We had a great day for golf at Cimmaron Country Club in McAllen Monday.  While I was golfing, Kay grocery shopped, and prepared enough food to feed an army.  We’ll eat well this week, not that we ever don’t eat well.  When I returned from golf, Kay was at the pool/spa soaking in the sunshine during an 80° afternoon.  I joined her in the spa for a good soak, and we returned to the RV for an early dinner, finishing up the evening playing bridge with Sharon and Al.  Though we both got decent hands most of the evening, we never really got them at the same time, and our hands didn’t ever complement one another.  Fortunately, neither of us take bridge so seriously that we get upset with bad hands/scores.

Winds Monday night ushered in yet another cold front, and temperatures continued to drop throughout the night; highs on Tuesday were in the low 40s, really cold for the RGV.  When combined with the light rain, it was not fit for any outdoor activities.  We ended up going to an early movie with Al, Sharon, Chuck, and Sue to see Monuments Men.  It was a decent movie with a great story.  Afterward we had late lunch/early dinner at Mr. Gatti’s, a pizza buffet.  The price was right, and it’s a good place to eat once each winter season.  And to complete a busy inclement weather day, we attended a dance at Green Gate Grove RV Resort as guests of Wayne and Bessie Nickerson from Nova Scotia.  Jealous Heart, the band that plays at the Riverside Club on Sunday afternoons, played, and the dance floor was packed.  Kay says we rocked with our Texas Two Steppin’ and Waltzin’—and along with Wayne and Bessie, we were among the youngest couples there.

Kay committed to substitute bowl Wednesday morning, and with temperatures still in the 40s, I walked to the Bentsen Rio Grande State Park.  As I walked to the blind, it became apparent that this was the annual Bicycle and Birding day, with a couple hundred senior cyclists mobilizing for a morning’s ride.  Nevertheless, the Kiskadee blind was empty, and upon entering and closing openings left by former observers, I heard growling and snorting from just beyond the feeding area, and a look through the binoculars revealed at least two Javelinas.  As I settled in, unpacking the camera and 150-500 mm lens, installing the lens shade, focusing binoculars, and getting the coffee out of the backpack, a Javelina came from beyond where the others were bedded down, and ate bird seed that had fallen from the feeder.  It left, and another came to do the same thing.  After it left another came and was joined with a fourth.  Only one appeared to be a juvenile, but who knows?  Prior to the RGV Flood of 2010, there were about a dozen Javelinas in the park and they were unconcerned with humans walking about.  However, the flood displaced them, and the “new” ones came over from Mexico, and are quite skittish, running off at the slightest sound or movement.  After the Javelinas left, a volunteer came by and filled the empty feeders.  It took a few minutes for the birds to appear, and a few came in, though certainly not in the numbers witnessed there the last several weeks.  The voices and other noises from all the cyclists proved too much and I left after only a couple of hours.  Mr. Gatti’s food caught up with me by the time I arrived back at the RV, necessitating I stay close by!  Kay came in after lunch, excited about bowling her best ever, and improving every game.  We both attended the short palapa happy hour and she went to the Margarita night party.  We spent the rest of the quiet evening watching the Americans falter once again in the Olympic events.

Early to bed, early to rise—2:30 AM was wake-up hour Friday morning!  At least the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and Baxter Bulletin were ready to download and read, and the early hour provided time to continue work on The BOOK, an autobiography with emphasis on fly fishing, and including a section on favorite fly patterns and recipes.  A very rough draft of the section on fly patterns and recipes was emailed to John Simank for his use in tying some of the patterns; however, John is an incredible fly tier in his own right, and has created countless patterns which are real “killers”.  He has given permission to include these in The BOOK, so more to come.  We were off early to Kay’sendodontist, and at 8 AM it was 33°, the coldest temperature we’ve ever seen in the RGV.  The root canal took about an hour, and the endodontist believes he saved the tooth—yea!  Kay was really impressed with him, his office, etc.  At my insistence, she went to bed when we arrived back at the RV, and after the numbness wore off, felt fine, even chewing food on that side of her mouth.  We’ll keep our fingers crossed that the tooth’s integrity remains intact for many, many years.  I rushed off to the BPVRV Resort Photography Club meeting, and it was packed.  Joe, a BPVRV Resort resident and retired photojournalist, gave a presentation on telling a story with photographs.  He was very good, and quite demonstrative.  The cool, wet weather persisted through the afternoon, and was not fit for bicycling without follow-up washing, drying, and oiling the bike, a chore not being looked forward to.  Consequently, I did not ride.  Rather, I spent the afternoon downloading Keynote, an Apple application similar to PowerPoint, but not having as much capability.  Because of the different keystrokes, file management, etc., it was a bit cumbersome to learn, but what the heck.  Our entertainment Friday evening was Doug and Daphne, a duo from Nashville.  He played guitar for Barbara Mandrell and she sang backup for the traveling Gaither show.  He was the best instrumentalist we’ve seen in the RGV and she was the best vocalist.  Together, they put on a great show, and we’ll vote for them as “Duo of the Year.”

Still unseasonably cool, no bicycle ride occurred Saturday morning.  Our weather here has been cool then warm, windy then calm, etc., and fitting in a bike ride among other activities and decent weather has proved challenging.  That’s not a big problem except for the Jalapeño 100 coming up on February 22; will the legs and butt be in shape? While I waited on warm temperatures for riding, Kay drove to near Progresso to check on a yard sign (which wasn’t ready), then to Costco, and back to the RV.  Temperatures didn’t moderate until mid-afternoon, and by then it was too late to ride any significant distance.  Happy hour at the palapa was packed as most came out of their RVs after several days of cool/cold weather.  Kay watched the Olympics Saturday evening, while I caught up on sleep!

Derby Day at BPVRV Resort was on Sunday.  After church, we returned to the RV to read the newspaper, and rest briefly before attending and participating in Derby Day.  This is a fun activity, complete with mint juleps, wagers, colorful hats, etc.  Kay was an entrant in the first race, after which she donned her Derby hat.  I assisted in preparing mint juleps, though I’ve never drunk one (and still haven’t)!  If only our kids and grandkids could see us at Derby Day!  Oh well, it’s something to do. 

We enjoyed another good crowd at the palapa, and Kay again watched the Olympics.  (NOTE:  I do not watch the JUDGED events in the Olympics because of the political nature of the judging, and the tremendous bias introduced by some countries or bloc of countries, generally disfavoring the US.  I believe it is unjust and unfair to the amateur athletes who give up a lot of their youth to train and participate.  Just my opinion!)  Here are a few photos of Derby Day.

Wednesday means golf at Meadow Creek, and we were anticipating a great golf day.  However, the forecast never panned out, and it was cool and quite breezy as yet another cold front is moving into the RGV.  Al had a great game, and I enjoyed some good holes and suffered through some bad ones.  A couple of the negatives about playing golf this winter has been either really slow play or the group behind us hitting into us—perhaps there is no happy medium—and both of these get to me psychologically.  Regardless, I am really enjoying playing golf, and Al is a great golfing partner.  Kay agreed to model at the annual Bentsen Palm Village RV Resort Women’s Luncheon and Fashion Show, and the clothes were from one of her favorite shops here in the RGV, Well’s of Westlaco.  The luncheon was well attended, and all the women had a great time.  With cool weather moving in, no one was at the palapa for our afternoon gathering, but the Club House was packed for Margarita Hour.  (Cool weather to us—temps in the 40s— is VERY COLD for locals here in the valley, and since we have been spending parts or all of winters here 5 out of the last 7 years, we find the temps to be cold as well.  This has been the coldest winter anyone down here can remember.  However, we know folks back home and points further north are really cold and we don’t want to rub it in!)  After Margarita Hour, we went to Wallbanger’s for a burger and salad; it was our first time to eat there and the food was really good.  A large salad and 2 huge hamburger sliders cost less than $9 and was plenty of food for the both of us—we’ll know next time as Kay and I both ordered a salad this time.

It was cold, wet, breezy, and gloomy Thursday morning as we awoke, with temperatures hovering around 40°.  This weather pattern, and temperature, remained all day.  After a hearty breakfast, I dressed in 4 layers, donned the backpack with binoculars and camera with 150-500 mm zoom lens, walked to Bentsen Rio Grande State Park, registered and picked up the entrance “bracelet”, and walked the remaining mile or so to the Kiskadee blind in the woods.  There was already another hardy person there, a young man from Wisconsin who flew to the RGV for a few days to “bird”.  After a few pleasantries, we both concentrated on the birds who were readily posing for photos.  The weather was such that the birds came in for feeding often, and would remain relatively still.  Another gentleman, from Charlottesville, VA, came into the blind about mid-morning, and was lucky enough to immediately see most of the species of birds feeding in the area.  The overcast skies and long lens required raising the ISO to 2000 in order to get a decent shutter speed with the 500 mm lens setting, and allowed getting some good shots of the Orange-crested Warbler, the Yellow-rumped Warbler, and of course the Altimira Oriole, Great Kiskadee, and the somewhat rare Black-headed Grosbeak.  One of the unusual things that occurred today was the swooping entrance of almost a dozen Great Kiskadees, occupying several branches, feeders, etc.  One didn’t have a tail, and had difficulty hovering around the suet feeder.  After 3 hours of sitting in the cold and drinking a couple thermos’ of coffee, I loaded up all the stuff and headed back into the cold and light rain for a short walk to an open area for a photo of the Vermillion Flycatcher.  Finally spotting it flying near and landing on a large tree, I crept close enough to flush it to another smaller tree, and another, etc.  It looked bedraggled after having spent the morning in the rain chasing the “few and far between” insects.  After a long walk back to the motorhome, Kay greeted me at the door and had a great hearty skillet dinner ready for our main meal of the day.  As I downloaded photos, she went to the Crafts Room for Swedish weaving, and then to the Club House to work on hats for Derby Days.  Oh, there is so much going on around here, even on rainy days.  After working on the photos for an hour or so, I walked to Brian and Shar’s to practice Karaoke, then back to the motorhome for more work on photos.  Being cooped up in the small confines was relieved by a phone call and great conversation with close friend, John Simank, and our discussion of fly fishing got me all pumped up for the upcoming caddis hatch in late March—are you ready, Ed?  Late in the afternoon a knock on the door from the UPS driver indicated that the new Tailgater satellite dish had arrived, and during the evening newscast, it was connected and worked flawlessly—umm!  We’ll try to salvage the old one, and perhaps resell it, either as a repaired unit or a salvage unit.  Kay picked up the mail, and a new 1 TB external hard drive had been delivered; we quickly unpackaged it, connected it to Kay’s computer, and began the lengthy process of backing-up all her data, a long overdue task.  She played bridge in the evening, and I enjoyed a short, quiet time at the RV before going to bed at 8 PM.

The photos below show, in order, a Yellow-rumped Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, Greater Kiskadee, Black-headed Grosbeak, Altimira Oriole, Golden-fronted Woodpecker, and a Vermillion Flycatcher, all taken today, Thursday.

Church this Sunday morning was lengthy, as it was communion Sunday, and the service before ours was late as was ours.  Back at the motorhome, I quickly changed into cycling clothes and was off on a “serious” ride while Kay hung around the place and worked on Swedish weaving.  The cycling experience was a mixed bag—the first 15 miles were quite pleasant, but then the 30-35 mph winds hit, and the remaining 20 miles were a challenge—temperatures plunged 17 degrees during the ride!  It seems like anytime one cycles it is always uphill and into the wind.  My knees hurt so bad from all the pedaling against the wind that after a couple of Tylenol, we went immediately to the hot tub for a long soak, and the combination of pain relief and warm, bubbling water did the trick.  Here are the ride statistics:

Ride Time: 3:03:23

Stopped Time: 34:48

Distance: 35.39 miles

Average: 11.58 mph

Fastest Speed: 20.42 mph

Ascent: 358 feet

Descent: 381 feet

Calories: 2466

We went to the Burger Bash at the Activities Center for a Superbowl meal of burger, beans, potato salad, and chips, and returned to the motorhome for Kay to watch Denver get drubbed while I worked on the Tailgater—it seems like another motor has seized, and the other one King Controls sent has the wrong electrical connection—we can’t seem to get a break, and are beginning to wonder if HD satellite television is worth it.  One of the first items on the agenda when we return home it to consult with Wayne on the possible repair of the motors!

Monday morning began with golf at the Harlingen Country Club.  Because of the seasonally cool weather, the parking lot was practically empty, and Al and I were able to tee off immediately.  Al had a great back nine, shooting in the low 40s, and while I hit the ball well, the score did not reflect it—the putting was horrendous!  While I played, Kay did laundry and other household chores, and took a “girl” trip to old McAllen to shop for hats and hat decorations for Derby Day.  After a quiet afternoon, we accompanied Al and Sharon to the Tilted Kilt.  We were surrounded by televisions of all shapes and sizes, and scantily clad waitresses.  The food was good, but once a year to go there is enough.

I attended the Snowbird Extravaganza with Al and Sharon on Tuesday morning.  The Extravaganza is a venue for Canadians spending the winter in the US, sponsored by the Canadian Snowbird Association.  The Canadian Snowbird Association is a lobbying entity for Canadian snowbirds, lobbying the Canadian provincial and national governments, and the US Senate and House of Representatives.  Without getting into a lengthy discussion, the amount of time Canadians are allowed to spend in the US is constrained by the US government and by Canadian federal and provincial insurance providers.  Having stated that, the Snowbird Extravaganza is primarily sponsored by Medipac Travel Insurance, a Canadian provider of insurance for Canadians “visiting” the US—enough said.  Anyway, the Extravaganza featured world-class entertainment by Canadian entertainers.  We heard Tom Leadbeater sing the national anthems of both the US and Canada, Comedienne Jimmy Flynn, and country-western singer Michelle Wright.  Michelle Wright has had a number of No. 1 hits in Canada and a Top Ten hit in the US (Take it Like a Man, 1992).  She has a deep, throaty voice similar to Anne Murray, but can hit the high notes as well.  And, she performed without her band or any tracts, a brave feat for any artist of renown.  If you haven’t heard her and like country=western music, you owe it to yourself to listen to one of her songs.  The Extravaganza was packed with Canadians, who as a group, spend over $300 million in Texas every winter!  Kay finished her bowl, and it’s the best yet.  It’s the largest of the three she’s made—about 12 inches in diameter and 3 inches deep on the inside.  It is a segmented bowl, comprised of walnut with Canadian maple vertical stripes. Here’s a photo of all three—the newest one is on the left.

She “visited” the endodontist for a consultation regarding a possible root canal on Friday.  He believed he could save the tooth that’s been bothering her, and committed to return some of the very high cost should the surgery fail, subject to a fax from our dentist at home regarding a failure—we are hopeful the surgery will work.  We played bridge with Al and Sharon in the evening, and both of us were dealt good cards all evening—it sure makes playing bridge more fun, as I’ve been dealt terrible hands most of the season, and been forced to play a poor defense!

With a change to warmer temperatures, the wind increased Thursday morning and is blowing at about 20 mph with gusts up to 35 mph, making bike riding too challenging unless your riding with the wind!  Kay returned to the shop to work on her second bowl of the season, and I walked to the Bentsen Rio Grande State Park.  This has been a “go to” place when the weather is unfit for other outside activities, and the Kiskadee Blind has proved to provide a great location for photographing birds, including this Black-headed Grosbeak and Lincoln’s Sparrow.

After a couple of hours, I returned to the motorhome for lunch, then rode, against the wind, to the National Butterfly Center, the first trip since before Christmas, while Kay went shopping, including groceries.  With the previous days’ cold, the butterflies were far and few between (Gulf Fritillary shown below), and the bird feeding station appeared to have been ignored as there were only sparrows there, and no sign of a hawk or other bird of prey.  Actually, I was a bit disappointed in the state of the National Butterfly Center because it was in such great shape before Christmas; wonder if something is going on?

We played bridge in the evening, and both of us had weird hands a weird partner in the course of the games—enough said, except that it is much more fun playing with Al and Sharon. 

Friday morning dawned with continuing high winds, but Al and I kept our plans to play golf, at McAllen, Texas, public golf course, Palm View.  The course was in great shape, but had water hazards on most holes.  I played worse than Al, but we both played really badly—our poorest outing for the year, in fact!  Kay cleaned the motorhome, and then drove to Well’s Fashions in Weslaco to try on apparel for the BPVRV Resort charity fashion show, and managed to use most of her Christmas gift card in the process for some items just put on sale.  Well’s is a very popular woman’s store here in the RGV, and is always crowded.  She stopped by Costco’s on the way home and purchased a birthday cake for our friend, Sharon, who is celebrating a birthday today, along with our friend at home, Carolyn Todd (happy birthday, Carolyn).  The chocolate cake had over two pounds of chocolate mousse in the center.  Afterwards, we went to the late show at the Activities Center to watch Wade Landry and his wife, Teresa Bowe Landry, perform.  They were great, even better than last year, and well worth the $6 per person tickets.

Kay slept really late Saturday morning (past 8 AM, but before 9 AM), and the quiet time provided an opportunity to “balance” the books since it was the first of the month.  We do virtually all of our banking and business transactions via the internet, and have most of our bills scheduled to be paid automatically the first of the month, in concert with our pension deposits, and we update the around the middle of the month when the bank statement and a couple of major credit card statements are issued.  It keeps life much simpler.  Kay went to the wood shop to continue work on her bowl, completing sanding and buffing, and adding the first coat of finish.  I peaked at it on the way to Bentsen Rio Grande State Park, and it is very, very nice!  She has become quite an artisan.  The mosquitos were out in hoards today, but the Kiskadee blind in the birding park proved an excellent sanctuary for watching and photographing birds, and enjoying a hot cup of coffee.  A couple came in about mid-morning, and we all saw the Black-headed Grosbeak and Indigo Bunting, the two most uncommon birds today.  Neighbor Lorna came in a bit later, and we all enjoyed talking about various birding trips, and then Dottie came in, the couple left, and Lorna, Dottie, and I had a grand time watching and photographing birds.  Shown below are the Orange-crowned Warbler, Altimira Oriole, and female Indigo Bunting.

Lorna and I left shortly before 12 noon to attend a show at the Rhinestone Opry with others from Circle 3 in BPVRV Resort.  The show was very amateurish, lacked preparation, particularly with respect to sound levels and equipment, and had a couple of very poor performers, not even as good as most jam sessions at home.  We’re glad we went as we had wondered what it was all about, but won’t go again.  Four Plus One would have been a real step up for the poorly attended show.   Back at the resort, we visited the happy hour briefly, and returned to the motorhome.  I worked on photographs and this blog entry, while Kay played card bingo; though she was feeling lucky, she didn’t win!

Another cold front blew in Monday night, with temperatures hovering in the low 40s most of the day Tuesday.  Combined with high winds, it was cold!  But, we’re not complaining.  Kay worked on her second bowl, trimming the bottom, glueing it on, and adding a decorative groove to it, and sanding and buffing the inside.  I went to the Bentsen Rio Grande State Park just after 12 noon, and found no one else in the Kiskadee Blind.  With fresh food, the birds were active, and I got a new “life bird”, a female Black-headed Grosbeak.  Additionally, I saw a molting Indigo Bunting, a fairly rare bird for the area.  A couple of Altimira Orioles would come in to feed at about 15-minute intervals, a Lincoln’s Sparrow came in, a Ladder-back and Golden-fronted Woodpecker were bouncing around, and lots of Cardinals and Green Jays were present.  The Green Jay blind area looked the worse for wear, with some downed shrubs and trees and the platform feeder had been upended; I didn’t spend any time there.  I downloaded the photographs into Lightroom 5 and began post processing them while Kay prepared Mexican Chicken and a salad for dinner.  Needing tortilla chips for the recipe, I volunteered to drive to the store, but it is not the place to go during rush hour, as it took over an hour to go there, buy the chips, and return to the resort.

Al and Sharon came over in the evening and we played bridge for a couple of hours; neither Kay nor I had good hands, but we are learning the “new to us” bidding system; it was fun, and we played a few good defensive hands.  Still battling the Centurytel email fiasco, I worked until early Wednesday morning beginning the process of changing email accounts, and advising contact list addressees of the change (I found that neither Gmail nor Yahoo will allow you to send to 100 or more addressees at one time!). More to come tomorrow.

Despite the early morning hour for bedtime, I was up at 7 AM Wednesday morning.  After reading the home newspapers online, I resumed the lengthy process of changing email address, some of which have major financial implications (Edward Jones, 3 banks, eBay, PayPal, etc.) and some which could have had significant medical ramifications (Mayo Clinic, our pharmacy).  As a bit of advice, I would recommend using a Gmail, Yahoo, or similar email address in lieu of one from an internet service provider like Centurytel/Centurylink, cable internet, etc. as there is a strong likelihood that at some point they will cancel your account, possibly without warning! And another warning.  We had our Centurytel/Centurylink email addresses coming through Gmail and Yahoo, and that proved to be a near fatal mistake.  I finished changing all the affected counts about mid-afternoon, and Kay was kind enough to give me peace and quiet for most of the day, going to exercise and the beauty shop.  The rest of the afternoon was spent updating Kay’s computer, deleting cookies and cleaning the databases, uninstalling unneeded software and applications, and running a scan for viruses, malware, etc.  It was an exhausting day, but the cold, windy weather was not conducive to outdoor activities.  We both collapsed in the evening, and did a whole lot of nothing.  Van did come by about 9 PM for assistance transmitting a pdf to take care of business related to resolution of his late father’s estate.  He and Bonnie have had more than their share of challenges this winter with his dad breaking a hip and consequently passing away, and their 2=year old granddaughter getting sick twice, the latter time being admitted to the hospital at the same time  she, her mom, and dad (Van and Bonnie’s son) were to move back to Canada.

A late night Saturday was no excuse for missing church on Sunday, according to Kay, so we were up early and on the way by 8:30 AM.  Sermons this month have concentrated on “Giving.”  Our church in Mountain Home has their pledge period in late October before we leave for the winter, and the church in Mission has theirs in January; it is understandable since so many of the Mission FUMC attendees are Winter Texans.  From church, it was off to Costco for Healthy Choice fudge bars, a Club 150 lunch (hotdog and soda), and cup of yogurt.  And then, it was back to the motorhome for a brief rest before driving the short distance to the Riverside Club on the banks of the Rio Grande River and just across the river from Mexico for visiting with Lin, Tom, Karen, and Warren, and lots of dancin’.  We had a great time with them, and after dancing ourselves out, we left while they had dinner; note the huge pork tenderloin sandwich!  From the Riverside Club, we paid a good-bye visit to Wayne and Loretta at AmeriCana resort before their departure back to Arkansas on Monday.  With so much going on, we opted out of the 50s and 60s Dance back at the resort, and spent a quiet evening in the motorhome.

Al and I played golf Monday morning at Cimarron Country Club in McAllen; the game is coming back slowly, but I am having a blast playing golf, and Al is a great partner with whom to play.  Kay continued work on her second bowl of the season, trimming the rough exterior, removing the corners, and beginning and finishing turning the bowl’s inside.  The palapa happy hour was well attended, and afterwards, we went shopping for golf accessories, but came home empty handed.  Meanwhile, the satellite went down again, and took about a half hour to restore the signal.  Our summer plans are now in a state of flux as we’ve decided to postpone indefinitely a trip to the British Isles and a cruise to the Baltic.  We may spend a month at Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, playing golf, visiting with friends, and kayaking and fishing for bluegill in their many lakes, and plan to spend part of the hot summer in Door County, Wisconsin.

Up really early Saturday morning with temperatures hovering in the high 30s, I (in the center of the photo, white helmet) participated in the McAllen Arbor Day Bike Tour, a 25-mile tour through McAllen, south to near where we live, and return; some 100 bicycle riders participated.  Though not a race, about half the participants were young, athletic 30-40 mph riders, and led the pack.  My statistics for the ride are as follows:

Ride Time: 1:56:46

Stopped Time: 26:36

Distance: 24.49 miles

Average: 12.59 mph

Fastest Speed: 22.45 mph

Ascent: 138 feet

Descent: 135 feet

Calories: 1717

In addition to the bike tour, 5K and 10K runs were held, and a high speed bicycle race highlighted the day’s activities with riders from all over the world; riders from Russia, Italy, and Germany placed first, second, and third, respectively. 

Today also provided an opportunity to do perform some chores such as dumping and flushing the tanks, and doing laundry.  But, back to fun things, it is also the big day for the Mission Citrus Festival.  Kay and Loretta drove up to town to watch the parade.  Several of the floats were decorated with citrus products, and many reflected the Hispanic culture of the region with Mariachi bands, etc.  One trio of men dressed as bandidos, and allowed their picture to be taken for a $1 donation to Knights of Columbus.

Without further ado, let’s turn back the clock a few days to post some photos of Kay and Loretta’s shopping trip, including a great bakery.  Now, it’s no secret what they shop for!

I don’t have many complaints about BPVRV Resort and the RGV, but one is that it is just too busy!  Of course, one can pick and choose what activities in which to participate, but I like them all!  Al and I play golf most Mondays and Wednesdays; Mondays are at one of the great courses in the RGV, while Wednesdays are reserved for Meadow Creek, an okay course nearby that is a pretty decent course despite some barren places on the fairways.  This cool Wednesday morning we played at Meadow Creek.  Al had a good game, and I ended up with a decent game despite several “blow-up” holes.  It was lots of fun, and I’m really enjoying playing.  

A long absence of birding enticed me to ride to Bentsen-Rio Grande State Park next door, but few birds were observed at either the Kiskadee blind or the Green Jay blind.  A retired couple from Wisconsin was there for the first time, and it was a joy introducing them to the usual species of birds seen at the blinds:  Green Jay, Kiskadee, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Chachalaca.  After happy hour at the palapa, we spent a quiet evening in the motorhome.

Our schedule got changed today, Thursday, by the US Department of State.  We had intended to accompany Lin, Tom, Geraldene, Dean, Karen, and Warren to Neuvo Progreso, Tamaulipas, Mexico.  However, a few days ago, the State Department issued a travel advisory Americans against travel to certain places in Mexico, including Neuvo Progreso because of gun battles between the cartel and federales, and a recent bomb threat closing the Progreso bridge.  Consequently, we were very uncomfortable traveling there.  With a “free” morning, we opted to join the birders on their weekly trip.  The weekly birding trip began by departing the resort at 7:30 AM Thursday to Edinburg Wetlands and Nature Center; Kay had not been there before, and enjoyed the small, but lively part of the World Birding Center.  We saw lots of birds, but the morning was made special by sighting a Tropical Parula Warbler, a life bird for us, and getting a fairly close shot of a Kingfisher. The pohots begin with a Great Blue Heron “painting” the water!  The weekly birding trips are very popular and a couple of dozen people normally attend.  Many thanks to Ernie and Karen Martelle, and Lorna Graham for coordinating and leading these trips. 

We were up early Sunday morning for church, with the intent of returning to the resort, changing clothes, and going for a long bike ride while Kay made apple dumplings for the BPVRV Resort progressive dinner.  The progressive dinner included appetizers, salad, a main course of baked potato, and desserts at circles 6, 5, 4, and 3 respectively; and since we reside in circle 3, we were to provide desserts for between 250 and 300 people!  Just as I finished changing clothes, some of our neighbors were setting up the palapa for desserts, and Kay “suggested” that I should help them.  So, I changed clothes again, helped set up, and visited briefly before changing back into riding clothes.  I opted to forego most of the progressive dinner in order to take a long solo ride, and de-stress.  And, conditions were near ideal with temps in the mid-70s, and winds less than 5 miles per hour.  Consequently, I rod some 28 miles before returning to find that the baked potato line was forming.  Changing clothes yet another time, I met Kay at the Activities Center in circle 4, where we ate the main course.  Since desserts were next, we hurriedly made our way to the palapa and assisted in completing the set-up.  The desserts were heartily eaten and provided a grand ending for a super progressive dinner.  After phone calls from the girls, we had a quiet rest of the evening; however, I could not sleep and took advantage of the late hour and  downloaded Lightroom 5, a digital photography post-processing software. 

Monday was golf day, and we played at the Harlingen Country Club.  It was a great course, but quite crowded, and I shot the worst game of the year—so far.  While I was playing, Kay took care of some business for me, and tried to take care of some other business, but we had forgotten it was the MLK holiday, and banks were closed.  She biked to Americana RV Resort, where Loretta joined her, and they biked to Green Gate Grove to work on crafts (yeah, sure).  We joined others from the BPVRV Resort for a RGV Vipers basketball game; the Vipers team is a D-League NBA team and while the basketball was just okay, people watching was quite fun.

Van, Ken, and I had tentatively scheduled a bike ride Tuesday morning, but I opted out in order to take care of some banking business; it was an interesting experience.  Seventeen people were in line in front of me, and most were cashing checks (some from Mexico) or having money orders prepared.  The tellers were patient, and the line moved relatively fast.  After taking care of this business, I drove to Jerry and Karen Smith’s place to assist them in setting up a new computer for printing.  We had to load new printer drivers unique for their printer for Windows 8, and the download took some time, as did the installation with only one major and several minor snafus.  After a fatal error message caused by Norton Utilities, we paused the security program for a few minutes, and the download and installation completed.  So, they are up and running with both a hard-wired and a wireless connection to the printer.  Kay took advantage of the quiet time, and washed and dried a a couple loads of clothes, and then went to Steinmart with Gayle for shopping for shoes and unmentionables, using most of her Steinmart Christmas gift card.  And then, she grilled salmon and vegetables for a late afternoon dinner, and it was very good.  Jim, next door, insisted that we go to Marco’s for burgers with a group from BPVRV Resort, and we shared a Marco’s special.  Marco’s was rated the No. 1 hamburger place in Texas by one statewide television show.  They grind their own meat from ribeye steaks, make french fries and onion rings from scratch, and make hand-dipped milk shakes.  We found their burger to be very good, but not as good as the Barn Burner from the Back Forty in Mountain Home—possibly the best cheeseburger in the world!  After we got back, we walked over to Al and Sharon’s for bridge, and had a blast.