With the forecast and uncertainty regarding the weather back home, we were in no hurry to leave the RGV Saturday morning.  After awaking early, we were “locked and loaded”, but delayed leaving to have coffee with our neighbors at the Activities Center.  And then, all at once, we said goodbyes again (it gets harder every time), wiped the tears, and pulled out at 8:30 AM.  We know we’ve left the Valley when we pass through the US Customs and Border Patrol station about an hour north.  We passed Paul, Lorna, Jim, and Regie who had stopped at the Falfuria Rest Area, and had great driving until mid-afternoon.  And then, drizzling rain began and increased to steady showers for the remainder of the day.  We had planned to stop and spend the night at Shady Pines RV Campground in Jacksonville, Texas, to meet up with an old RVing friend, but the campground was the pits, muddy, un-level, soft ground, unpaved and unkept, and $38 per night.  With a drizzle still falling and mired in red clay mud, we said a quick hello and goodbye, and pulled out—we’ll get to visit next week.  We drove to the nearest Walmart—Henderson, Texas—and spent the night with wind, rain, and thunderstorms. 

The forecast for Little Rock was for high winds, and rain turning into snow, so we left Walmart shortly after 5 AM Sunday morning heading north, driving the rest of the way to Maumelle Park on the Arkansas River at Little Rock.  We arrived about 10 AM, set up the RV, and then, as if by magic, 50 mph winds and rain struck, and the temperature began dropping.  Despite the bad experience at the Shady Pines RV Campground, we had maybe the best motorhome trips to or from the Valley in the 5 winters we’ve spent there.  Kay’s son, Ron, stopped by mid-afternoon, and we had a great visit, catching up on his too busy life.  About 4 PM, we all left to visit Ridge and his parents.  Ridge is, of course, our younger grandson, and at 2-1/2, a real treat to be around.  We enjoyed a brief visit, had salad and pizza, and returned to the motorhome for much needed sleep, as we both fell asleep watching television.

I really love the sun and beautiful weather in the middle of winter.  We didn’t have that many great days this past season—not nearly as many as usual—but it was a ‘weird’ winter everywhere.  So cold in the North and especially in Canada.  Some of our friends won’t get thaw until May or even June. Even we weren’t immune.  Norfork has had 17 snow episodes this year.  The 17 is happening now as we sit in Maumelle Park in Little Rock visiting kids.  

Dancin’ in the valley could be an every day occurrence.  We went to dances at our clubhouse, went to Riverside Club which is packed every Sunday, went to Don Chilo’s on Friday nights which is a real dive but one of our favorite Country bands plays there, and we discovered a new night spot called Buchanan’s which had a great dance floor and again our favorite band plays there on Thursday nights.  We love dancing the two step, the country waltz and were getting fair at the cha cha.  We went back to our dance lessons in Dec. and Jan. just to brush up on our steps and movements.  Donald’s really become a good dancer and leaderyes, I have to remember not to lead – hehehe!  We really have a good time dancing and it’s good exercise.  Wayne and Bessie love dancing too, so we kind of encourage each other to meet at the clubs and dance.

I really love the people, especially the ones in Circle 300.  What a great bunch of interesting, fun loving, helping, caring folks.  We are one of the few ‘token’ Americans amongst many Canadians from several provinces.  Yet they tolerate us very well.  We laughingly discover the few language differences between us.  Some I especially enjoy are bathing the dog (not bathe); garage the car (pronounced like rash), and the last letter of the Canadian alphabet is pronounced zed not z.  The Canadian bacon we buy really isn’t Canadian.  At least our Canadian friends don’t know it or use it.  Their Canadian bacon is called peameal bacon, I think.  [NOTE:  Peameal bacon originated in Toronto, Canada.  According to Wikipedia, the name reflects the historic practice of rolling the cured and trimmed boneless loin in dried and ground yellow peas, originally for preservation reasons.  Since the war years, it has been rolled in ground yellow cornmeal.  It is low in fat, and slow cured.  Peameal bacon is made from boneless port loins, short cut from the leaner portions of the loin, to ensure a more uniform product.  External fat is generally trimmed to within 1/8 inch (3 mm).  Smokeless and tender, this product is sweet pickle-cured and rolled in a traditional golden cornmeal coating.]  I also learned about a ‘tickle’ box that is for children or grandchildren.  It is a box for playing make believe and such—play clothes like Cinderella, etc. or grown up clothes to dress in for children.  Gosh, I hadn’t ever heard of such but it’s a great idea.  Any way, it’s been so interesting learning a bit of their lives and culture—it’s a shame that we are so behind them in caring for our environment.  They are absolute masters at recycling.  Our friends use their travel down to the Rio Grande Valley as an opportunity to see much of the US and boy! do they ever see our country.  They are often traveling 5,000 kilometers (3,000 miles) plus to escape the cold, so they think nothing of adding another 1,600 kilometers (1000 miles) exploring on the way down or up.  I so admire their traveling, exploring and adventure-loving spirit.  We have vicariously enjoyed their stories of traveling in Australia, New Zealand, Europe, the British Isles, China, Japan, and even Africa.  Most of all, they’ve seen more of the US than most Americas ever will—our National Parks, historical sites, and cultural sites.  

The culture of the valley is very interesting also.  The political scene is quite different than our area.  They held local elections while we were there and I had never seen so many ads for elected offices in my life, even offices that have no real value or position in our state such as Justice of the Peace.  Can you imagine someone paying for a half-page ad in a large city newspaper for Justice of the Peace?  Why? I asked myself.  I could only surmise that being in the in-crowd politically might be tied to more power and pull, especially if corruption, etc. were part of the norm.  They even had these kinds of races over their school board members—full page ads, etc.  Being so close to the border perhaps is the answer.  Corruption, bribery, etc. is the norm for Mexico business and dealings, and perhaps that translates to ‘norm’ north of the border also.  So if you are a school board member, perhaps that means you can influence where your cousin’s wife can work, which nephew can get a large construction job building a new school, etc.  I don’t know—just speculation.  Anyway, we sure were glad when the elections were over.  

My daughter showed me a business in Maumelle that had just opened up and asked me what I thought it was.  I knew what it was—it was an adult day care center just like they have all over the Valley.  She was quite intrigued as she has never seen one and she’s traveled extensively.  I told her that they are on every street corner in Mission and McAllen and she was amazed.  I think that is an admirable thing in the Latino culture—they take care of their elderly in their families and keep them with their families.  If the adults have to work, then they take them to the day care facilities during work time.  I saw very few nursing homes in the valley at all.

I digress.  One of the things I like most about the RGV is the sense of community we have in our RV park, but especially in Circle 300.  We all usually gather in our communal palapa in the late afternoon 4:30 on, to visit and talk; some have a beer; others a coke, tea, or water; we just enjoy each other’s company – telling jokes, stories that are new to our friends, learning about each other.  Laughing a lot!  One mental picture I shall always remember is a large group gathered in the palapa at 6:00 a.m. to watch the Canadian men win the Olympic Gold in hockey (their women had already won gold).  Someone had set up a large screen TV with a Canadian satellite hook up so they could see it in ‘real’ time (not delayed).  Several of us ‘tokens’ were there, too, to support them—I made the group pecan pie muffins!  They had coffee, and someone went for donuts.  Another lady brought egg casserole.  The group responded to the play on the TV with singular movement and sound—rising up in their chairs with a ooohh!  when the Canadians played well; and aaahhh!  and slumping down when they messed up.  It was like watching the ocean swell and dip, swell and dip.  They are a grand bunch of folks who love their hockey and curling.  I’m still trying to understand that curling thing.  hehehe.

What is it that I like about Bentsen Palm Village RV Park?  It’s 95% RVs only.  I really like that.  Most parks are park models with about 25% RVs.  Our park is a younger-acting bunch of folks also.  Many people walk every day; most of us ride our bikes.  There are two “nature” parks almost touching ours:  Bentsen-Rio Grande State Park and the National Butterfly Center.  We enjoy both.  There are 15 miles of hiking/biking trails right next to our park.  There are also many roads with bike paths and Donald has ridden miles and miles of trails down here.  Some days he’s ridden close to 50 miles.  My personal best I think was 16 in one trip; but I believe I could ride 20 or more if I built up to it.  I love getting into the hot tub after a good ride.  I enjoy the pool and sunning in the afternoon.  I really enjoyed the wood shop this year and I’ve already started thinking about the bowls I want to make next year.  I finally got energized and finished my first Swedish weaving which I am very proud of.  I started my second one and have been going great guns with it too.  I enjoy doing it in my spare time in the motorhome, even when were driving down the road and my navigator help isn’t needed.  I work on it when we’re watching TV at night also.  I think I’m turning into my mother!  She used to sit in front of the TV and knit all the time—she was making an afghan for each of her kids, sons-in-law, and grandkids.  I don’t think I’ll get that many done, but maybe.  Perhaps as I’m getting older, I want to leave something behind that I personally made/designed as a remembrance of me.  Just a thought.

Oh, yes, I have loved playing bridge this year!  It was great fun playing in the clubhouse with the bridge folks, but I especially loved playing extra bridge with Sharon and Al Crawford.  We learned a lot from playing with them.  Sharon also introduced us to two new clubs:  the LEO club (Let’s Eat Out) and the SKI club (Spend the Kid’s Inheritance).  We joined both!  Hehehehe!

Now we’ve got to get back on track and lose some weight we gained.  It’s pretty hard, eating out and eating healthy.  

Something else I enjoyed immensely was going to the local schools (high schools and college) to see musicals and Mariachi programs.  Wow and Wow!  They were fabulous—each in a different way!  Rowe HS did a great musical:  Annie Get Your Gun; the McAllen HS Mariachi Band was musically the best we ever heard; and the LaJoya Mariachi program had the best dancers we’ve ever seen off NY.  We saw the Rock City Rockettes in Branson, and the LaJoya kids were better!  Incredible arts programs in this valley.  Of course the schools are gorgeous and well-funded too.

Well, it was gorgeous when we left and it was hard leaving our friends.  They’ve become extended family members for us.  Now we’re counting the weeks when we can return.  

The slight CRUD has not been sufficient to feel horrible, but enough not to feel great.  Kay attended church this Sunday morning with Gail, and I stayed in the RV.  With continued, unseasonably cool weather, we stayed in all day.

Despite feeling a bit better, our cool, windy weather hung around forcing us to remain inside Monday.   Kay worked on the new Swedish weaving project while I played on the iPad and computer.  We were able to play bridge with Al and Sharon, and while we all had good hands, defense was the game of the night, as we all made few contracts, going set a bunch—weird!

I’m almost back to normal!  Our weather in the Rio Grande Valley has improved, with decent temperatures occurring during the afternoon.  Maybe we could do something outside today.  However, our water in the resort is supposed to be city water, but is really hard, and we have had significant algae build up in the primary filter, hoses, and softener.  This may be due to the break in the water line when hit by a mower in December.  In combination with a faulty back flow valve on the water pump causing the freshwater tank to fill, we wanted to sanitize the lines and tank before leaving the Valley and today provided a good time to do it.  In the process, I spilled the bleach solution in the pump compartment and had to flood the area to keep the bleach from ruining the compartment carpet—just another day in the life of an RVer.  With the tank and lines seemingly sanitized, we were back to normal for a short while.  Warm weather and mild winds enticed the butterflies to fly, and a Spotted Crescent was observed at the National Butterfly Center.  It was deep in the flowering shrub, and difficult to photograph, particularly open enough to expose the brilliant crimson patch on the top side of the wings.  Several other smaller butterflies made an appearance; however, no Mexican Bluewings were in sight—until after I left the NBC.  And then Louie, one of the NBC staff, saw and photographed one on the Hackberry Trail—just my luck.  Right after happy hour, a fellow photographer and birder emailed requesting help with LightRoom 5, a digital photography processing software.  I assisted her for about an hour, and missed the start of the bridge game (with today being Tuesday, this is card night) and they already had full tables; Kay played and had a great evening.

Our time in the RGV is quickly winding down for the season, and we have not been able to do all the things on our list—that’s okay as we’ll add it to next year’s list.  Kay bowled this morning (Wednesday) and I played golf for the last time at Meadow Creek.  This is a course near us, and while having potential, is not in too great a condition.  However, the fairways have greened to be the best yet this season, and we’re familiar with the course, having played it every Wednesday morning.  According to Kay, her bowling game was pitiful, as she had several strikes followed by gutter balls.  Oh well, she enjoyed the game anyway.   We attended the last Margarita Hour and found a full house of folks.  It seems no one is eager to leave the resort and RGV this season!

Thursday, Kay woke up with a stomach bug, and remained home rather than go on the birding trip.  Instead, she did laundry and cleaned the RV while her lazy husband was out and about, catching a ride with Paul and Lorna to tour the Rancho Lomitas near Rio Grande City with the birding group from the resort.  The ranch was a typical tropical desert environment, with native birds and plants, and a few Longhorn cows.  We didn’t see many new species, but did get to see the Scaled Quail, another life bird for me.  We returned from the ranch about lunch, and aAfter the temperatures rose sufficiently to stir the butterflies, I rode to the NBC.  A larger Crimson Patch than was observed yesterday was posing for photographs, and as the afternoon heated, more and more butterflies exposed themselves.  I took advantage of an acquaintance with Mike Rickard, a local butterfly expert, for identification of several small species.  He spotted and pointed out a Mexican Bluewing, and despite several sightings, no photos were taken.  The check valve in water pump has completely failed, causing us to use the tank/pump combination rather than the water outlet at our site—worse things could have happened.  We were elated at happy hour to see Chris Tenney return to the resort from California where he visited family.  Chris is a new resident to Circle 3, a recent widower, and an awesome butterfly expert.  It has been a real pleasure getting to know him. He joined us for bridge at the Activities Center, playing a few hands before leaving for some rest after the long trip back from California.  Kay and I successfully bid and made a small slam, our first ever.

Desperate for a last game of golf before I leave, Al and I played in a scramble Friday morning at a local RV resort golf course.  The course was just okay, not quite as good as Meadow Creek, but fine for our purposes.  I drew into a good team, and we won the scramble, shooting several strokes under par.  Chuck, Sue, Al, Sharon, Kay, and I ate lunch at Papadeaux, a Louisiana-based seafood restaurant.  It was good, but noisy and crowded.  After returning from lunch, we finished readying the RV for the trip home, packing away the water softener, removing the primary filter, and storing the water hoses; all that is left is removing and storing the satellite dish, disconnect the electrical, withdrawing the slides, and lifting the stabilizer jacks.  We said sad goodbyes at the crowded palapa, and returned to the RV only to see a forecast for freeing temperatures and snow in Arkansas.  What are we to do?