Catching Up!

Apologies for not writing something here sooner. So, we’ve some catching up to do. So, here goes – wrapping up 2021!

Tornado Warnings & Camping
In May we went up to Oklahoma for a short visit. We picked a weekend with tornado warnings – no, not intentionally. The RV park has an above-ground storm shelter. From our site we could see the shelter, so when the Warning was announced, we just hunkered down in the trailer while we watched to see if/when everyone was headed towards the shelter. As it turns out, no need to shelter, although some of the ‘sideways’ rain managed to find its way into the interior of the trailer. A leak that we have been chasing down ever since. We did get a chance for a rainy day outing, to the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City. What a great site!

Tire Blow-out
On the way home we had another tire blow-out (our 2nd), on I-35 near Hillsboro, TX. It occured in a construction zone with no break-down lane (in fact there were barriers about 3′ from the traffic lane. As a result we elected to drive on the as cars and trucks were passing us at 80 MPH. We drove almost 2 miles on the flat at 15 MPH, all the while assuming the wheel would be ruined. At the end of the construction zone we were able to get completely off the road and safely change the flat tire for the spare, amazingly the wheel was in perfect shape with no apparent damage; however, the spare only had 30# of air pressure, so we had to inflate it before continuing. We got a replacement in the town of Hillsboro and continued on home.

Sue Gets a New Car
We sold the Subaru Forester (for cash). We shopped around for a new car for Sue. We looked at Mercury, Ford, Subaru, and Toyota. We finally settled on Toyota, the Highlander model. The local dealer had only one in stock – the platinum top-of-the-line for which they wanted way too much $$. We did more shopping and found that the Austin dealer had some in stock. By the time we drove to Austin and connected with a salesman, there were two left in stock. We selected one of the two and started the paperwork, but before we could finish we were informed that vehicle had already been committed to another customer who was coming in from out-of-town the next day to pick it up. So, we settled on the only model left in stock. It is a great vehicle, Sue is very happy with it.

ARRL Field Day
For the ham operators out there, Larry did participate in the ARRL Field Day in June. He made a few contacts, but was having trouble with his antenna and as a result didn’t make as many contacts as he would have liked. He has since put up his CrankIR in a more or less permanent installation. Much more reliable service with it. Set for 80M he is able to tune it for 80, 40, 20, and 10M without any mechanical adjustments. Then he tackled WinLink as his next learning endeavor. He was able to send and receive email messages with WinLink reliably, so he is moving on to his next endeavor, which will probably be AllStarLink. He is not at all familiar with that, so he expects to learn a lot!

Pedernales, Enchanted Rock & South Padre
To contiue our annual RV Season, we camped out with our friends, Nestor & Ellen, at Pedernales Falls State Park near Johnson City (TX); home of President Lyndon B. Johnson. On a day trip, Sue, Larry, and Buddy (dog) climbed to the pinacle of Enchanted Rock, no small feat, but a lot of fun.

From Pedernales (pronounces ‘perdinalus’ if you’re a true Texan) we pulled the trailer to the gulf at South Padre Island for a long weekend with the Austin RV group. One evening dinner cruise on the bay, beach time watching several brave souls parachute surfing. Since we were so close to Boca Chica we took a day trip to SpaceX to take a look at the launch and landing pads.

On July 1, 2021, we started our annual long-term RV trip. The first night we stayed at Lake Sweetwater Municipal Park in Sweetwater, TX, home to the annual Rattlesnake Roundup. Electric & water RV spots tucked in amongst old growth mesquite (trees). Fishing at the lake and golfing on the course. $15.00 / night. Now we want to make arrangements to visit Sweetwater during the Rattlesnake Roundup

The next night we stayed another city owned RV park (Lake Rita Blanca) in Dalhart, Texas. Full hookups, $15 / night, 8 spaces, first come – first served. A couple of sleazy semi-permanent outfits, several loose dogs; but, most of the visitors were cowboys affiliated with the nearby rodeo grounds..

On to Puebla KOA, 4131 I-25 N, Pueblo, CO. The pool (outdoors) is small and not heated, but it still felt good on a hot day. They make and deliver Hunt Brothers Pizza to your RV site!

Then to Twin Falls, ID. Twin Falls 93 RV Park. We took a side trip on Monday to see Shoshone Falls (We found out that I’ve always pronounced it wrong: the correct pronunciation is “Show Shown” Falls, not Show Shony Falls). It is an amazing view. We took several pictures, all of which make gread wallpaper and background – I keep changing becauses I can’t decide which one I like best.

From Twin Falls we went to Nampa and stayed with Sue’s brother, Russel, and sister-in-law, Carrie. We had a great visit with them, although it was too short. We talked about RVs, as they were planning to purchase a motor home and start travelling. They own their own business, and can do it from the road so long as they have reliable internet and cell service.

From Nampa we proceeded to Walla Walla, WA, to see Larry’s brother, David, sister-in-law, Prisca, sister, Lois, and brother-in-law, Dean. What a wonderful time we had with them. David is 9 years older than Larry and was grown and gone by the time Larry was graduating from high school. We took advantage of the time with him and Lois to talk about our early lives and how we all got to where we are today. David is retired from the USFS in WA state and Lois is also retired.

In August we again took a short trip to Oklahoma and stopped in Lewisville on the way home to visit with John (who lives in Lewisville and works in Denton, both near Dallas). This time we selected an RV park on Lewisville Lake that is managed by the City of Lewisville. There is no septic (there is a dump station), but all the sites have water and electric service, all for only $10.00 / night (senior discount). It is right on the lake where we see folks fishing, swimming and boating.

One last trip of the season, to Inks Lake State Park in Burnet, TX. However, after we made reservations, John told us that his employer, Peterbilt, was having an Open House at its corporate headquarters where he works in Denton, TX, on the weekend before our Inks Lake trip. So, we went up to Lewisville Lake again, went to the Open House on Saturday, and then on Monday drove back down to Inks Lake. The Open House was a ton of fun! We got to see where John works (dealer training), as well as the assembly line for Peterbilt trucks.

On the way home from Inks Lake we had another tire blow out (our 3rd). This time we found a Discount Tire store and replaced all four trailer tires with tires that are 1 grade higher than recommended. We have also added a TPMS (tire pressure monitoring system) that displays on an iPhone, so we can monitor the tires. So far, so good, but Larry is becoming way to expert at changing trailer tires!

While on our last outing the television in the trailer went haywire. So when we got home we ordered another. A few days later the garage door crumpled (it was the cheapest model that Home Depot carries), so we ordered a new door and opener. A few days after we scheduled the garage door replacement, our clothes dryer quit. August was a very expensive month at our house!

Thanksgiving
Along with Larry’s (ham) friend, Jim, John joined us again for Thanksgiving dinner. John came down on Sunday and stayed through the week. He helped Larry hang Christmas lights, install a 2nd flag pole to be used as an antenna mast, as well as finishing the ‘entry panel’ for Larry’s ham radio antenna cables, and building a target for Larry’s throwing axes.

Christmas
To celebrate our 2nd Christmas in Texas, we hosted a small party. We invited our neighbors to share in fellowship, sliders, and cookies. Nick brought his guitar and led us all in singing Christmas songs to close out the evening (after a successful axe throwing contest). On Christmas Eve went enjoyed a very nice service at our new church home, Calvary Baptist Church of Bastrop.

On the Wednesday between Christmas and New Years Day we went to Fredericksburg (TX) and spent the day window shopping and playing tourist with our friends, Mel & Andrea (of course we had lunch at a German restaurant). We have been invited to spend New Years Eve with Mark and Kathie, our new neighbors across the creek / ditch.

Happy New Year to you all – May 2022 be the best year ever!