We’re finally getting into a routine, with coffee, email and newspapers when we wake up, from between 5:00 and 6:00 AM to about 7:30 AM, a light breakfast, and a combination walk around the park/taking the garbage and trash out.  After that, we’re pretty much on our own for the rest of the morning.  I usually do chores, ride the bicycle, work on photos and blogs, etc.  It’s then pool and hot tub time for a couple of hours, then shopping, if necessary.  And then, we meet the neighbors at the palapa for happy hour.
The wifi here has been terrible, and unreliable.  They have a new system, and are still working the bugs out–seems to me they have a long way to go.  A few neighbors and I became so frustrated that we made arrangements to have our own private internet service–of course, the same person owns the cable/internet service that owns Bentsen Palm Village RV Park.  I personally don’t believe there’s any marketing regarding the poor service; and the park’s free wifi will be fine when all the bug get worked out.  Regardless, Kay and I bought our own service, and it will allow us to stay connected, and stream videos.  Consequently, I hung around the motorhome waiting for the installation, and the service guy was prompt and fast.  I had the modem installed in one of the basement compartments where we have access to the outside, and plug-ins, and we hard-wired our router.  We now have our own private network, just like home.

Kay was having a pedicure while all this was going on, and after the installation was completed, I finally dug the camera out and took photos of butterflies along the wall of the Bentsen Palm Village RV Park (rent your space) and Retama Village (buy your space) compound walls.

We finally ran out of groceries, or just about, necessitating a trip to “town”.  Costco and Sam’s Club are located across the street from one another in Pharr, between Mission and McAllen—about a fifteen minute drive for us.  We had been anxious to shop at Costco since last winter as they opened it just a few weeks after we left the RGV to return home.  The Pharr Costco is clean, with wide isles, and lots of good stuff.  We bought some food stuff, including salmon and steak for grilling, fruits, and paper plates and bowls (to minimize dishwashing).  At Sam’s Club, we supplemented the Costco purchases, and noted the differences in the stores.  Sam’s Club was crowded, disorganized, hand an untidy appearance, and the clerks were not the shiniest ornament on the tree, if you know what I mean.  Oh well, at least we have a choice down here.
We skipped the margarita hour, instead visiting with our neighbors in the palapa.
It was just another quiet day in the RGV.

Every Tuesday morning at 8:30 AM, a group of bicyclists from Bentsen Palm Village RV Resort—they call themselves the Blazing Saddle Sores Bicycle Club—ride 3 to 5 miles to a restaurant for breakfast, and return.  The resort (and Bentsen Palm Development as a whole) has over 10 miles of bicycle trails on or adjacent to the property, and the city of Mission has many more, facilitating this weekly breakfast ride.  Kay and I had never ridden with the group before, and I didn’t know quite what to expect this morning when meeting up with the group at the front gate; Kay opted not to go as she is still recovering from the bicycle accident on Sunday.  I may have been the youngest among the 8 men and 5 women riders.  At 8:30 AM the wind is usually not a factor, and the ride was conducted at a comfortable pace—not too fast, and not too slow.  I rode towards the back of the group, with two riders and a tail gunner behind me, as seen in the first photo.  Our ride was about 4.5 miles each way, and we followed the bicycle trails where possible, but did have to ride about 1.5 miles in traffic on the side of the roadway.  Breakfast was at a small Mexican restaurant, and was good and cheap.  My breakfast of eggs and ham, refried beans, tortillas, and coffee was less than $5.00, including a $1.00 tip.  On our return, shown in the photo on the left, the wind had picked up, and made pedaling more difficult, particularly since I had moved towards the front of queue and didn’t have but one person blocking the wind.  It’s not an easy chore taking a picture behind you while riding a 21-speed bicycle along a city highway!  The ride back was a bit more loose, as here was no particular objective except to get back to the RV resort. A good soak in the hot tub and pool afterward sure felt great, and eliminated most aches and pains, though my thigh muscles did tighten up in the afternoon.
The fruit and vegetable truck/trailer came as scheduled at 2:30 PM, and we bought 3 limes (for salsa), a head of cabbage, and 2 pineapples already “peeled” and cored. Kay sang a couple of songs at the jam session followed by a visit to the hairdresser, while I worked on our Christmas newsletter.
As is usual, we met at the palapa for a couple of hours to socialize with the neighbors, and had a pretty quiet rest of the evening.

After our coffee, email, and morning walk, we decorated for Christmas, hanging a wreath on the inside of the front windshield, complete with lights, etc.  We even have a plug in the headliner.  We also ran lighted garland along the bottom of the windshield to complete the look.  Perhaps I can get a night photo!

After a brisk morning walk and a scrambled egg sandwich, I set to work making an RV ladder clothes line and a bicycle stand, both out of PVC.  We saw these being used extensively this past winter here in the RGV, and pulled a similar design off the internet.  We bought the materials at home, and cut the PVC in our shop a couple of days before we left.  The rear of our coach is bathed in sun most of the day, and the ladder clothes line will be quite effective, especially for towels and swimsuits.  And with the wind blowing here, particularly in the afternoons, the bike stand will keep the bicycles upright, without constantly blowing over. Last year it was a chore finding a dry place, out of the wind, to “park” Kay’s bicycle, and oftentimes it would be in the middle of our access to the patio.  We’re anxious to see how this particular design will work as it’s different than most of those used down here.

As usual, we joined in the conversation at the palapa shortly after 4:00 PM.  The mosquitos have been especially bad this year, and we dug out the Thermocells and after about 5 minutes, the area was clear of those pesky insects.

We were invited to breakfast today at Furr’s, and rode with Paul and Lorna, our next door neighbors.  Furr’s formerly was a cafeteria where one would go through the line selecting a salad, meat, sides, bread, and drink, much like Franke’s in central Arkansas.  Recently, however, Furr’s has gone to buffet style service similar to Golden Corral.  Anyway, the food was plentiful and good.  I had salad, scrambled eggs, yogurt, and granola—a buffet is wasted on me right now.

We returned early enough to hand wash the RV and car.  Neither was very dirty, but we wanted clean windows and removal of all the bugs before they baked on in the Texas heat.

After we finished, I headed for the hot tub to offset any aches and pains from the wash job, and Kay remained back at the motorhome for a nap.  After a half hour or so, she was getting on her bicycle to bring me a key to motorhome, and fell flat on her face on the left side.  She busted her eyebrow and had a huge bruise and swelling below the left eye. Fortunately, our neighbors saw the accident and were there to assist—one is a retired fire fighter and another is a retired veterinarian.  They insisted she go to the emergency room.  We quickly drove to the Mission regional medical facility ER. The doctor asked what happened, then asked if she was wearing a helmet.  When she responded negatively, he asked her why and she responded that it messed up her hair. We were really impressed with the quality of medical treatment from top to bottom.  It was thorough and quick, considering the circumstances.  Financial arrangements for payment was their last priority!  Fortunately for us, the hospital is not far from our resort.  After cleaning the wounds, they did a brain scan and Kay does have one!  Seriously, she escaped with no concussions or broken bones.  They glued the eyebrow cut closed, and gave instructions to use an ice bag periodically to keep the swelling down.  Obviously, we spent a quiet evening in the coach. We’ll both wear our bicycle helmets from now on.

This is our first official day at Bentsen Palm Resort RV Park, and the weather is cooperating beautifully, with highs in the mid-80s and lows in the high 60s.  We’re almost back to a normal routine with coffee, email, and the news and weather first thing in the morning.  We went to the clubhouse at 9:00 AM for coffee and pastries (too many points for those of us on Weight Watchers).  The crowd was pretty sparse but some 40 RVs are expected in today.  We kind of like it quiet, but it’s fun when all the spaces are full, too.

Kay made a short trip to the grocery store and ran the car through an automatic carwash to remove most of the towing grease, grind, and dirt.  Though not totally clean, it sure looked better!

We got to exchange roles today, and welcome new arrivals, particularly those parking in Circle 3.  Otherwise, it was a pretty calm day.

After “palapa time” and dinner, we played card bingo, and I won the very first round—a total of $1.90, whereupon Kay immediately “borrowed” $0.40.  Consequently, I brought home less money than I took!

With today being a long travel day—in fact, it’s the last leg of our trip south for the winter—we awoke early and made preparations to leave. Now that were in the traveling groove again, it was quick work, and we left shortly after 6:00 AM, in the darkness of early morning (the photo shows our site in daylight). We drove southwest to Freeport, then west to Bay City, and further west to Victoria. We then drove south to Riviera, just below Kingsville, then west to Falfurrias (this rural highway takes us by hundreds of sandhill cranes feeding in the rangeland), south to Edinburg, and then to Bentsen Palm Village RV resort in Mission, Texas, our winter destination; we arrived shortly before 3:00 PM.

We checked in, drove to our site, and began the process of setting up. It takes a little longer to set up when you’re going to spend 3 months at the same location, making it as much like home as possible.  We unhooked the tow bar from the car and stowed it, unloaded the bicycles, and unhooked the bicycle carrier from the car, stowing it as well. We laid out the patio rug, the outdoor reclining chairs, gas grill, and assorted outdoor tables, and we even put the satellite dish, the Tailgater, on the roof and out of the way.  This was all needed for great outdoor living, and all the time old friends and acquaintances, mostly from Canada, would stop by to welcome us "home". We were essentially finished setting up by 4:00 PM, happy hour time at our Circle 3 palapa. Bentsen Palm Village RV Resort was designed very well, with 6 circles of RV sites, and sites on the outer edges as well.  We are part of Circle 3, in site 310, and residents of our circle gather at 4 PM each afternoon for happy hour and conversation. We really get to know folks this way, and it’s almost like extended family.

After happy hour, Kay and I immediately headed for the hot tub to get rid of aches and pains from traveling all day—ahhh…

Needless to say, we spent a quiet evening in the air-conditioned motorhome.  Tomorrow will bring another fun-filled day!

Daybreak on Galveston Island was spectacular.  Anticipating a great sunrise, Kay and I dressed for a walk on the beach.  We were not disappointed.  There was just enough atmospheric pollution to create beautiful colors.  And then to top it off, a bunch of shore birds were feeding in the shallow surf.

After a light breakfast, I unloaded the bicycles off the Honda, Bruce and Jeannie accompanied us as we drove into the Galveston historic district for a walking tour.  The seasonally busy harbor area was practically void of tourists.  We walked each street, and Bruce and I generally stayed outside while Kay and Jeannie shopped.  There were some interesting laminated silhouettes in the storefronts, making for some great photos.

Lunch was at one of one of Landry’s restaurants, and it was very good.

Afterward, we drove street after street looking at the beautiful old Victorian houses.  Evidence of Hurricane Ike which struck Galveston on September 13, 2008, was obvious as many of the thousands of trees planted after the catastrophic hurricane of 1900 were damaged or destroyed, mostly by the saltwater storm surge. Residents of this barrier island made lemonade out of lemons, and had visiting sculptors carve over 35 sculptures out of the badly damaged trees and tree trunks. Three sculptors have been at work since late 2009, grinding away with chainsaws and chisels to transform the stumps into dolphins, angels, birds, the Tin Man and Toto, cranes, a toad, a geisha, dogs, and many others. Their work has become one of the island’s most-popular tourist attractions.

We returned to the campground, and Kay and Jeannie went back shopping while Bruce and I stayed behind and rested our eyes.

The remainder of the day was quiet and relaxing, with a cool breeze blowing off the Gulf of Mexico, and the sound of the crashing surf hypnotically erasing winter’s early beginnings back home.

We slept 9 hours last night, awaking fresh and full of energy for the first time in a while. We were up early, but one should expect that when going to bed at 8 PM!  As usual, we had coffee, read email, and browsed the newspapers online (I typically read USA Today, Baxter Bulletin, and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette), then checked the morning’s headlines on Mountain Home’s KTLO radio station, again online. A beautiful near full moon was setting over Wright Patman Lake, and provided an awesome view out our window. It’s hard to beat a lakeside “setting” (pardon the pun).

We "broke" camp, hooked up the Honda CR-V, and departed Rocky Point Park at 7:45 AM, driving south on US HWY 59.

At Tenaha, TX, our route switched to US HWY 96 to Jasper, TX, where we stopped for lunch with Menlo and Mickey Kingman, fellow Arkansas Travelers, at the Catfish Cabin. Kay had grilled catfish and said it was the best she’s ever had, and I had a combo plate of oysters and shrimp, and it, too, was good.

Following US HWY 96 south to just north of Beaumont, TX, we joined US HWY 69, which took us through the city to I-10, and then diverted to TX HWY 124 south to the Gulf coast. We drove westward along the beach on Bolivar Peninsula, catching the ferry to Galveston.  It was “cool” riding the ferry with motorhome and car in tow, across the inlet, all the while watching pelicans flying along side us and porpoises joyfully playing ahead of us.

Upon disembarking the ferry, our route took us west to Galveston’s city-owned Dellanaro RV Park, right smack dab on the Gulf of Mexico shoreline.

The Honda was towed too far today without starting the engine, and we ended up with a dead battery. Jeannie gave us a “jump” off of Bruce’s truck. We set up camp, hooked up the battery charger, and began the long convoluted process of authorizing DISHTV satellite service—something we have to do each time we move.

From our site, the wind off the surf was cool, and the sounds of the breaking surf were soothing, quickly putting us in a relaxed state of mind.  Bruce and Jeannie joined us for Happy Hour. It was a pretty awesome day.

It sure seems like this fall has been colder than any in recent memory. In fact we’ve had freezing temperatures off and on since mid-October–too cold for these old bones! Our plans had been to depart for the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) after Thanksgiving to avoid freezing temperatures and having to winterized the motorhome.  However, as a result of the cold weather, we’ve kept lights burning in the outside compartments where we have water lines, and a small stove (thanks to Jim and Cheryl Watts for recommending it) running inside the coach. This has caused some added work in getting everything done in order, and in combination with having the windshields replaced, repaired, repaired, and replaced again, getting road-ready has been a chore.

Nevertheless, we loaded, latched, and locked the house this morning and left the driveway at 7:40 AM. We met Bruce and Jeannie at Greenbriar, AR, at 10:45 AM. We drove to Rocky Point Park, a USACE facility, near Queen City, TX, just south of Texarkana, arriving there at 3:00 PM. Traffic from Conway, AR, to our turnoff to the campground was quite heavy, particularly semi-trucks. We particularly like this park, and there are no bad sites.

After a bite to eat, we took a sunset walk with Bruce and Jeannie, and as we arrived at a a great view of the western sky, I missed the sun setting by about 30 seconds, but nevertheless I got a pretty good shot just as it dipped below the horizon.  We returned to the camp site and had a quiet evening to finish the day.

Raking and blowing leaves off the driveway last week has proved fruitless as a bunch more fell this week!  It’s that time of year.

We started the week with a typical Sunday, and then shifted into high gear on Monday.  First thing Monday AM, I had a permanent crown installed, fearing a broken tooth while we are away the next few weeks.  Kay took care of administrative stuff like putting DirecTV on hold, and having our land line telephone service cut back to basics—we can still make and receive calls and SECURITY SYSTEM IS ARMED AND READY!  Tuesday found me at the audiologist for a hearing aid check-up—I still can’t hear!  On Wednesday, Jenny, Brian, and HARP came over for the holiday, and we had a blast.  We hiked Thursday to Almos Knob and Huffman Knob; I had been calling Huffman Knob Almos Knob, and Almos Knob the overhang, but a local straightened us out.  Jenny and I collaborated on dinner Thursday evening. She has inherited her Grandma Nellie’s cooking instinct and has surpassed her dad on tasting and adjusting.  Thank goodness for that as our cornbread dressing was the best it’s been in years, and vegetarian too.  She made a sweet potato casserole that was to die for as well, and Kay made some super sugar-free apple dumplings.  Kay is such a great grandmother, and took good care of HARP while we were busy in the kitchen.  Of course, we had fires outside for some ‘mores both nights Jenny and Brian were here. 

Regrettably, they had to leave on Friday for more Thanksgiving commitments, but Ron and Kaden came up for the weekend.

We just hung out on Friday, making and eating turkey gumbo and watching football.  I fished with Ron on Saturday. We drove to Norfork first, but it had one generator of discharge; SWPA had projected 0 generation after 6:00 AM until 5:00 PM, but instead ramped up to 1 generator shortly after 10:00 AM—same old story! We drove to Rim Shoals, and walked down the right descending bank as far as the path would take us. It was tough fishing; I caught 3 (one on BHFB pheasant tail, and two on tan sowbug). It began to get crowded, with over a dozen fishers coming in. We opted to leave, and noted the Norfork was slowing going down. We waded in at Mill Dam Eddy, and struggled while the water completed falling. After it stabilized, Ron took about 9 fish on gray scud and red/black zebra midge combination. There were several other fishers coming downstream in drift boats, canoes, and kayaks. One guide in a drift boat came right through the narrow lane we were fishing, and after my shaking my head, said that I didn’t own the water. Of course, he had over a hundred yards from which to choose a path, but chose the little lane where we were fishing. A lady guide behind him in drift boat, stopped short, got out and pulled her drift boat into another lane; I thanked her. We will see more and more unethical guides on the Norfork with the advent of minimum flow (be careful what YOU ask for cause I didn’t want it, anticipating this very problem along with some others we’ll see come along).

Sunday saw us with a normal morning of church and Sunday school, and the addition of Kay singing a solo at the traditional service.  We didn’t eat lunch in town, but drove home to continue preparations for our trip south to warmer weather.