Thursday December 25, 2014 Inks Lake state park

Merry Christmas

To All

There are so many things that I am thankful for today. First and foremost is the birth of Jesus our Lord and Savior. I am thankful for my family, my health and well being, all my friends both near and far. 

To repeat a post that I made on Facebook, I am very glad that I am retired from Law Enforcement. Recent events have made a difficult job even more difficult with split-second decisions now being examined over and over. Lives have been lost, property has been destroyed and even more lives and careers ruined, just for doing the job. 

Back to the Christmas season. Below are a couple of pictures of Stella and I playing Santa and Mrs. Claus a few years ago at Rayford Crossing. Fun Times!!

As we near another new year I want to wish everyone a happy, prosperous and safe new year. We are planning to slow down a bit on our summer travels and to spend more time with family. I'll keep you posted on where we'll be. 

So long.

Thursday December 18, 2014-Inks Lake state park

No, I haven't been lost in the woods, but I have managed to stay busy while hosting here at Inks Lake. We have had two weeks of deer hunts that were very successful, with all hunters getting at least one deer. We are now the first week of a two week lull in hunting but when it resumes, we will have kids only hunting. That is always fun for the kids and we enjoy watching them.

On the 7th, Stella and I celebrated our 35th anniversary and went to one of Stella's favorites, Cooper's Barbecue with Bill and Karen. We learned that Coopers is under new ownership but the food is still good and nothing has changed. 

We went out to eat at Mr. Gattis Pizza last night with the other hosts. We enjoy these get-togethers. Although a large group overwhelms many restaurants, the pizza buffet is designed for lots of folks and we all had plenty to eat and had nice visits. I'm sure that we'll all do something again before we leave. Plans are being made for a Christmas Day lunch. Potluck dinners are always sooo good!

Here is a link to The Best Christmas Video that was sent to me. I watched it and liked it and hope you do too.

So long.

Saturday December 6, 2014-Inks Lake state park

We have been enjoying our time here at Inks Lake. Here are a few pictures of the lake across the street from our site. I can't decide which one I like better, so can you help me pick one out?

Of course, this is one of our trailer taken at sunset. 

The deer hunt has gone very well and we had a 100% record for bagging deer by our first 11 hunters, including a 14 year old male and a disabled woman who is paralyzed from the chest down. Her dad helped her aim the rifle but she actually looked through the rifle scope and pulled the trigger. Both of them took two deer, which was their limit.

We had visitors on Thursday night. Our friends Vic and Diana from Minnesota dropped by for a visit while on their way to the Rio Grande Valley. It was good to see them, even if it was for a short time. We were neighbors at two rallies this summer. We will see them again when we get to Mission.

Even though the hunt is over this week, me and the rest of the crew still have to go out and check on the blinds and feed the deer to keep them in the area. At least we don't have to get up early and are generally through with our chores in two or three hours.

Today we went to lunch with our friends and fellow park hosts, Bill and Karen to El Bracio Mexican restaurant in Kingsland. It was good to see them again and we started getting caught up on each others travels. The food was pretty good too. I'm sure that we'll be spending more time with them as well as other hosts that are here. More friends arriving each day. I met a couple today that recently bought a Landmark Key Largo and told them about the Owners forum and the club. I hope they will join, it's such a great resource.

So long.

Sunday November 30, 2014-Inks Lake state park

We arrived on Friday and I started to work on the deer guide crew on Saturday. Most of the physical work on the blinds and the area around them has already been done, so now all that is left is feeding the deer to keep them in the area. We have the same group of guys that we had last year, so we are all experienced and familiar with each other. John, Chip, George and Dan have gotten all the hard prep work done already and all I have to do is re-familiarize myself with the blinds. Easy-peasy! 

This is our site this year. 

This is the site out our front door. Inks Lake is right across the road from us, so we can see the folks go by in their boats and kayaks.

This is our back yard area. As you can see, we back up to another trailer, belonging to our friends John and Becky. They have assembled a nice sitting area around their fire pit and I'm sure that we'll be spending a lot of time there.

This is the only "downside" to this site, being right next to a restroom. So far, this weekend will be the busiest of this season and it hasn't been an issue. Yes there are a lot of folks that use the restrooms and showers, but it hasn't affected us at all and we usually don't even know they're out there. I park my truck so that they can't cut through our site, so all is well. The dogs are watchful and bark some but they are getting used to them.

The rangers will be back tomorrow, so we'll get our park shirts and get lined out. It's gonna be some fun up here!

So long.

Friday November 28, 2014-Moving day-Serendipity Bay Resort to Inks Lake state park, Burnet TX

We woke about 7AM and took our time drinking our coffee and eating some cereal for breakfast before getting started on packing up to move. I guess we got started a little after 8 and made good time. I went down and talked to a Cyclone owner and invited him to join the forum and had a nice little chat with him. 

We pulled out about 9:45, a bit early. We had been shooting for 10, so we are good. There was little traffic on the roads-guess everyone was Black Friday shopping. We made our only stop at the Buccee's in Bastrop. You may remember that it was just last year when we stopped here just a day or two after the store opened, and today it was PACKED! There were more people per square foot in this store than Wal Mart! I've never seen a Buccee's that was as busy as this one today. I can't believe that there were this many people traveling today and figure that they were either taking a break from the mall or doing some of their Christmas shopping here. 

When we got near the park, we passed another trailer heading toward the park. It was our friends and fellow hosts Dan and Bonnie. When I passed them I blew my horn at them and startled Dan. They had been in town (Burnet) getting some new tires for their trailer. They continued on past as we stopped to check in with the park office and we were soon on our way down to our new "home" for the next month. I will take some pictures of the new site tomorrow because I ran out of daylight today. Our site is right next to my friends John and George and when we walk out the front door, we have a great view of the lake. Of course, the park is full due to the holidays, but we'll have that gorgeous view soon when everyone else leaves. 

I have been looking forward to returning here all year and participating in the deer hunts and I will start bright and early tomorrow morning. I'll let you know how that goes. It's been almost a year since I've had to get up to go to work...

So long.

Thursday November 27, 2014-Serendipity Bay Resort

It was cold again this morning but that little electric heater does a wonderful job of taking the chill off and keeping the living room nice and toasty. 

We went over to Henry and Elaine's (Stella's sister and brother-in-law) house about noon and were the first to arrive, but it wasn't long until the place was full of kids, grandkids, nieces and nephews. The younger kids were attracted to the pool table, the guys hovered around the big screen television and the women gathered in the kitchen. It wasn't very long before the Thanksgiving feast was laid out and ready for us. 

Of course, the meal was delicious, with plenty of veggie casseroles, ham and turkey for us. Several pies were also ready in case anyone had room left in their tummies. It was a great time with family.

Soon most of us were back in the living room but not as many were watching the Dallas Cowboys take a shellacking from the Philadelphia Eagles, mainly because we were taking the "required" nap after all that food. 

We got in some nice visiting and catching up time before it was time to go. Ray, Kim and the boys had the longest drive and the rest of us had 12 miles or less. At least most will be together again at Christmas but sadly, we won't be among them. Maybe next year!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING Y'ALL!!

Tuesday November 25, 2014-Serendipity Bay RV Resort

It was cold and cloudy this morning but I went out the first thing in the morning and beat the satellite dish into submission. Actually I just moved it a couple of times and finally took it off the tripod and it finally locked in. It's getting to be a real hassle, guessing what kind of hoops I have to jump through to get the thing to hook up.

We decided to go to the historic Hotel Blessing today and met Stella's niece, her kids and a family friend. When we arrived, Stella's nephew Kevin and his kids were there too for lunch, so it was a mini family reunion. She also saw some others in the restaurant that she knew from town, so she had a very good time. The food as usual, was good and the place was Packed! It is always a treat to go here and extra special to see family and friends. 

The day cleared off and warmed up this afternoon so when we got back home, we sat outside and enjoyed the weather and talking with our neighbors. The park is filling up for the Thanksgiving holiday and we always enjoy watching the others coming in. Some offer a pretty good show, especially when they have to back in. I'll let you know if anyone puts on a particularly good show.

So long.

Monday November 24, 2014-Moving day-Oasis RV Park to Serendipity RV Resort

Remember in the last entry I said something about the weather guessers? Instead of being wrong, they were just late. After we got home from Tyler's party, it started to rain, and rain it did! It rained very hard all night and I suspect we got more than 5" of rain over night. There was water standing everywhere and lots of water in the grass on Sunday morning. 

We watched football and laid around and in the afternoon, we ran errands and bought fuel for our trip tomorrow. The Texans lost but the cowboys won, so I am sad and Stella is happy.

It turned cooler last night and when I went out to start getting things packed away, I was cold in my shorts and tee shirt. I toughed it out because it didn't take very long to get things done on the shady side of the trailer. Stella had done some of her chores last night and we pulled out about 10:30 or right about time. We made the drive to Palacios without stopping and felt fine in doing so. We pulled in here about 1PM and were soon checked in. 

The lady in the office apologized in advance for the wet and muddy conditions in the park, and man, was she every right! We had an escort to our site but I didn't swing out wide enough and got off in the grass and immediately sunk the tire in the mud but the Dodge came to the rescue and pulled it out. It left mud all over the wheel and tires but I washed it off and it looks okay now. I offered to put sand in the rut I made, but the park attendant wouldn't let me and filled it in by himself. 

It didn't take long to get set up after the cleanup but guess what? Yep, you got it, the satellite antenna wouldn't lock in again. It got good signal strength a couple of times but it wouldn't lock. I finally gave up and hooked up the cable and I'll work on the dish some more tomorrow. 

So long.

Saturday November 22, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis

The weather guessers had predicted rain all day today so we didn't plan too much during the day. Of course, they were WRONG AGAIN so we planned nothing for no reason. Oh well...

Today is Tyler's 18th birthday and we have a family tradition that the birthday person gets to choose the restaurant. Tyler chose Red Lobster in Clear Lake. We went over to Kim's house a bit early because I wanted to go to the Academy store to buy some boots to wear when we get to Inks Lake. I will be guiding hunters and will need appropriate footwear. 

All three boys, Tyler, Cameron and Austin, Ray's son, decided to ride with us. The boys were well behaved in the store and it didn't take me very long to pick out a pair of nice boots and we were on our way to the restaurant. When we got there, about 20 minutes early, I checked for Munzees in the area and took the boys with me when I capped the two that were nearby. Tyler and Cam had seen the game played before but they helped me find it, and Austin actually recognized the QR code stickers. I still don't think any of them will become avid Munzers but it was nice having them along.

We had a fine meal and enjoyed the company. I told our waitress about Tylers birthday so they did the normal singing of Happy Birthday to Tyler- which he hated! Kim had warned me but I did it anyway. After all, you only get one 18th birthday! Tyler doesn't really hate me but he doesn't really like the hoopla of singing to him. He'll get over it!

We went back to their house for birthday cake and him opening his gifts. The cake was very good but I only had a little slice. Fat and diabetic you know...
Family is what it's all about. We try to spend as much time as we can and never have enough. 

So long

Tuesday November 18 thru Friday November 21, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis RV Park

Tuesday Stella and I drove over to Galveston to do some Munzees scattered on the island. It was a beautiful day and we took advantage. We had some coupons for Whataburger, so we ate there for $8.00. What a deal, we do live on a fixed income...

It was a great day to be outside but most of the Munzees could be captured from the truck as we drove down the seawall boulevard and it brought back memories of my great teenage years in Galveston. I may have told you this story, and I apologize if you've heard it. My Dad was the Ford dealer in Galveston. He gave me a brand new 1965 Mustang GT to drive fir the summer after my senior year in high school. I drove that car from about April until I left for college in September and put 19,000 miles on it and never left Galveston island. Remember that was 1965 and gasoline was @.25 per gallon. Good times...

Wednesday was another pretty day, so I took on some maintenance chores on the trailer. I cleaned and vacuumed the front storage on the trailer and removed and rearranged things there. I serviced the Trail Air king pin and touched up some caulking on the trailer and wiped and cleaned dirty areas on the outside. No washing of trailers is allowed here, as is the rule in most of the parks that we stay in. I plan to get it washed and waxed when we get to the valley in January.

Thursday was a rest day. We did some small chores around here. Stella made some of her firecrackers, fixed her trash can that had been damaged when she closed the slide up on it, bending the sides, started cleaning out the fridge. I took some bad light bulbs out and took them to the parts dept. here. I paid a lot of money for the expensive Starlight LED light bulbs which, have a lifetime guarantee. All that is needed for any Starlight bulb dealer is to have the old (bad) bulbs and they can be exchanged. No receipt is necessary because the company stands behind their product with no questions asked. Great!!

It started raining Thursday and rained all morning on Friday. At least it has warmed up some, to about 67 degrees. Better than several feet or even inches of snow on the ground! 

Tommy and Susan called and invited us to meet them and our Rayford friends Warren and Judy & Jim and Rita at the Top Water Grill restaurant in Bacliff this afternoon. We went over and spent a couple of hours eating a delicious seafood meal and chatting and laughing with our friends. We're leaving on Monday and won't see these folks for a couple of months but we made plans to get together when we return.

So long.

Saturday November 15 thru Monday November 17, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis RV Park

Saturday morning was cold and we just stayed inside out of the weather. We had been invited to our friends Tommy and Susan's house for a steak dinner this afternoon. We arrived a bit early to spend some time with our friends and then had a delicious sirloin steak with all the trimmings including a scrumptious key lime pie. It was a great time spent with out friends. We had to leave a bit early because we still had our grandog Oreo. On the way home we heard from Cam that his team had lost both games today in San Antonio and it was raining there. We made it home before the three dogs destroyed the trailer. Actually they are getting along much better now.

It was still cold on Sunday morning so I stayed inside and got caught up with my car and truck shows that come on on Sunday mornings. During that time we got a call from Kim, telling us that they are on their way back home from San Antonio because the rest of the tournament was rained out. They were here a little after noon to pick up Oreo, who was glad to see her Momma. Cameron decided to stay here and watch the football game with us. He only ate twice in the four hours that he stayed here, but remember he's a big ol' growing boy. We took him home and after dropping him off, we went by Baskin Robbins to see Tyler, who was working. Stella gave me a little bit of her ice cream cone before we left. I think our dogs were glad that Oreo was gone.

Monday we scheduled some maintenance to be done on the trailer, repacking the wheel bearings and checking the suspension. We had to slide in the living room slides so the tech could get to the wheels, so after getting everything ready, we left before 8AM so they could get an early start. We needed to go to the grocery store, so we went to the HEB store and then to Sam's club. While there I got a call from the park. telling me that they needed to bring the trailer into the shop because it was too muddy in our site, so we went back home and dropped off our groceries and prepared the trailer to be moved. We went over to Kim's house because Stella had been asked to fix her goulash by the boys. Kim had stayed home to "work from home" today and when we got there we learned that Ray had stayed home too because he wasn't feeling well. Stella started cooking and we got a call that the trailer was ready, so we went home to open everything back up and turn the heater on. When everything was back in order, we went back to Kim's house to eat. By the time we got there, the boys had already eaten (couldn't wait!) so we went ahead and ate our meals with Kim and Ray before coming back home. The doggies were glad to get their house back and we were pretty glad to have everything back in place again, but at least we're ready for more traveling in the spring. Just a few more things to do and it's "On the Road Again"...

So long.

Friday November 14, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis RV Park

It had turned cold down here! It has been in the upper 30's or low 40's the last two mornings and I am already tired of winter weather. We've got a long way to go before spring arrives...

We had the chance to go to the varsity playoff football game this evening at the historic Rice stadium in Houston. Cameron played well enough on the freshman team to be offered a chance to suit up and possibly play in the playoff game and of course Tyler plays in the marching band so we will get to see him too. There was no guarantee that Cam would actually get to play but it was a big honor for him to be invited. Of course he didn't play but it was still exciting to see him on the sidelines. They got beat by a score of 33-7 but the band played and performed well. Another plus for us was that Kim and Ray drove. Actually Ray drove and Kim and her Mom got to spend some time together in the back seat.

Cam is playing in another baseball tournament in San Antonio this weekend, so they will be leaving tomorrow morning, so we picked up their dog Oreo (our grandog) for the weekend. Tramp and Cassie didn't like it very much when we brought this stranger into their space, but they soon got over it and now get along just fine. We'll see how they do over the entire weekend. I'll let you know.

So long.

Wednesday November 12 2014-Moving day-Rayford Crossing RV Resort to Ron Hoover Oasis

I went to coffee with the guys for the last time for awhile. It was a good thing that I brought coffee with me because the pot there was empty. I still had a good time with my friends but it's time to move on back to the Oasis. 

I went back home and started packing up. We aren't in a big hurry this morning because we only have about 50 miles to go. Someone came by to tell me goodbye and said that traffic was stopped on the Gulf Frwy. because of an accident, so when we pulled out, around 10, we decided to go around on the Beltway to avoid the traffic jam. Of course, when we got on the Beltway I turned the radio to a local channel and they said nothing about a traffic backup, so we spent the money on the toll road needlessly, but we got to see everything that has changed since we were last on it. It was an uneventful trip and before we knew it, we were pulling back into the Oasis and our old site here. I held my breath after setting the satellite antenna up, but after one small move, it hooked up. We did notice some problems with reception when the wind picked up and blew some tree limbs that interfered with the picture but it's all straightened out now. It was good to be back here even if it is only for a couple of weeks.

So long.

Monday and Tuesday, November 10 & 11, 2014-Rayford Crossing RV Resort

I was up early as usual, and went down for men's coffee that is offered every morning in the Lone Star room. there were probably 12 guys there including several that I didn't recognize. It made me feel good to have the reception that I got, but I knew just about everyone in the room by name. It felt good to be back.

We didn't do too much else on Monday, but did decide to extend our stay here until Monday to go to the Veteran's Day party tomorrow. Ted and Donna said they had been invited and would come over if we stayed. We did sit outside in the beautiful weather and talked to many people that we know that are still staying here. Again it was nice to be back.

Tuesday morning began with more coffee with the guys. We were staying here when the morning coffee began. I would come down about 6 and start the coffee and the guys would start coming in around 7-7:30. over time things changed. We got a timer to start the coffee automatically so I, or someone else, didn't have to come in an hour early to crank it up but the guys kept coming in earlier and earlier and I learned that several of them are here around 5:30. I guess I'm not the only old man that can't sleep late. At any rate, I came down about 7 and barely got a second cup. The guys still know EVERYTHING that goes on in the park and have worked out solutions to most of the problems of the world.

We went to the Veteran's Day party in the afternoon. The park provided hot dogs and hamburgers and we all brought side dishes and desserts and as usual, it was delicious. I made the rounds, talking to new people at the park and speaking to the many old friends that I hadn't caught up with yet. We had a very nice time at the party and I am starting to realize that we miss this place and will return someday. 

So long.

Sunday November 9, 2014-Moving Day-Winstar Casino to Rayford Crossing RV Resort, Spring Texas

We were up pretty early today to begin packing for the move down to Rayford Crossing. We did pretty well and pulled out, right on schedule, at 9:30. We had to say goodbye to our friends for another winter season, but I know that we'll see some of them again soon.

We made very good time through Dallas and made our one and only rest stop at the rest area near Corsicana TX. It was a nice long stop and I capped several Munzees and we both ate our sandwiches. 

Rested up, we continued to make good time to Spring. Traffic started picking up around Conroe and I noticed a lot of fast drivers, darting from lane to lane, typical of the Houston area drivers. When we reached the Woodlands, we noticed that south bound traffic was on the feeder road, not the freeway. We finally reached the big construction area at FM 242, where a contractor has diverted traffic to the feeder to work on a traffic flyover on the south bound side. We were not affected, but I listened to some mad truckers that had been sitting for an hour or so and not moving. Glad it was them and not us...

Remember all the problems with the Satellite dish? Keep in mind that it worked fine in Oklahoma and after a couple of small location changes here, it worked fine again. Can't figure that crazy thing out, but it's working, and that's all that counts.

Almost as soon as we were set up, friends started coming by. We had visits from Pete and Jean and Warren and Judy, all welcoming us back. We had made arrangements to meet Ted and Donna at the Sweet Tomato restaurant, one of my favorites in the area. After a great meal we sat and chatted with them for over an hour before returning back home. Should be a good couple of days.

So long.

Saturday November 8, 2014-Winstar Casino, Thackerville OK

Another update of events that have already occurred. 

The Oklahoma rally went very well. We met several new people and caught up with several old friends that we seldom see. It was especially good to see old friend Bob Curry, who lost his wife about a year ago. He has a new friend named Ellie who now travels with him. She is a nice lady but we didn't get to spend a lot of time with them this week.

 The Oklahoma chapter seems to attract other brand coaches because the Chapter Leaders are also in a very active Good Sam chapter in Oklahoma, so many of their GS friends like to come with them to the Heartland rallies. This will really come into play because Larry and Donna stepped down at this rally and Rex and Stacy accepted their position and they are not GS members. 

About 20 of us went over to the Casino on Thursday morning to take advantage of the free breakfast there for seniors. It was nice to get together and the breakfast was good. Best of all, the price was right!

At least at this Oklahoma rally I didn't have any major problems that I needed help with from my friends like I did at the spring rally in Durant. Life is good!

Saturday we drove over to Denton to the Camping World store there with our "traveling partners" Dave and Nancy. There were a few items that we had to buy, and after shopping all over the store we all had what we needed. We left to meet the rest of the rally group at Babe's restaurant in Sanger. Larry had called ahead and reserved a large room for us, which we filled up. We had a very enjoyable meal and soon returned to the park for a last night of dominoes an visiting with our friends. We will be leaving in the morning.

So ends our rally season for the year. 

So long.

Wednesday November 5, 2014-Moving Day-Ron Hoover Oasis to Winstar Casino RV Park, Thackerville Oklahoma

We are attending the last rally of the season for us, closing out our summer of travels throughout the entire Central Region. It has been a great summer! 

We were up pretty early to get ready to pull out for the 360 mile drive to Thackerville OK for the Oklahoma chapter rally. We pulled out about 9:30, right on time! We breezed through Houston with no problems until we got to Conroe. About 7 this morning, we noticed a serious accident on the freeway around the Hwy. 105 exit that involved a Montgomery County Sheriff's Dept. patrol car. Unbelievably the patrol car was still in the middle of the freeway surrounded by other police vehicles and a couple of Highway Patrol cars when we came through about 11AM. I can't believe that a traffic accident investigation could take this long! I have investigated many accidents and NEVER took that long to complete it. Of course, I am not privy to the details of the accident and everything involved, but I can certainly understand people's feelings when they drive by an accident scene and several uniformed police officers are standing around watching the traffic. I'm sure that there were several of them that were busy at the time, but I didn't see anyone taking information or measuring the scene.
So much for my rant...

Luckily for us it started to rain on us just after the accident scene and it rained until just before we entered Dallas. The only good thing about the rain is that it knocked most of the bugs off the front cap of the trailer. of course, now there is road grime down the sides and rear cap, but maybe the wash fairy will come by and take care of that for me. It could happen.....

We made it here at about 4:30 and immediately saw several friends and visited with a few before we had to get set up.One other note about setting up. As many of you know, I have been having lots of trouble with the Wingard Carryout antenna and getting it to lock in on a satellite. In fact, we have not been using it for the past few days, using the rooftop antenna. It's very hard to go from over 400 stations to about 8, not counting foreign language stations. I was all prepared to send the antenna back for service in Iowa and had in fact suspended my Dish Network account, believing the antenna would be in the shop for an undetermined amount of time. I figured that the money saved from suspending service would pay a part of the antenna repair. When we got here, I decided to throw it out to see what happened, and of course, it locked right in, so I had to call Dish back to unsuspend my account. We now have great service again. We'll see what happens when we return to La Marque. Wish me luck.

So long.

Monday November 3, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis

We slept in this morning because all the running around on the weekend had worn us out. We had a nice relaxing morning. 

Harry and Judy had invited us to eat at a place called Bubba's Shrimp Palace in San Leon. They have specials every night and Monday's is all you can eat shrimp and catfish for $14.99. When you finish your meal, they give you something called Bubba Bucks that are good for $5.00 off your next meal. They are only good for one week, so it guarantees you will return because where can you have all the shrimp you can eat for $9.99? The food was very good and we will return. You will probably read about our meal there next Monday...

We enjoyed our visit with Harry and Judy. The weather was perfect to sit outside on the deck overlooking the small marina and Galveston Bay. The fall is a great time to spend time on the water in this area. 

So long.

Sunday November 2, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis RV Park

This has been a very good week for spending time with and visiting family. It's a shame that we don't have more time to spend down here, but we will make the best of it.

Wednesday we stayed home and I worked on cleaning and straightening up the underbelly storage areas. I pulled everything off the slide tray and began weeding out unneeded items. I have been wanting to make a storage area for the satellite dish when we travel, so I measured it off and made a place for it. Ironically, we had a power failure and somehow it affected the antenna electronics because it will search but won't lock in on the satellite. I got the service manager, David, to look at it with me. He has been to schools on Wingard equipment when he worked for the Dish Network several years ago and after checking it out, he recommended spending the money on sending it back for service. We narrowed it down to the two most expensive parts, the main circuit board and the LNB, neither of which can be returned if they are the wrong parts. I will call them later to check prices and their return policies, but it looks as if it's going to be expensive.

Thursday we went to Cameron's 9th grade football game in Texas City. We missed the first half, due to a change in the game starting time. Cam was only playing on the offense and we were so far away from the action, it was hard to see much in the way of his actual actions. It was good to be there to watch him play at any rate. They won their game 24-13.We'll miss his final game next Wednesday because we will be going to the Oklahoma rally, our last of the year.

Friday we went to the Texas City varsity football game at home. Tyler plays in the marching band and it was fun to watch him having fun with his friends during the game. Again, it was very difficult to actually see Tyler when the band was on the field, mainly because Kim wanted us to sit up high in the stands near them in the nosebleed section, but we did have a perfect view of him when the band was in the stands. Texas City won this game 34-13, which gives them a playoff berth.

Saturday morning we met my brother Phil and his wife Carol at Kelley's Restaurant in League City. This place is one of our favorites and on our "bucket list" of places we want to visit while down here. The restaurant was packed but we finally managed to get a table and get fed. The food was plentiful and just as good as we remembered but the best thing was visiting with Phil and Carol. Their son Matthew recently moved to Wisconsin to live with friends there, so they are now "empty nesters" and it's taking some getting used to for them. I'm sure they'll work things out and maybe they will be able to retire and start enjoying life as we are. I hope so, for their sake.

After finishing breakfast, I explained the game of Munzees to Phil and Carol and then took them out and showed them a new Munzee and then actually deployed it in the parking lot. I don't think they will ever play the game but at least they know the basics now.

After breakfast we went to the South Houston High school baseball diamond where Cameron was playing baseball. He played two games in this tournament but they lost the first game 6-2 but crushed the second team, beating them 13-1. Cam pitched in the second game and did very well. He retired the side, throwing only 13 pitches in the first inning, 20 pitches in the second inning and 15 pitches in the third inning.

During the game, we got a free air show by the U.S. Navy Blue Angels. There was an air show going on at the Ellington Airfield and we were in the flight path. It was fun and exciting to watch them fly by and I was surprised that there was not more confusion on the baseball field when the planes flew over. The boys were not bothered which surprised me. I figured they would just stand around watching the low-flying airplanes but didn't seem distracted at all by the fliers.

Since we had the huge breakfast, we decided not to go out to eat after the game. Cam of course was hungry but he's a 14 year old athlete, and expected to be hungry but they decided to go home too. 

Sunday morning, we had messages from Kim that Cam's game was set for 8 AM in La Porte, about 25 miles away. Believe it or not, we got there just a few minutes after 8. It was cold this morning but we bundled up and by the time the game was over, it had warmed up and turned out to be a nice day.

We went to Mamacita's Mexican restaurant for a Mexican-style breakfast and it was very good. We can't get enough Mexican food and this was very good. Cameron decided to come home with us to watch the football game. He stayed over here all day, watching the football games and napping on the couch. He had an earlier morning than we did, having to be at the ball field at 7:15 to start warming up and stretching. He had a long day of it, and needed some down time and we enjoyed our time alone with him. It gave us a chance to talk to him and just spend time alone...

Man, that guy can EAT! He ate his own meal and some of his Mom's plate. He ate most of an order of tortillas at breakfast and when he got to our house, he had about 1/3 of a cake that Stella had made. When we took him home, he wanted to get a burger so we went to What a Burger to get him a burger and fries. I told Kim that we need to buy a Jack in the Box or What a Burger franchise because it would probably be cheaper! We loved our time with him and stopped by Baskin-Robbins to see Tyler on our way home. 

So long.

Tuesday October 29, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis RV Park

We are in the routine weather pattern of the Texas Gulf coast right now, upper 60's at night and low 80's and mostly clear. The weather guessers usually show a small percentage of rain possible but that seldom happens. 

We were invited to Rayford where our friends Tommy and Susan are staying for some barbecue that Ted and Donna made. We decided to drive up in the early afternoon to see other friends that are at Rayford.

I found another huge cache of high point Munzees in downtown Houston, near the George R. Brown convention center and we stopped off for awhile to cap some. I have become addicted to the high count ones but was only able to grab a few today but will likely return to get the others soon.

I had forgotten how bad the Houston traffic is. It took us abut 45 minutes to go 30 miles, not fun! I'm just glad we weren't towing the trailer.

 We were soon arriving at Rayford and the beautiful sites there. Tommy's motorhome is right up front in one of the deluxe sites. Just gorgeous! We later went to the office where we spoke with Gwen, the owner. It has been awhile since we've stayed here, and we discovered that we miss it and will likely return sometime next year.

 Here's the group, sitting around the table. Our meal was slow-cooked brisket, baked beans and cole slaw, all done by Ted and Donna. Stella made a cake and Susan brought an apple pie with Blue Bell to top off the barbecue dinner. The meal was delicious and it was good to spend time with our friends. Several of our old friends stopped by to visit while we were there. Frank and Nancy, Big John and Mark all came by and visited. Most of the Winter Texans have not arrived yet and sadly, we may not be able to get back up here to visit them.

This is Tommy and Susan's Allegro Bus, a VERY nice rig! If I was to buy a motorhome, this one would be high on my list.

The trip back home was much better. It only took us about an hour and fifteen minutes to get back. I don't much like driving at night any more, but there was little traffic and it made the trip almost enjoyable. Well, maybe not enjoyable, but acceptable...

So long.

Monday October 27, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis RV Park

I left off on Saturday, so I'll begin this entry with Sunday. I hope you're not too confused by my hit and miss reporting.

Sunday was a quiet day for us. We stayed home in the morning and then watched the Houston Texans trounce the Tennessee Titans! It was good to see the home team win one again. 

We talked to Mike and Patrice and agreed to meet them at the Center Buffet in League City for supper. Kim and the boys had been invited but Tyler had to work and Cam had gone off to a friend's house to play football, so they didn't come. It was good to see Mike and Patrice again and to see Patrice getting around again. She suffered a fall a couple of months ago and shattered her kneecap and is recovering well. We hope that she is recovered enough to meet us in the valley in January.

Today I decided to go cap a lot of Munzees that I had found in League City and began at the Kroger store. I followed a huge trail back to the South Shore Harbor Marina and hotel, where I found a gigantic number of high-point count Munzees that had been put out at a geocashing festival that had been held there. In just a few hours, I had capped over 3900 points and captured every one in the area. The few "greenies" that I didn't cap were only 5 points each and I was simply too tired to get them. I can always go back if I need another 13 or 20 points. 

It was a tiring but successful day, but you gotta be a Munzer to understand.

So long.

Saturday October 25, 2014-Ron Hoover Oasis RV Park-LaMarque TX

Okay, thanks for bearing with me. This post should catch me up to the present time.

We made the short trip from the KOA in Montgomery to the Ron Hoover Oasis on Monday morning. We purposely waited to leave to allow the traffic to clear out in Houston, and of course, to say long goodbyes to our friends that had stayed over. The trip was uneventful and only about 90 miles, so we made excellent time. We had a couple of slow-downs in the middle of Houston (go figure) and pulled in here around noon. 

When we arrived, we were put into a different site than had been told. No explanation was given but most of the sites are identical. the only problem with our site is a lack of parking that is due to a bad layout of the site. The utility hookups are fine but the patio is the problem. The concrete blocks used to form the picnic tables and "chairs" are anchored onto the patio, making centering the trailer difficult and parking, either behind or in front of the trailer a challenge.

 Here is a picture of the porch and steps, showing how close the seat and the edge of the table. This park isn't that old, but they obviously did no measuring for the placement of the tables. Of course, everyone doesn't use a porch like we have, but the built-in steps on the trailer will still directly in the way.

Tuesday we ran errands and took care of some shopping but the main thing we got done was to drop Stella's computer off at Best Buy for a tune up. She has been having a lot of trouble with the computer shutting down and freezing up, and she had already bought a service plan. 

We didn't let Kim and the boys know that we were back in town, hoping to surprise them and it worked! We were able to surprise Kim at Cameron's football game in Missouri City Wednesday evening and since Cam couldn't see us in the crowd in the stands, he was surprised too. Tyler was working at Baskin Robbins tonight, so we went there after the game and surprised him too. 
Mission Accomplished!

 I know it's a long shot, but we were way up in the stands, but that is Cameron kicking off to begin the game. Cam plays on both sides of the ball, not including kickoffs. He plays on both the offensive and defensive lines and had a good game. His team crushed the Willowridge team 30-24.

Thursday night we made another trip to Missouri City to see the varsity football team play, and to watch the High School Marching Band with Tyler in it. The Texas City team dominated their opponent but we enjoyed watching Tyler and his antics with his band members.

After the game ended, Tyler and the other seniors in the band lined up and did a dance. Tyler is in the middle of the photo and to his left is his girlfriend Loren. 

Friday we had to make another road trip, to Bellville, where we get our mail and are registered to vote. We wanted to vote in the early voting and while there, we got the truck and trailer license plates renewed. We could have done it online, but we were there anyway, so just another quick stop in the Austin County tax office and we were done! It was refreshing to go to a "country" tax office, with friendly and laid-back people there that actually spoke to us as we waited to vote. Gotta love those friendly Texans.

We met our friends Harry and Judy for supper at the Oriental Buffet and Grill in Texas City. It was good to see them again and to catch up on what has been going on with them. They have been confined to this area for a long time but hope to get back on the road after their oldest grandson Ryan, graduates from high school in June.

Saturday we planned to stay home and rest, but in the morning, I decided to grab some local Munzees around the old closed-down Mall of the Mainland. I managed to grab about 40 of them and then grabbed a few more at the new Buccee's store while I refueled. There are many more in the area that I will get while we are around here, but this was enough for today.

Kim called and said that they are cooking out this afternoon, so we went over and had a delicious meal with them. Ray, Kim's new boyfriend, has made a lot of improvements in their back yard, cleaning up a huge amount of trash, including an old above ground swimming pool. There is still much more work to be done, but he's made a huge difference. He did a great job with the boudain-stuffed pork loins.

It's good to be back...

So long.

Monday October 20, 2014-Lake Conroe KOA-Montgomery TX

This post will cover the travels between Amana and Montgomery TX. and the two chapter rallies we went to.

We left Amana on Monday October 6th along with Dave and Nancy & Mike and Peg. Stella and I were tired but we made it out of the park a bit after 9 on our way to the Peculiar Park Place RV Park in Peculiar MO. You may remember that we stayed there last year and were happy with their accommodations. Since there were three of us traveling together, we were put into some other sites than we had before and there was a noticeable difference in highway noise. Other than that, everything was fine. It was a drive of about 325 miles, further than we normally go, but we're on a mission to make the North Texas rally. Dave and Nancy are the Chapter Leaders, so it would have been bad for all of us to be late to the rally.

Tuesday October 7th, we were up and on the road again about 9 and soon back on the freeway, heading to Checotah Oklahoma, our second overnight stop. We made good time and stopped at a rest area near the Missouri border for lunch. We have started to do this when we travel with others, and I like it. Normally Stella and I would have just eaten while driving but this way, it is more restful and gives us a good break to the drive. Today was another long drive, over 280 miles. We really like this KOA in Checotah. It is quiet and shaded but still gives a decent view of the sky for satellite use. We ate supper in the park restaurant and were very surprised at the quality and low price of the food. We thought about getting breakfast before we leave in the morning but decided not to spend the time, although Mike did go down and get a breakfast biscuit to eat.

Wednesday we didn't leave until about 9:30, but we have a shorter drive of less than 300 miles today. We pulled into the K E Bushman Campground about 2 o'clock and were finally able to rest and relax. A small group of Heartlanders is here, and several of them went out to eat some Chinese but Stella and I stayed home to rest.

We were very glad to see our good friends Dave and Amy, Chapter Leaders of the Wyoming chapter who came down from their home in Cody as well as Louisiana Chapter Leaders Andy and JoAnna, who drove up from southern Louisiana. During the rally we enjoyed a Cajun food meal with them, Forum Moderators Dan and Ann & Terry and Carol at Razzoo's in nearby Tyler. We all had good meals and great conversation with our friends. It was also great to see our friends Bob and Connie again. They had planned to come to the rally at Amana but Connie has been getting treatment for cancer and it interfered with their attendance. 

On Saturday we drove down to Blessing TX for the wedding of Stella's nephew Randy and his long-time girlfriend Sondra. It was a loooong drive down to the coast, and again reinforced our hatred for staying in a motel. It was just too far to bring the trailer for an overnight stay and we have made plans for visiting Aunt Janie when we leave Bullard. The wedding was huge and was held at a huge grass farm that belongs to one of Randy's good friends. He has built a small village of old houses and artifacts that he has gathered over the years. There are two huge oak trees that have been inspected by tree experts that told them that these trees are about the same age as the "Ancient Oaks" in Rockport. The wedding went very well and we all enjoyed a great fajita meal with all the trimmings. 

We made the drive back to Bullard without incident. The only notable thing that happened was when we stopped at a state rest area, I jumped out, as usual, to capture some Munzees and while getting one, I noticed a car drive up with Munzee signs on the sides. The man that got out had on a Munzee shirt and cap, and when he approached me, I remarked that he must be an avid Munzer. He said that he was in fact, the President of Munzee, Rob. He gave me some Munzees before he took off to deploy and cap some for himself. Wow, how cool is this? We continued our drive back to Bullard and enjoyed the last potluck with the remaining rally-goer's staying over. Most of them will be going to Montgomery for the south Texas rally.

We had a bad storm come through, which made us put off leaving. We called the park, the Center RV park and learned that power had been knocked out because of fallen trees. The man there recommended staying where we were because more storms were possible. We left Tuesday for the 80 mile drive to Center TX a visit with Janie. Her husband Gail has been very ill and was not up to meet us for lunch with other relatives that had been planned for noon. We did have a nice lunch visit with my cousins Barbara, Connie and Dot and her husband David. It was good to catch up with all of them and we spent a couple of hours chatting and reminiscing with them. We later went over to Janie's house for supper with her and Gail. We had a great time with them as well, so my family visit was complete.

We got up on Wednesday morning and pulled out for the 160 mile drive to Montgomery. We arrived just ahead of the group that had come from Bullard. We had called Woodlands friends Ted and Donna and went to eat "lupper" with them at the Salt Grass restaurant in Conroe. It was good to catch up with our old friends and to compare notes on our separate travels. They had just returned from a Europe trip and it was fun hearing about their travels. 

We returned to the park- which has not really improved anything since we last stayed here in February of this year- and watched as other old friends arrived. We haven't seen Jim and Sheila at a rally for a long time. Jim has been receiving treatment for cancer for several years and they haven't been able to come to several rallies due to their part-time job, so it was really good to see him (them) again. We had another great time at the rally and are looking forward to some down time in LaMarque, visiting with Kim and the boys. We have traveled almost 1200 miles, attended two rallies and a large wedding and visited with family since leaving Amana, so I hope for some rest.

Sorry for the length of this post.

So long.

Sunday October 5, 2014-Amana Colonies Event Center and RV Park

I know that I (again) have been remiss in updating this blog and I apologize (again). The Amana Regional rally wore me out and then we traveled over a thousand miles in three days to the north Texas rally in Bullard, made a flying trip down to Blessing for Randy's (Stella's nephew) wedding, back to Bullard, then traveled about one hundred miles to visit my Aunt Janie in Center Texas, then drove almost 300 miles to Montgomery to the south Texas rally, which is where we are now. This rally is officially over but there are still 6 trailers here and we plan to have a small potluck tonight.

Below you will see some photos of the Oktoberfest celebration in Amana. This was our first chance to get downtown to enjoy these festivities. We were here last year but didn't have a chance to come into town. I'm not complaining, just telling you what happened. 

This is the main hall in the barn, where the bands play. 

One of the many "oom-pah" bands.

Here are our friends Bernie and Judy dancing to the music. Bernie is German by birth and he usually wears his authentic Leiderhosen that he brought over from Germany. 

 We stood outside in the freezing cold to watch the Oktoberfest parade through downtown Amana.

We had a delicious meal Saturday night at the Ronneberg Restaurant in downtown Amana as part of the rally package. I think that the rally team made a good choice of this restaurant and everyone enjoyed their meals. We came back to the park for our last-night campfires and visits but the weather didn't cooperate. It was cold and rainy and a few had started their fires but no one came out. A sad time because everyone was looking forward to one more night of campfires. 

Sunday morning we had our last furnished meal. It required an extra amount of work to set up tables and chairs because there had been an Oktoberfest race on Saturday and everything had been put away, but we had a great crew of helpers to get things set up so it didn't take very long. We also had a bunch of great helpers to cook and prepare the breakfast. It was sad to see everyone finish eating because many were leaving this morning.

After breakfast, Gary Lippe, father of David, the Iowa Chapter Leader, suffered a TIA, requiring a trip to the hospital. As it turned out, he wasn't admitted and was soon back at his trailer and getting things ready to pull out tomorrow. We ended up taking him out to eat with us at the Ox Yoke Inn in downtown Amana. We hope he recovers well.

We thought the rally went  very well and received many compliments. We must thank all the team members and countless others that pitched in to help pull this thing off. Great job!!

So long.

Tuesday September 30, 2014-Amana Colonies Event Center & RV Park

We woke to cloudy skies and cool, about 60 degree temps here in Amana. It remained cloudy until early in the afternoon when it warmed up and the sun came out for a beautiful afternoon.

Wow, the first day of the pre-rally started out busy for us! A group of us met at the rally hall and got the rally bags stuffed and delivered. It took a few hours, but we got 'er dun. As I delivered the bags, I visited with the folks and answered questions about the area and the upcoming events. 

I came home and relaxed for a bit before we went to eat with a large group of Heartlanders at the Pizza Ranch in Cedar Rapids. If you've never been to a Pizza Ranch, try it out! They serve very good pizza and also have a buffet of chicken and veggies. With our large group we pretty-much filled the restaurant!

We came home and I crashed inside for a bit but later went out to visit at a couple of campfires. It was cold and the fires felt really good and we will have many more during the rest of the week. 

So long.

Sunday and Monday, September 28 & 29, 2014-Big Red Barn RV Park to Eagle Ridge RV Park and Amana Colonies Event Center and RV Park

A group of four, us, Dave and Nancy, Mike and Peg & Larry and Gayle pulled out of the Big Red Barn about 9:30 on Sunday morning, destination the Eagle Ridge RV Park in Bethany Missouri. We made great time on the road, with clear skies and cool temperatures. We made a couple of stops, and at the second one, we all sat around one of the picnic tables eating our lunches. It was quite enjoyable, traveling with these friends and I could get used to this type of traveling. Of course, we had traveled with Dave and Nancy back at the beginning of this summer trip, and it was good to be back with them. 

We had first intended to drive the entire way to Amana, a distance of over 440 miles, but we had second thoughts and when we talked to our friends, they agreed so we broke the trip into two days. The first day is to a distance of about 260 miles and the second will be 190 or so miles, a much better distance.

We pulled into the Eagle Ridge RV Park about 2:30PM, and I think we found a jewel! This is a small park, and they put us under some huge old trees, giving us all shade and a really nice place to sit outside visiting with our friends. The park is very quiet and surrounded by fields. A great place to spend a night.

We were up pretty early the next morning and pulled out about 9. We decided to stop at a Blue Beacon truck and trailer wash in Altoona. Ironically, this place is right across the street from the RV park that we stayed at for the Iowa rally in June.When we got there, there was a long line of semi's waiting to be washed, so we didn't stop but continued on to Amana. 

We stopped at another rest area for lunch and had a nice time, sitting in the shade while eating our sandwiches. This rest area is different than any other that we have stopped in. It is built into the side of a hill, with a large series of steps to get up to the rest rooms. There is also a very long ramp to get to the top, but it's a long way! I capped a couple of Munzees before eating lunch, and we were soon back on the road. 

We pulled into the Amana Colonies park about 2 o'clock and found that they had started putting oil down on the park roads to keep the dust down. It has been hot and dry for a long time here and we had been warned about the dust.

After getting set up, it was then just meeting up with the attendees. There were lots of people that we have been with at other rallies during the summer and others that we have seen at rallies in the past. There are even some newbies that have never been to a rally before. I'm hoping that they have a great first experience. I have been waiting for this rally to start since last November, so now it's just a matter of executing our plans.

So long.

Saturday September 27, 2014-Big Red Barn, Carthage MO

The rally is going very well, with a nice breakfast of coffee and sweet rolls and muffins in the rally hall. It has been nice meet new friends and to see old ones at these rallies. Our friends from Texas, Dave and Nancy & Mike and Peg went with us to see the Carthage Civil War Museum in downtown Carthage. It was a very interesting display of old items and write-ups of battles and many other facets of the war. 

Carthage was the scene of many battles and skirmishes during the war including two "Battles of Carthage". 

This model is of one of the battles of Carthage. It is interesting to note that the armies lined up in the open to fight against each other, with no cover. Of course, in those days there was no armor, and if you were wounded there was a very good chance that you would not survive.

The huge county courthouse, located on the town square. As you can see, there were vegetable and fruit stands along the street. I'm not sure if this is a daily or weekly event, but we did buy some tomatoes. 

It was refreshing to see small town America again, with people not locking their cars and leaving the windows open while they shopped. We grabbed a bite to eat at the Carthage Deli, a downtown square restaurant for 35 years. There was a lot of referrals to Route 66, which ran through Carthage. We drove a small section of the legendary road.

Saturday night was another delicious potluck,and of course, everyone pigged out and ate too much.I am proud of the fact that I haven't gained a ton of weight this summer, going to all the rallies and the potlucks, and have even managed to lose a few pounds, but after this meal, I'm not so sure about how much I've lost. We'll see...

So long.