on to Benson to the SKP park called Saguaro Co-Op. They were full so we had to take a boon dock space and do without electricity, so we
will see how that goes. We have good batteries and plenty of LP so it should be alright. There are over 700 spaces here and all are full.
Our photos are from the Judge Roy Bean Museum. The top photo is of his saloon and the bar in the second photo. This is claimed to be the actual building that he used. The bottom photo is of the opra house he built, which is a reproduction of the original.
Tomorrow, we will complete the trip to Mesa, AZ and visit with our friend, Nancy B, and enjoy some of her fresh oranges. Hopefully get settled in the RV space she has beside the house and get some R&R.

This is the first time we have had internet service for a week. I will not try to bring you up to date in this one blog, however, I must say that we have left the Lone Star Corral. We certainly enjoyed our 6 weeks at
the Escapee park very much and will miss our old and new friends as well. We will also miss the good food we found in Hondo and Sabinal as well as the fellowship with out friends the Drew's.
We finally got away on Sunday about 11am and headed west out US90 toward El Paso, TX. The weather had been cooler than we really liked, lows in the 30's and high in the 50's and 60's. Hopefully we will find warmer weather as we get farther west, however there are some high altitudes we have to endure and thus cool temperatures, but that are things you have to endure, just find a place to hook up your electricity and turn on the heaters. Generally that is enough, but sometime we turn on the furnace to quickly warm it up in the morning. Surely we will find the land of warmth and sunshine soon.
The photos are of the entrance to the Lone Star Corral in Hondo, TX. This is a place we enjoy very much, actually more than any of the other Escapees Parks we have visited, so far. We will let you know if we find one we enjoy more.
Having a relatively late start on the day, we made it as far as Sanderson, TX. We stayed at the same park as last year, only we had full hook ups, rather than in the overflow area. All the guy wanted was the $20.00. He was not interested in names, license plate numbers, etc. Just pay him the money and get parked. A very quiet night, with few trains and little traffic on the road. A bit cool again, however we were at an altitude of 2790' from the 825' at the Lone Star Corral. On the way, we stopped at Langtry, TX and a visit to the Judge Roy Bean museum. This was operated and maintained by the state of Texas. Very nice with nice gardens, and a replica of the opera house he had built as well as the original saloon that he used as his court house where he made the law. His was the "Law West of the Pecos". Lots of artifacts, many actually used by Judge Roy Bean.
Monday, we headed on west toward Ft. Davis and the McDonald Observatory. When we arrived at Ft. Davis we went to the campground we had picked out in the Passport book, however when we arrived, we were informed that they did not honor any discounts as the bank had taken over the campground and the gal there was a bank employee. We went on to another campground we found in the Passport book the Prude Ranch. It is a few miles out of town in the mountains toward the observatory. Is a dude ranch with all kinds of activities, horse back riding, jeep tours, shooting range, rodeo type activities, swimming pool and two campgrounds. The place was closed down for the winter, other than the campgrounds. We were the only one there until a class C came in about dark. The fellow came over and wanted to know if they could stay and pay in the morning when the office opened. We assured him that that would be the thing to do. We later met them at the observatory.
Tuesday, we woke up to a heavy frost, everything was white, however we had reached an altitude of over 5,000' and it felt like it. We drove on up the mountain to the observatory and watched a film on astrology and then enjoyed a talk by an astronomer about the sun and sun spots. We looked at the sun through one of the telescopes and checked the outer edge for flayers. A quite interesting program. We did not take the tour of the telescopes as it was cold, outside as well as inside the domes. They keep the floor of the telescope domes at about 40 degrees due to the precision makeup of the equipment. We returned to the Prude Ranch and hooked up the van and headed back down the mountain and headed back south to Marfa, TX and US90 and on west to Van Horn, TX where we fueled up and found a nice campground not to far from I10 and on the other side the RR tracks which parallel US90 from San Antonio west and maybe east of San Antonio. You can always depend on a RR track or an interstate highway next to the campground, maybe both.

Today we woke up to a wet misty condition, dark and dreary, so really did not have much ambition to do anything. We did get a few things ready to move, but in looking at the weather, it looks like a winter storm is coming this direction, or at least west Texas and southern New Mexico, with cold nights and windy conditions. Winds are to be 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 50 or 60. Not the kind of weather you want to be on the road in with a high profile vehicle. We have decided to stay another day and see what it looks like. If it is going to be cold and miserable there, we might as well stay here among friends and we can all be cold and miserable together.

Yesterday was Pearl Harbor Day. I was on the Ham radio for a while and was not able to find very many with Pearl Harbor Day memorial stations. I did talk with a group from the midwest, one from Urbana, IL who was talking with a group there and one in Fresno, CA. I could her all but one of them in the midwest as well as the one in CA. We had a nice chat and exchanged information as usual.
I really do not remember Pearl Harbor Day as I was only 5 and a half years old. My sister said that we went to Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis where hundreds of people had gathered to hear the news which was broadcast on loud speakers. Everyone was concerned as to what was going to happen to the United States of America, under these conditions. We were not that many years from the Great Depression of the 30's and many Americans were just getting back on their feet and now "this". Our father was working in a plant that made lenses for eye glasses. That was quickly converted to lenses for bomb sites and he was not called up in the draft, however many thousands of men joined the Army, Navy or Marines in the day or two following the attack. I do remember that the war really put the country back to work and the economy grew due to the war effort. Really, all I know is what I was told and have read in the years since the attack. I think that most will agree that the World changed on that day and will never be the same.

Today, it was cool and cloudy with the promise of some showers later in the day. Evelyn went to Hondo to go shopping to make preparation for our leaving here on Wednesday. That is, if it is not raining or too windy. We have the motor home pretty well ready to travel. However, after the first few turns and stops you find things that you did not stow properly and all you have to do is pick them up off of the floor and put them away.
The photos are of our beautiful Yellow Rose of Texas. It has been loaded with blooms and still has a lot of buds just ready to pop, however, the 21 degree morning about did it in. We did cover it up but that was really cool that night and I am not sure it will survive. The blossoms look pretty sad. We left copies of the flower for the owners of the lot where we are staying.
I played bridge this afternoon. Not really good cards, a couple of good hands but that was all. Afterwards we had a special event, ice cream tin roof sundays. I had never had one of these, however, it is ice cream with chocolate syrup with peanuts on top. Quite tasty, I must say. Not much appetite for supper with ice cream at 4pm. Probably have some pop corn and hit the sack and let the digestive system rest.

With the cold front moving across the country, it appears to be cold everywhere with snow in areas not used to snow. Maybe it will be warmer in Mesa when we get there. Not supposed to be in Yuma until after the first of the year. It should be warmer down there, if anywhere.
We had a couple here for the weekend and they were asking about problems crossing the Mexican border. They had heard that many RV had been stopped and searched. One member stated that they had been down the Baja without any problems. This couple had been going to Mexico for over 20 years without much trouble. They really looked old, I mean in their 80's or more, but so it is with the life on the road. They were traveling in a class C that looked to be about 25' or so and fairly new. Good for them.
One of the members, a single gal, lives in a Park Model and has a big 1 ton truck and a 5th wheel. She said she was tired of dragging the big 5th wheel around and was looking for a smaller motor home, maybe a class C. I find it hard to visualize a single gal, probably near 65 or so with a big 5'er dragging it around. But, everyone to their own desires.

Sunday the 29th we got a look at all of the Christmas decorations in the clubhouse. they really did a nice job of deorating, even a Menorra in blue. Ice cream at 4pm and I decided to have sherbert, much better than that rich ice cream. Monday, we have been here for a month, cloudy, rainy and cool, supposed to be much cooler in the next few days.
Tuesday, it rained most of the night and of course it was off to San Antonio for another Dr. appointment. He said that if we were comfortable with the current method of treatment then we could stay with it and not be concerned with any surgery at this point. So be it. We stopped in Hondo at Mc Bee's and picked up 1.5 lbs of brisket, 4 buns and all the fixins for 4 sandwiches and came back to the clubhouse to eat with the Drews. mmm good and quite tasty. Later we played Mexican Train with a set of dominos from the club house, double 15. Never do that again, the dots are smaller and too hard to count. Will take ours from now on.
Wednesday still cool and rainy supposed to have freezing temps and snow in the hill country, just north of us about 30 miles or so. Talking about snow in San Antonio and Houston.
Thursday and Friday were cool with a low of 21 in Hondo. We covered up the yellow rose bush in the yard but not sure we saved it as we had a hard freeze and heavy frost on everything.
Saturday we did not do much, worked around the RV, making preparations for leaving in a few days.
Sunday, it was cloudy early but cleared off and the sun has been shining all day. It will be ice cream at 6pm and maybe Mexican Train later, we will see about that.

Wednesday was spent getting things ready for Thanksgiving. I fixed the cucumbers and onions and got them to soaking, the green beans were on for a couple of hours with some salt pork and our secret ingredient and Evelyn made a cranberry jello dish that was also very good.
Thursday we went to the clubhouse about 1pm to help get things ready to serve, etc. at 1:30 people were gathering to eat some appetizers that different people had fixed. Some interesting items, one was a shrimp wrapped in bacon and then broiled, quite tasty, if I must say so. I am not really big on shrimp unless it is in a cocktail with sauce. The park furnished the turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce, rolls and butter. Most everyone furnished a dish of some type from dressing to deserts and all in between. The green beans were a hit as was the cucumbers and onions. In fact, ours was the only green beans there. Everything was delicious, at least what I ate. I did not get to sample a lot of in and unlike last year at Dreamcatcher RV park in Deming, NM, we did not bring it all back on Friday to eat again. They do things different at the Lone Star Corral here in Hondo, TX, but that is alright, everyone has their preferences and that is the way they do it here. Maybe we can try another park next year and see how they do it. In the afternoon, it was rest and try to digest all of the good food that was consumed.
Friday we did not do a lot other than going with Mike to the local Ford dealer to remove a scooter lift from a van that a lady here in the park had traded in on another car. That only took about an hour, a really simple job.
Today we cleaned house and did some research. We picked up Mike and Carlin and went to Church's Chicken for supper and then back home. Nothing special planned for tomorrow. So it goes at the Lone Star Corral in Hondo, TX.

Friday not a lot going on. I played bridge in the evening. Saturday the Fiddlers came. A group of Country & Western entertainers that come each year and play and sing for us. They started at 11am and played until 4:30 with about 45 minutes out for a pitch in luncheon. Some very good instrumentalists and singers, some singers not so good but they did their best. Lots of familiar songs and some that were really funny, like "I got a Possom in my headlights" and others. We all enjoyed it very much.
They finally got the new router installed so the wi-fi is working most of the time, at least it is usable.
Sunday was quiet with the Ice Cream Social at 4pm and them Mexican Train later.
Monday some engraving that needed to be out and back to customer by Wednesday, so sent it overnight, a bit expensive, but it did the job. I played bridge at 6pm and had a few good cards, but not many.
Today, Tuesday we went to the grocery to get things for Thanksgiving dinner and then went back to Hondo in the evening with the Drew's to DQ for Taco salads and some ice cream. Back to the Lone Star Corral for the evening. The weather has been a bit cool at nights but generally warm and sunny during the day. Not too bad for the end of November.

Sunday was literally a day of rest after the big flea market. Not a lot going on other than the ice cream social at 6pm. Monday, I finished up some work after the UPS arrived with some supplies and we took it all to Hondo to the PO. I got a few orders for name tags at the flea market so I got them ready for Happy Hour at 4pm.
Tuesday, not a lot going on. We did go to Hondo for supper at McBees BBQ. They have a special on Tuesdays of two large brisket sandwiches for $5.00, so there are several from the park that go there for BBQ. The Dairy Queen also has a special on Taco Salad and Pizza Hut has a buffet as well. So, for the Escapees, it is eat out on Tuesdays.
Thursday we will pick up the Drews and go to the Hungry Horse Restaurant in Berne, TX for lunch. They really have a nice menu and very good food.
The photos are from a trip down the gulf coast when we were in Rockport, TX. There is a street/road that goes right down the waters edge, some areas they have put in big rocks to keep the road from washing away. The homes are just across the street and have some beautiful views of the Gulf. There are ports of pleasure as well as working boats, fresh fish, shrimp, etc. available all the time along this road. Most of the homes have private fishing piers that go way out in the water. It appears that the water is not very deep until you get quite a ways out.
We drove down to Corpus Christi the first time down and a few days later we drove down and on to Padre Island. The second day the wind was blowing quite hard from the water and the breakers were quite high. More on that in a few days.
Next project here at the Lone Star Corral is Thanksgiving dinner. The park will furnish the turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes and a few other goodies for $3.00 per person and everyone will bring their favorite dish to share with all. It should be an interesting time with lots to eat for a few days, I imagine.

Today, Saturday was the big day here at the Lone Star Corral, for the annual flea market. We were down at the club house a little before 8am, setting up our table for engraving. we really did not expect to do very much but did get a couple of interested people, from the outside attenders that may mature into something in the future.
A quite large crowd at 8am buying all kinds of items, from table saws to knic knac items inside that were for sale by the members. There were a lot of consignment items available outside on the porch where we were located. Everything from a 3 piece sectional that sold quite early to an electric lawn mower that did not appear to work. The mower was still there at the close of the sale. We were not here last year but they said there were not nearly as many attendees last year. Probably the economy had a lot to do with it. It was really a very interesting group of people. Many come year after year. I do not know how many years it has been going on, but one member said they had been here for 10 years and it was going on at that time.
Of course, I had to sample the food, so I had a breakfast burrito which was served with salsa and jalapeno peppers. I checked out the salsa first and it was quite hot, so I did not see a need to add the peppers as well. For lunch I had an Italian sausage with peppers and onions which was quite good.
It looked like the sale was a success even though a lot of items did not sell, but they will mostly all go back in the shed for next year. It appeared, that a good time was had by all, members and attendees as well.

Thursday was mostly in setting tables and getting ready to put things out for the annual flea market on Saturday. Not a lot of activities planned at the clubhouse due to preparations.
Friday I worked on some engraving to go out the first of the week. I joined the bridge group at 1pm for some interesting bridge games. Back at the clubhouse at 4 for Social hour and final preparations for the flea market. There is surely a lot of stuff for sale. I do not know where it all came from, however they say it is mostly items from the members that they have for sale once each year. They say that people come for miles around to this flea market as it is always the same Saturday and is well advertised.
I will set up a table and sell nametags but will not do them on site as it is against the rules for a non member of the association. I will take orders and then deliver them at a later date.
Our top photo is of the beautiful Court House in Hondo, TX. The other photos were taken on Veterans Day. One depicting a war scene where the house has been shelled and partially burned. The other is of a group of period aircraft from the WWII era and later conflicts.
Later today, we met with the Drew's and went to Hondo to the BBQ restaurant where the special was all you can eat ribs and catfish. Both were quite good, especially the smoked ribs.
Off to bed early for an early morning date at the flea market that opens at 8am, for members a little earlier.

Monday opened with cloudy skies and a few more showers before clearing in the afternoon. Happy hour, munchie Monday, was interesting with some good treats provided by various people. Tuesday morning it was back to San Antonio for a Dr. appointment. We spent most of the day going to the bank, drug store, etc. We wanted to go to Rudy's BBQ but could not fine one close, so we decided to stop at Bill Miller's BBQ. We had seen several on our various routes, but could not spot one on the way home, so we decided we would stop at McBee's BBQ in Hondo. It was nearing 7pm and they close at 6, so we settled for a Taco salad at DQ, on special every Tuesday. We returned home about 8:30 and quickly got things sorted out and off to bed.
Wednesday, Veteran's Day, the sun was up early for the start of a beautiful day. We had a very nice program honoring the Veterans around the world and those that were present at the Lone Star Corral.
There were several displays, one of many model planes from the WWII era and later wars. We had a big cake and the local High School band from D'Hanis, TX was present and gave a very nice musical concert. The program lasted from 9:30 until nearly 12:30. Lots of singing
and telling of stories from the wars. at 11:00am we had a fly over of 3 single engine military planes from the local air field. It was all very impressive and explained to the high school band members the meaning of it all. I think all in all they got a good history lesson from it all and they were encouraged to find something to do for their country, either in the service or other endeavour to benefit mankind and to support our way of life of freedom.

We played Mexican Train this evening and had an enjoyable evening. Tomorrow, it is get ready for a large Flea Market that will be held on Saturday. I understand it is a really big doings and brings in lost of people and money as well.

Court house in Beeville, TX.

Friday the 30th we headed north west toward our next destination, Hondo, TX. South on 35 to 188 and west to US181. Not really a lot to see in this area, however we did see some cattle and some hay being cut and baled. At Skidmore, TX we picked up 4 lane divided into the town of Beeville where we found another picturesque Court house.
There are a lot of counties in Texas so you have a chance to see many court houses in the county seat towns.
Across US59 to the town of George West. A really nice sign at the edge of town, however not all of the towns are looking like they are doing very well. Many of the towns have closed businesses and many of the large car dealerships are closed. This should leave business for many of the smaller mechanical shops and as the cars get older they will require more maintenance to stay on the road. I know, I am driving one of those. The van is 14 years old and with nearly 140k miles it requires a little work to keep it on the go, but it has been doing well, considering it gets towed all over the country.
We took US181 out of George West to Three Rivers and to Choke Canyon Reservoir. Evelyn had conversed with the people at the camp ground about workcamping. This is a huge reservoir with actually two camping areas. One at the east end and one at the west. We passed the entrance on the east and went to the larger one on the west. It is a nice campground with a boat ramp and lots of shelters for tenting and picnicking. We then headed on north to Pleasanton. After spending the night, we headed west to Jordanton
and to 173 which took us north west and into Hondo, TX.
There was talk of gas getting higher, so we stopped at the WalMart and filled the motor home and the van before heading west on US90, the 9 miles to the Lone Star Corral and our home for the month of November. We missed the Halloween social hour at the clubhouse, so did not get to see all of those that dressed up. We did, however make the Sunday social (ice cream) hour. There we got to see a lot of old friends from last year, meet some new ones and also a chance to visit with the Drew's who came in a day of two before we did. They will be here for the winter as workcampers.
The rest of the week was spent getting some things sorted out and settled in. We are in space #1, next to the manager. They said they would put us here so they could keep an eye on us. Not sure what they are looking for, but I really do not expect much to be said one way or the other. We have done a little engraving for the locals and since their wi-fi has been down, we have to drive to Hondo to the library to get our e-mails, etc. Nothing as far as service on the AT&T air card and the signal is a little weak on the cel phones.
However, this morning, I brought up the computer after having plugged in the air card and hooking up the amplifier and it came right up. Only one bar of signal, but the speed is good and we have spent most of the day reading, deleting, and the normal things you do when you have a good connection.
Saturday evening we went out with the Drew's to Pizza Hut and had a couple of very good Pizzas, a vegy supreme and a peperoni, and a nice visit.
This morning it was partly cloudy and about 10am it got dark and started raining. It has rained off an on most of the day with some much needed moisture. They have been cutting and baling hay in this area. Closer to Hondo we saw a field that had just been harvested of cabbage. We did not see any last year in October, so maybe this is the first year in the fields we could see, not really sure.
We will attend the Social hour at 4 and have some more ice cream and visit some more. Not much TV in this area, so we have it hard to keep up with all of the news.

Here are the photos that go with the post of 10/29/2009

These are some of the photos of our trip south to Corpus Christie. There are really some beautiful homes
that are either on the water or across the street from the Gulf. Many of the areas they have dredged out the canals and filled enough to build nice homes on them. They all have access to the water, either the Gulf or the bay. There are lots of fishing boats all along the shore. Many need some repair, but still to be operating as they always did.
Wednesday, we went to the Post Office with some work that needed to be mailed. We spent most of the afternoon working on a job that had come in. There is a BBQ place just across the road from our RV park and we have been waiting for it to open. They are only open, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We have been hungry for some BBQ Brisket ever since we left Texas last year. When you leave the state of Texas, there is no more BBQ for miles. You will occasionally find a place that has BBQ, but generally it is pork, at least in the south and east. Very little in New Mexico, as well as Arizona. I guess they either do not know how to cook it or people just do not ask for it.
Thursday, we went back to the Post Office and mailed our work and headed on South toward Mustang Island and the Gulf to see what was going on. Since the wind had changed and was out of the south east and quite strong the Gulf was really rolling. Huge waves and breakers with water way up on the beaches, much farther than a couple of days before. We traveled on south, down
the coast to Padre Island. When we entered the park the park attendant stated that we should be aware of the Red Tide. This is an alga that grows in the water and when it blooms causes the water to look red. It produces a toxin that can affect the central nervous system of fish, birds and mammals. It can cause irritation and redness to your skin and eyes and if noticed you should get out of the water and shower with clean water.
It can also cause breathing symptoms, which I noticed as soon as we got close to the coast as the wind was blowing strongly from the water. We continued the trip but did not get out of the van and used the ac all the time to prevent the contamination from entering the vehicle. Red tide blooms may last for days, weeks or months and can change daily with the wind conditions. This is a condition that has existed for centuries, they believe and also occur all around the world.
We returned back to Rock Port on another road and as usual, we saw some different things. It appears that most of this area is just waste land that can not sustain a crop, other that grass. Between here and Corpus Christie we only saw one field with cattle in it. There appears to be areas of water all around and the only way they can make it usable is to dredge it up, making water ways and using the fill for building. As this would be an expensive operation, there was not much going on and there were several homes for sale, many on very nice lots. We saw signs of Condos for sale, some repossessions and some complexes that were for sale that had been repossessed. However, this time of year, things seem to be going pretty good as the Snow Birds are in town and things should be alright, at least until spring. We saw lots of RV's coming in headed for their favorite winter spot.
At Padre Island National Sea Shore there is camping right on the water at Malaquite Campground. The cost is $4.00/night(with Golden Access Pass) with a max of 14 days and 48 hours out and a maximum of 56 days/year. There are no hookups but there is a dump station at the entrance to the area. I imagine that it could get really cool around the first of the year when the wind is blowing off the water. Too cold for me to even think about staying there, even at a good price.

Friday we set up for the hamfest in a very nice facility the Ardmore Convention Center. It was a very interesting design with mobiles in the foyer. The photos are of the building and the mobiles that really
reflected beautiful colors with the sun shining on them. The public was allowed in at 5pm until 8pm and we did a fair amount of business. Saturday the public was in at 8am and the prize drawing was at noon and at that time the hamfest was over. We were fairly busy all morning and did pretty good, considering the time we had to work.
The photos are of the building outside and inside the foyer. Also in the foyer was a very nice concession stand with a nice variety of fast foods and drinks.
We got away about 3pm and headed for a campground close by for the evening. We did not want to get involved in driving through Ft. Worth in the late afternoon and evening as it is quite a ways from Ardmore,
OK to the outer portion of Ft. Worth. Sunday morning we got away about 9:30 and headed south down I35, traffic was not too bad, but more than I really like to deal with. We were headed for Waco and US77 that would take us on toward our destination of Rock Port, TX. We spent the night at Rock Dale, TX. It had been cloudy all afternoon and Sunday night it started raining and rained hard all night. I do not really like to drive in the rain but it did not let up and we needed to get to Rock Port Monday afternoon, so we trudged on in the rain, however the wind had changed and was from the northwest, so it was pretty much a tail wind which is always good. Sunday we had a head wind all day which made it difficult. We arrived at our campground a little after 5 and finally found our camping space and it was under water, so we chose another one that was up on a hill. Evelyn unhooked the van and hooked up the utilities but the ac would not work. It checked alright but nothing in the coach. We tried to start the generator and it would not start. We had driven in rain all day and it was soaked. I finally got it started and after a few minutes it dried out enough to stay running and finally connecting with the electrical system. It had quit raining by this time and we were set for the night and we would see what things looked like in the morning.
Monday morning the sun was out and things looked a lot better. We moved to a lower spot and the electric checked alright and when it was connected to the motor home, all worked as it should. We did some engraving and got it ready to mail and headed south toward Fulton, TX and then on south toward Corpus Christie. We crossed the bay bridge and headed north into Padre Island and then on to Mustang Island and then on to the free ferry and back to the mainland. I will have other photos of this trip tomorrow.