February 2009 - Bridge Coast to Coast Saga

February 1, 2009
What a beautiful day! It was 66 when I headed out for my walk this morning and that meant for a nice, long one. We lazed around the house, reading and enjoying the nice day.

Later in the afternoon, we headed to Hair and Judy's house to meet up before the Super Bowl party at Jerry and Judy's house. We picked up one of Judy's paintings titled "The Whee Part" Click Here to see The Whee Part. It's a little big for our house, but I think we can find a good spot for it.

Jerry and Judy welcomed about 15 couples for the party and there were lot's of really good eats. The game was pretty exciting and the Pittsburgh Steelers ended up winning over the Arizona Cardinals in the last minute of the game. Mike won $25 in one of the pools, so we ended up $5 ahead of our investment. Several of the women that weren't particularly interested in football played a couple of games of Farkel.

February 2 - 8, 2009
Monday, February 2. After a cool start to the day, it warmed up and turned out quite nice. I was busy, busy, scrubbing and cleaning. I started by taking things off the wall to make room for our newest piece of art. There was only one place that it would fit and it is a bit large for this small space, but we both really like it there. I'm glad I kept the old picture that came with the motor home because it had a very nice picture hanger that prevents the picture from swinging side to side as you go down the road. I also removed a lot of odds and ends that we had starting tacking on the walls. It really reduced the clutter and looks much better. After that project was completed, I started scrubbing the woodwork, that lead to defrosting the freezer. By the time I was done with that, it was much nicer outside, so I moved on to washing the windows outside. The windows need washing every few days.

I had some time left over to relax and enjoy the outdoors and even to take another walk on the beach.

Tuesday, February 3. Over coffee this morning, we decided that we had better wash the motorhome and Jeep today (yes, I just washed the windows yesterday). Also we learned this morning that Pat has a made a video and put it on YouTube. To see his video, go to YouTube and do a search for "lanyard knots I've learned from youtube" by f60w.

Before starting that project, I headed to the grocery store in Aransas Pass. As I was leaving the park, I spotted Stanya (our neighbor) walking along the street with her backpack on. Knowing that she walks to the grocery store, I stopped and asked if she needed me to pick anything up for her. She was so excited and thankful that I'd stopped, she asked if she could ride with me. She had a long list of groceries to buy and was trying to figure out how she was going to get them all in her backpack. We filled up the back seat of the Jeep and headed back across the ferry to Port A.

It was a beautiful afternoon for washing the vehicles and it went quickly. Naturally, we had to stop to chat with folks in the park whenever someone walked by. Lots of people were cleaning cars, rigs, and motorcycles today.

At 4:00, we headed over to the clubhouse for our Spanish class. Today, we learned the words for items in a picture; house, roof, trees, flowers, streets, sky, church, window, door, etc. We then took turns describing what was in the picture. To wrap things up, we sang "Cielito Lindo" because we will be performing that song at a Mexican Fiesta in the park on the 28th.

Mike cooked sweet potatoes and chicken on the grill for dinner. Yum! Yum!

Wednesday, February 4. Mark and Renita, Click Here For Their Blog a couple from Wyoming that we met last winter at Watersedge, joined us for lunch this afternoon. A long line at the ferry prevented them from arriving on schedule so our visit was cut short a bit. It was an enjoyable reunion, we had a great lunch, and stimulating conversation. To top it off, we had a nice long walk on the beach.

I got the laundry out of the way, as we have a couple of active days coming up.

Thursday, February 5. It was another nice morning for a walk. I stopped and talked to a couple from Michigan for a while when Frisco showed an interest in meeting their chocolate lab. People are just so friendly around here, it seems that nobody is really a stranger. By 10:00 we had the grill going with 3 racks of ribs, as requested by our guests, Hair and Judy that are bringing along some friends from Wisconsin, Barry and Cindy. It's going to be another nice day.

We sure are lucky to be living such an enjoyable lifestyle. By the time our guests arrived, the ribs were finished cooking, wrapped in foil and put in the refrigerator to wait until dinner time. We packed the car with chairs, beverages, and snacks and headed to the beach. A few hours were spent looking for shells, attempting to fly kites (not enough wind), walking the beach, gabbing, and watching the huge ships going through the channel that is about 2 miles north of where we were. After a while, our stomachs reminded us that we had ribs waiting back at the ranch.

Dinner was excellent, the ribs were complimented with Barry's baked beans, Hair's coleslaw, and HEB's cookies. It was great getting to know Barry and Cindy, and we found that we had a quite a bit in common. What a fun afternoon!

After they left, we took our chairs over to Chris' site where he and Tom were enjoying a nice, roaring campfire. We sat around and gabbed for a while, then headed back home.

Friday, February 6. It was a lazy day today, just laying around the house. This evening, we went to the Coastal Bend Parrot Head Club meeting at Kinkades on Padre Island. The club is getting off to a great start, this being the 3rd meeting since the startup and the turnout was great. Our sponsor, Landshark Beer, sent representatives that gave everyone gift packages that included a beer glass, can cozee, opener, a lei, and even a free fillup. A contest was held for the most outrageous shirt and the prize went to Judy, she was wearing a t-shirt under her tropical shirt, that had painted on breasts and she flashed everyone. She also won the $70 50/50 raffle and her husband, Jerry won a door prize.

Saturday, February 7. It was another beautiful morning around here, had a great walk on the beach with Frisco, cleaned up around the house, and took care of Frisco's grooming; brushing and nail trim.

There was a 45 minute wait at the ferry, so we took advantage of the time and had a nice conversation with Ben. On to Rockport where Jerry raced his "Cheesesleds" at the Pickled Pelican Click Here this afternoon, where we cheered him on and supported his efforts. The turnout was a lot greater than when we saw the race in November. He did pretty good in the stock class but didn't win. After the race, we went with him and Judy to the Moondog for a burger, a recent craving of mine that just had to be satisfied, and it did the job. I can't believe I ate the whole thing.

February 9 - 15, 2009
Tuesday, February 10. I don't know where yesterday went, it just kind of passed. Today, I have much more to write about. The "Walk Away The Pounds" DVD that I ordered waaaay back on 1/15 finally arrived yesterday. I started my day by doing the 1 mile walk. Later in the morning, I used the Christmas gift certificate that I got from Mike, a manicure and pedicure at Lovely Nails in Rockport. The couple that own the shop (highly recommended) were very friendly and accommodating and made it a very nice experience.

While there, I met a woman that raced a belt sander in last Saturday's race at the Pickled Pelican, hers was the yellow sander with the tweetie bird (see photo).

After that, I met up with some girlfriends from Big D RV Park; Jan, Sandy, Barbara, and Kathy at the Moon Dog. We had a great time eating and talking and laughing. The time flew way too quickly, it was a great time.

I made a couple of stops on the way home and got back just in time to make it to Spanish class. After that, it was time to get some dinner going, so we made it a joint effort and had burgers, sweet potatoes, and corn.

It was kind of a whirlwind day, and I'm about ready to head for the bedroom to read my book, although I don't expect it will last for long.

Wednesday, February 11. While Frisco and I were walking on the beach this morning, we stopped to talk with Diana (also from the park). We decided to take the dog's back home and do some serious walking and we put in almost 3 miles. Along the way, we found some interesting shells and other odd stuff. The beach was littered today, as the wind was coming out of the southwest last night, gusting at 40+ MPH, and forcing the surf way up on the beach. I was worn out by the time I got back.

We had to wash the motorhome and Jeep again today, because of the high winds last night, they were covered with a layer of salt and sand. By the time we finished those projects, we were both ready for naps. The day turned out to be quite nice.

Thursday, February 12. Whew! A busy, busy day. On our walk this morning, I discovered that Frisco was having a health problem that had been noticed a few days earlier. His behavior was a little strange too, as he wasn't interested in hanging out for long, just wanted to head back home quickly. I made an appointment at the Island Vet for later in the morning.

Off to exercise to the "Walk Away The Pounds" video with some of the ladies in the park. It was well received and we have added another day to the calendar and some of us will walk the beach on the days that we don't use the video.

Back at home, I had a quick bite for breakfast and we packed Frisco off to the vet. They found no parasites or viral infection but decided to treat him for an intestinal infection, just to be safe. $100 later, we were in the car with antibiotics and prescription foods for a few days. The poor guy will get no treats either until the prescription is gone.

The next project for me was laundry and when I got there, the machines were all in use, so I stood and talked until they opened up. While the laundry was going, I cleaned the house.

Mike was working on getting the electrical hookups on the Jeep for towing. He opted for a set of lights that will be installed inside the existing tail light compartment, it will be plugged into the motorhome and the lights will operate from the motorhome light controls. It all sounds confusing to me, but he seems to know what he's doing.

The laundry was done and we were having some lunch when the guys that were replacing our driver's side windshield showed up. When they were tightening the last corner, the new windshield cracked. They ordered a new one and will replace it again as soon as it arrives.

Next on the agenda for the day was to get some groceries, as we are having Sandy and Bill over for lunch tomorrow (Sandy is going to give me the haircut that I am so desperately in need of).

We were invited to Tom and Peggy's for chili and to play Euchre this evening. It was a lot of fun with lots of laughs. I ended up with the best and worst hands of the night. The worst was all 9s and 10s and the best was the final hand dealt in the game; a loner hand of diamonds. Between Peggy and I, we had all of the diamonds.

To top it off, neither of us could get to sleep. I think we both had more activity in the day that we were used to.

Friday, February 13. Diana and I went for a long walk on the beach again this morning and got in close to 3 miles. It feels real good and is giving me a lot more energy. I certainly need it after a poor night's sleep last night.

How many of you have a hair stylist that does house calls? Sandy cut my hair while Mike and Bill gabbed. Then we sat at the picnic table and had a nice lunch, a glass of wine, and some good conversation.

When they left, we stopped at Tom and Peggy's to gab with them and Bruce and Janna from Stillwater, MN. We got on the subject of RV breakdowns and told some and heard some good ones. Bruce and Janna are traveling in a converted Greyhound bus, their story about getting stuck on a small mountain road in Colorado was the best.

Saturday, February 14. Happy Valentine's Day! A short walk on the beach with Frisco and then the 2-mile Walk Away the Pounds workout started the day off.

This afternoon, we went to The Gaff to the belt sander races where we met up with lots of people from the park and also Jerry and Judy, the racers with the Cheesesled. It's a good thing we all went early because we were able to get 2 picnic tables and have some of their delicious pizza before the races got started.

The track is different from that at the Pickled Pelican; it is narrower and shorter (50 feet), the modified sanders are not raced, and nothing is computerized. A line judge at the start and finish call the shots. Yesterday was funny because the line judge at the finish had some extra help, 2 beautiful young girls dressed as if they were headed to the Kentucky Derby, and he seemed to be a bit distracted. There were also a lot of premature starts that encouraged jokes.

It was an afternoon of great pizza, Fat Tire beer, exciting races, joke telling, and lots of laughter. You just can't get much better than that.

Sunday, February 15. A cold front came through again last night, so that made it easy to have a lazy day today. After fixing a good breakfast, we computed, read and loafed. Later in the afternoon we stopped at Bruce and Janna's for a tour of their 1977 Greyhound bus conversion. It really is nice and cozy with a full size stove and refrigerator and bathtub. The floors and woodwork are beautiful and it is nicely decorated with comfy furniture and lots of windows providing great views.

Happy hour provided some excellent conversation and some people were setting up to provide music. It would have been nice to stay but I had to cook dinner as I bought the fresh ingredients on Thursday and still hadn't gotten around to using them. Dinner was Ben and Jill's Mediterranean Pasta.

February 16 - 22, 2009
Monday, February 16. Happy Birthday, Ben!

Just this morning I was saying to Mike that I want to "do something" today. Now, it is 12:30 and I'm sitting down for the 1st time since taking my shower and the day is half gone. The morning was a perfect example of how time can get away from you in an RV park. It started with giving Mike a haircut.

Just when he was ready to get in the shower, it was time to go say farewell to Bruce and Janna and to give them an audience, lend a hand, and see them off. We weren't alone in thinking that way, as a group of 8-10 people gathered around their site. As things progressed, the trailer holding their motorcycles was pushed to the front of the park, then the bus backed out to the front of the park and all of the people followed, snapping pictures along the way. The trailer was hooked up, hugs all around (and two weeks ago, we were all strangers), photos taken, and they were off down the road.

The gathering of people continued to hang around and talk. We started to break up, but were invited for a tour of Bill and Sandy's 40' Monaco motor home, so 8 of us crowded into their rig. It is beautiful and we really weren't that crowded, there was plenty of space for all of us. Now, you wouldn't want to move around a lot, but there was room. Next came the tour of the Bridge's motor home and the group was down to 6 people. Last but not least, we all walked to Pat and Carson's 17' HiLo trailer that is cute as a bug and has all of the comforts that our motor homes have.

Mike is now getting around to his shower and I've just had a bite to eat. Next thing we know, it will be happy hour. A day in the life at the RV park.

Tuesday, February 17. Before we had even decided what we would do today, we had an invite to go to lunch with Hair and Judy and their friends TD and Dawn from Vermont. They stopped by and we headed for the Port Aransas Brewing Company where we tried some of their beers and had a nice lunch and good conversation. I had a drink that I�??ve never tried before; a bock beer served on ice with lime and Tabasco sauce. My 1st reaction was that it was fiery and bitter. Although I do like beer on ice and with lime, I don�??t think I would order that one again, perhaps it was the dark beer that I didn�??t especially like..

Tom and Peggy invited us to join them for some Trivia games at Lovett�??s Bar. We weren�??t aware that this type of thing existed. It is a game where each player is given an electric keyboard, questions appear on a TV screen, you enter your answers and accumulate scores based on your answers. Your scores are accumulated individually, with the bar, and nationally. It was a lot of fun and we would definitely like to do it again.

After a couple of hours of play, we headed back and they joined us for dinner and a lively game of Farkel.

Thursday, February 19. Today was spent with Hair and Judy on the Padre Island National Seashore. We were on the road by 9:00 and after a stop at their house were headed south on Park Road 22. About 8 miles from Padre Island is the entrance to the National Seashore. After entering the park ($10/day or $20/annual pass), the 1st 5 miles is open to 2-wheel drive vehicles. Along that stretch, we saw several tent campers, trailers, and motor homes.

Beyond that, 4-wheel drive vehicles are required and the path is definitely rough and covered with soft sand. It is quite unfortunate that the beach is so littered with trash, much of it was washed up from Hurricane Ike that hit Galveston last year. It is also speculated that much of it comes from the oil and natural gas drilling rigs off the coast or even from Mexico and who knows where else. One is tempted to fill a trash bag but even that would be futile, unless you had lots of people filling lots of trash bags. The beach stretches for 63 miles but we stopped around the 13-15 mile mark, not even going as far as big shell beach that is between the 18-38 mile markers.

The day was quite windy and it was coming out of the north, so we parked the cars so they would block the wind. Even so, everything was coated with sand. An application of sunscreen was an exfoliating experience. The afternoon was spent in great company searching for shells and combing the beach for whatever we could find. Lot of shore birds were scuffling about. A few sand dollars and some beach glass were found.

By 3:00, the tide was getting closer and we had to start back. We were all ready to get home for showers after a great day in the outdoors with great friends.

Friday, February 20. It was a hang around, clean the house, do laundry and wash the car day. This evening, we attended the pot luck at the park and had a taste of lots of good stuff. All in all, a nice day of R and R.

Saturday, February 21. I planned to start the morning off with a good 3-mile workout but the darn DVD wasn't working. I finally determined that it was my DVD and not the TV or player. Darn! After a not very good experience in getting the thing, it doesn't work.

Time got away from us and before we knew it was time to take Frisco to the kennel where he will stay until we return from South Padre Island on Tuesday. They were happy to see him but we always feel guilty leaving him behind.

We packed our bags, had beans and weenies for dinner, and watched the movie, "The Changeling" with Angelina Jolie. It is a story about a single mom in the late 1920's whose son goes missing. The movie is about her experiences in dealing with a corrupt LA police department.

Sunday, February 22. We were on the road by 9:00, headed for South Padre Island to spend the next couple days with my brother Bob, his wife Penny, and Penny�??s parents Phil and Norma. It is a cool morning, 42 degrees and we had the wind at our back on the way down. The trip was uneventful and we arrived there at about 12:30. The first thing we learned was that Phil was terribly ill with flu-like symptoms and Norma had recently gotten over it. Needless to say, they wouldn�??t be joining us for lunch or dinner. We headed for Dirty Al�??s where we all enjoyed our lunch and reuniting with family. After lunch, Bob took us for a tour of the island and the RV parks at the southern tip.

We headed for The Palms Resort, checked in, and dropped our stuff off in the room before heading back to their condo. By around 7:00, we were ready to head for dinner at Padre Island Brewing Company. By the end of the meal, Penny was starting to feel sick, so we dropped them off and headed home.

February 23 - 28.
Monday, February 23. I met up with Bob and Norma for a nice long walk on the beach this morning. It was a little cool but much more comfortable than yesterday. When I got back to the room, Mike was showered and dressed, so he went to get us breakfast while I showered. Penny and her Dad were still sick, so Mike and I decided to buy a couple of face masks from some construction guys at the condo and we entered their condo wearing them. It got some good laughs.

We decided to head for Nuevo Progresso, Mexico and since the others were still not feeling good, it was Mike, Bob, and myself that went. The drive was about 65 miles to the northwest. All of the parking lots on the US side of the border were full. Our first stop as we headed down the main street was for Margaritas. We then went in many of the shops before stopping for a bite to eat. Bob bought some jewelry, Mike got a turquoise ring and some cigars, and I only bought Kahlua and Tequila. By about 5:30 we had hit all of the shops that interested us and were headed for the US border. There was no problem getting through customs, not even a line of people waiting. Back on South Padre Island, we all headed to Mamacita�??s for dinner. Penny and Phil were both feeling much better and were able to join us.

Tuesday, February 24. Bob woke up feeling sick this morning and it is their day to travel home. I sure hope Mike and I are able to fight it off. We drove to Port Isabel to a little restaurant for breakfast. The special was 2 eggs, potato, bacon, and toast for $2.10. What a deal! After breakfast we headed in different directions, us for Port Aransas and them to the airport headed back to KC. I�??m praying that Bob doesn�??t have too miserable a flight.

We picked Frisco up at the kennel and were back home by about 2:30, all of us exhausted. Our Spanish class meets tonight to practice the song that we are performing at the Mexican Fiesta on Saturday. That will be good, as it seems that none of us can carry a tune. Fortunately, a lady in the park has offered to sing with us and accompany us on her guitar. We all sound pretty rough but hopefully a few practice sessions will help.

Wednesday, February 25. After two nights of poor sleep, we both got a perfect night's sleep back home in our own bed. It felt so good to get the rest we need. Frisco was happy to be able to walk the beach this morning and when I was finished walking him, I went with Diane for a long walk. We made it all of the way to the Port Aransas pier, 1.7 miles which meant we walked a total of 3.4 miles by the time we got back. It felt good but we were both ready for it to be over.

It was grooming day for Frisco; ears, nails, teeth, bath, and a good brushing. He sure is good about getting the treatment, I think that getting the treats when getting the treatment really help.

We had the motorhome washed and waxed today. They also took care of lubricating the slide-out and steps, treated the rubber gaskets, and polished it very nicely. It should keep us protected for a few months again. Mike started the engine, pulled in the slide, raised and lowered the jacks, ran the generator, and checked the AC to make sure everything was working. All systems are a go for our departure next week.

Thursday, February 26. Another busy day for me, starting with a 30 minute Walk Away The Pounds workout. When I got back home, I took a quick shower and headed for Rockport for a follow-up on my new hypothyroid medication. The ferry was backed up so I was running about 10 minutes late - not a problem with the clinic, as they were backed up and I still had to wait about 30 minutes. The visit didn't go quite as expected as they neglected to let me know that I was to have blood work done before this appointment. We reviewed my file, had the blood samples taken and will discuss the results over the phone. All is going well with my health and I won't be seeing any doctors until November if nothing comes up between now and then.

By the time I got back home, it was 2:00. Can you believe it can take 4 hours to go to a 30 minute appointment and a short stop at the grocery store? There was also a long wait on the return trip for the ferry. I relaxed a little bit and then we headed to the clubhouse to practice Cielito Lindo.

We had a nice ribeye steak dinner, something we haven't splurged on for quite a while. It was a nice treat.

This evening, we watched the movie, "Seven Pounds" with Will Smith, a story about a man who decides to personally change the lives of seven strangers. It was quite sad but a good movie.

Friday, February 27. We finished the fresh water sanitizing that Mike started yesterday. Now we can feel safe in drinking the water from the holding tank. I always feel uncomfortable when we have been in one place for a long time and the water in the tanks tends to get stagnant. We sure wouldn't want to get sick from bacteria in the water.

Mike's project today was to hook up the lights on the Jeep to make sure it works when being pulled by the motorhome. Tom helped him, with Chris joining in now and then. They had it done in about 3 hours and everything worked as it should when they tested it. Yeah!!!

Just as they finished, Peggy came over with a refreshing drink for us, a Kahlua Banana Colada smoothie - yum, yum!

At our practice session for tomorrow's Fiesta, Bill brought a rock that he found on the beach near the ship channel. After lots of research, he determined that it was a piece of selenite, a rare crystal from the surface of the ocean. That was our geology lesson for the day, quite interesting.
Dinner was fresh tamales from Grandma's Tamales, they are delivered to the park almost daily. They were excellent! After dinner, we headed to Pat and Carson's site to say goodbye, as we didn't want to miss them in the morning.

Saturday, February 28. Here we are, another month gone. another front came through about 6:00 this morning, bringing much cooler temps, high winds, and even some very welcome rain. A bucket that was left outside had about an inch of water in it. The morning was busy, saying goodbye to Bill and Sandy from Mc Henry, IL were headed back home, Pat and Carson from Toronto were headed for Florida before going north again, and Chris with his pooch Goose were headed east on I-10. We will all meet up here again next year.

I exercised until my DVD quit on me again, so we only ended up getting a 20 minute workout in. After such a bad purchase experience, and then a DVD that doesn't work, I got my money refunded from Amazon. They stood behind the transaction although the purchase was from Supermart. It was my 1st bad experience with Amazon and I'm hoping it will be the last.

Right after that, we met at the clubhouse where the men decorated for the Mexican Fiesta and the women worked on cutting and chopping for the dinner. Before dinner we will have a glass of Sangria. The menu includes a main course of Beef Fajitas, Refried Beans, and Spanish Rice, complemented with Cantaloupe stuffed with a red jello, and chips and homemade salsa. The 2nd course is Watermelon and Papaya. Desserts included rum cake, flan, and a creamy, fruity jello. While we were busy doing that, the guitarist, Pat and her husband Bob playing a steel guitar came over for a practice session. It's all coming together and I think it will sound pretty good.

Our dinner was excellent, everyone was stuffed and it was a good time. After dinner, we sang our song and it went off without a hitch. We're now looking forward to taking the class again next year, we will learn another new song and then will have 2 songs to perform.

Created on 02/01/2009 09:12 AM by bridge
Updated on 03/01/2009 09:48 AM by bridge