took a walk and this is what we saw

Ella and I

2012 October 19

2012 October 19  Friday

            It is hard to believe that we’ve only been at Shady Oaks for one week.  It seems much longer.

            Yesterday (18^th) we went to Kingsland to the Ace Hardware and purchased some putty tape.  So, I was able to uninstall and reinstall the refrigerator side vent with the putty insuring a water tight seal.

            While we were in Kingsland we spent a little time exploring the town. It didn’t take long!  We had lunch at Dairy Queen.  I had the crispy chicken sandwich (southern style … with dill pickles and no condiments) and Ella had three tacos.  I’m not sure why, but tacos at Dairy Queen just seems somehow WRONG.

            We continued our exploring on the way back to Shady Oaks by taking a drive up the west side of Buchanan Lake.  We had heard that the Lake was very low.  However, since we’d not seen it before, we had no way of judging.  Until yesterday.  We crossed a bridge that had a sign reading, “No Fishing From Bridge”.  There wasn’t any water within a mile and a half of the bridge.  And judging from the size of the shrubs that were growing under the bridge, there hadn’t been any water there for several years.

            We drove through a state park which should have been on the water’s edge but no longer was.  It was a very nice park and had a small RV camping area with full hook ups for $20 a night plus the day use charge. That would make it inexpensive for day or two but not for a long-term stay.

            While we were out I took some more photos of the amazing landscapes around here.  I would love to be able to hike out onto some of these amazing rockscapes and get some close up photos.

            I had some success with the slideout today also.  I added a little hydraulic fluid to the pump and pushed the button.  The slide went most of the way out!  Unfortunately there is still about a foot to go before it is fully extended and sealed.  Before we get ‘some weather’ I’ll need to get it fully open or fully closed again.  Pray for us.

            We met some of our neighbors last night.  Victor and Martha have a permanent site just across from us.  This is the first time that they have been here since we arrived.  They have a house in town and only come out on the weekends.  We took some Iowa grown tomatoes over and introduced ourselves.  We had a nice visit.

            Ella also took some tomatoes to our neighbors right beside us.  They are also from Iowa (Quad Cities area) and had arrived just minutes before we did.  I had visited with Gary several days ago but I’ve not met his wife.

            Those four boxes of green tomatoes that we picked before leaving Cutty’s are all starting to ripen.  After picking through them, there is only about a fourth of them that are still green and about a fourth that are just a pinkish color … not quite ripe … but soon!

            The day hasn’t progressed enough to post about today.  It is only 7 a.m.  I will say that it is chilly this morning at 43 degrees.  For the next 7 days the predicted lows are in the 60s.

Just photos

The deer that roam through Shady Oaks.  These are eating acorns.

My weight this morning.

This and the following photos are from the entrance to Shady Oaks.  Unlike most of the hills around here, these are bedrock from an 'uplift' and not just limestone.

we had less than a quarter inch of ran several days ago but this little "pond" is still here.  There is just a trace of soil on top of the rock for the grass to grow in. 

2012 October 17 Wednesday

            Yesterday (16^th)was another day of little activity.  I did get the roof vent installed and we (mostly Ella) did some more rearranging our living space to make it more functional.  Hillcountry RV called about 3:30 to let us know that the other vent has arrived.  We decided to not make a special trip into Marble Falls for the part, but to wait until we went to visit Heather and Mike.

           

            Today (17^th) is my youngest daughter’s, Heather, birthday. We had made plans to spend the day with her and Mike (until he had to leave for work).  However, I awoke about two this morning with diarrhea and vomiting.  I thought I was over it by five.  However, after I ate a half a bowl of oatmeal, it started over.  Heather had a managers’ meeting this morning, so I sent her a text letting her know what was going on and that we would not be spending the day with her after all.  I also called Mike to let him know what was going on just in case she returned home without reading the text.

            I went back to bed and slept until nearly 3:30.  I was feeling better (not good … but better) so we decided to go to Marble Falls and get the refrigerator side vent that had Hillcountry had called us about yesterday.  It is about thirty miles to get to any town from here.  Burnet, Llalo and Marble Falls are about equal distance and there isn’t much in between but ranches (and those are far between and well off the road). 

            When we arrived at Hillcountry I found that they couldn’t sell just the door of the vent but the whole vent kit.  I was hoping to just got back to the trailer and fit the door in place.  I did try that.  However, the new door did not fit the old trim piece.  I removed the old trim and was relieved that the new unit fit the opening.  It is installed.  I will pick up some putty tape the next time I’m in a town with a hardware.  I will then need to uninstall, add the putty and reinstall.

            While at Hillcountry we learned that the model hydraulic pump that we have is obsolete.  Larry is searching for the pump model that replaces the old.  I’m still not entirely sure that the pump is the problem.  I hate the thought of spending the money (still unknown but I’m guessing around a thousand dollars) and finding that the slide still will not go out.

            After installing the new vent, I finally felt that I could safely eat something.  So, I fixed a couple of eggs and some toast.  I then went up to bed and watched something on my Droid TV.  That was probably sometime before six.  I woke up about nine.  I fixed some more toast (with honey this time) and a cup of highly sugared coffee with milk.  I normally drink it black.  However, I seemed to be craving the sweet stuff.

            I’ve been working on this blog since then and am thinking that I’ll go back to bed as soon as I’m done posting this. (it is now nine forty-five p.m.)  I really hope that Ella doesn’t get what ever this was/is.

            Later…

2012 October 16

2012 October 16 Monday

            Being Monday, Ella had coffee with the womenfolk up at the rec-center at 9:30. (Every Monday and Friday).  And being as how it wasn’t Sunday, I had coffee with the menfolk at the rec-center at 7:30.  These will be reoccurring items on our schedules.  Another reoccurring event is the potluck.  I am not sure if it is scheduled for every other Friday or just for twice a month. 

            After our coffees we did very little except sit outside under our awning and be still.  The Lord (and nearly everyone else) knows we don’t have an overly active lifestyle, but it was nice to just sit in the middle of the peace and quiet.

            I had made a loaf of bread in the bread machine that was to finish baking at 1 p.m.  Ella couldn’t wait (or thought I couldn’t wait) until 1, so she fix our lunch about 11:30.  We had some fried shrimp with garlic and herbs, sliced home-grown tomatoes and baked potatoes.

            After lunch we did some lite housekeeping (the slideout is still ‘in’ which means we are cluttered and cramped at the moment).  The bread finished baking and we ate a couple of slices of warm bread and ‘butter’ (Country Crock Spread).

            Around 1:30 we drove into Marble Falls (by way of Kingsland) to check on the refrigerator vents ordered through Hillcountry RV.  The side (rear of the refrigerator) vent that Larry had ordered turned out to be not the vent but bug screens to go in the vent. He had misread the catalog.  So he made a quick call and added the correct part number to his next parts shipment. We did purchase the roof vent for the refrigerator while we were there. (For the benefit of those who do not know how RV refrigerators work ... they do not use a compressor like residential refrigerators.  They work by evaporation, which requires the air to be able to circulate upward behind the unit.  Therefore there is an opening approximately 1'x2' through the outside wall of the RV.  and a similar smaller hole in the roof.  These two openings are protected with vent covers.)

            From Hillcountry RV (Yes, that is how they spell it … all one word) we drove to Home Depot and purchased a 2”x112”x8’ treated board and had it cut in half.  I also purchased a 4”x10’ length of light weight PVC pipe to use for our sewer drain.  That is a camp requirement.  It was explained that the Texas sun rots sewer hoses too fast, so everything must be ‘hard plumbed’.  I also purchased a bow saw which I will use to cut the PVC pipe. (I didn’t bring and power or handsaws with me.)

            We went to Wal-Mart after leaving Home Depot.  We purchased a (very) few groceries, a shirt (top?) for Ella, and some toilet paper.

            We drove home from Marble Falls by way of Burnett which completed our rather circular drive for the day. (Maybe it is more of a triangle since there were three stops)

            Once arriving back at Shady Oaks, I hooked up to the Hitch Hiker and moved it forward four feet so that the boards could be placed behind the wheels.  I then backed up four feet and thus have the tires off of the gravel.  I also cut and installed the drain pipe.  It was late enough by now that I didn’t want to start on the roof vent.  If it goes simply, it should be an easy replacement job.  However, if it doesn’t go simply and quickly, I could end up trying to replace it in the dark on the roof.  So I left if for Tuesday’s list.

            For supper we had stew left over from when Arik and the kids were here.  Oh yeah, we also had more of the home made bread.

            My leg was aching, and because of the slideout situation we are unable to open the recliners, so I went up to lay on the bed about 7:30.  I laid there and watched several  Doctor Who shows on Droid TV before giving up and going to sleep.

            When I woke this morning (Tuesday the 16^th) it was raining slightly.  This makes me glad that I didn’t start a roof vent replacement that I might not have been able to finish.  I have had my breakfast and had coffee with the men.  I’ve also finished this post.  So, until tomorrow … or until something semi-newsworthy … Bye!

Visits via Tango and in person

2012 October 14,2012 Sunday

            We had a stormy night last night.  High winds, hail, rain and lots of lightning.  We went safely through the storm with no damage.  We had taken the awning down because Ron had come by and warned us that there were tornado watches in the area.  Our Weather Bug app didn’t mention tornados but it did warn of high wind, hail and rain.  It also showed us that a large number of lightning strikes were occurring within 0.1 mile of us.

            We are not going to church today in anticipation of Arik bringing the kids out for a visit.

            We received a Tango Video call from Charlotte and Lorelia who are visiting their Grandma Cindy who had come down from Minnesota to Des Moines.

            About 10:30 a.m. Arik brought Sofia and Beket out to visit today.  We ate the stew that I’d made plus some snack items that they brought with them.  Grandma Ella stayed at the trailer while the rest of us went to walk across the old highway 29 bridge across Inks Lake.  The bridge is no longer an automotive bridge but now for pedestrian use.  Once we returned from the walk, we played games with the kids (catch and Hot and Cold)  We talked with Arik about what we are loosely calling our “plans” for the next five months.  He mentioned some the sights of interest that we might want to visit while we are here.  He also talked about Jenny and his plans to stay in this area and possibly move to a home with more yard for the kids to play in.  He also spoke about the possibility of going into partnership with his boss on an additional, smaller, different restaurant.  Mostly we just hung our and enjoyed each other’s company.

The Colorado River with Inks Lakes Dam in the background

Colorado River downstream from Inks Lake Dam

A portion of Shady Oaks Riverside RV Retreat as seen from the Colorado River

We were invited to attend here (which we will) however, with Arik and kids coming to visit on Sunday morning, we skipped this Sunday.