When we first stayed here almost 4 years ago, this pond was full to the top with water. This is how it is today and sinking fast. We desperately need rain, lots of it.  

I awoke to another beautiful sunny day and it was very pleasant as we took our morning walk. Our blonde friend and her dog Roxy came back towards us from their walk only this time, they were accompanied by the big dog that we put back inside his fence yesterday. Apparently, now it has found a way out, he likes the idea of roaming. The grass is always greener etc. 

Malinda joined us and had a leash with her and volunteered to walk the dog back to where he lived although, I imagine that now he has found a way out, he will keep roaming. When she returned, she said he gets out by crawling under the gate as that is how he got himself back in. 

Back in Quatro, I fixed breakfast and coffee and sat down in front of the computer, first to catch up on the news and then to write in the blog. 

I looked out of the window and there was the big dog outside of my door. As predicted, now he has found a way out, there is no stopping him. Luckily, he is friendly and probably lonely, which is why he keeps going out. I went outside and made a fuss of him, and he kept wanting to come inside, but I would not let him. In the meantime, Mikey was barking up a storm. 

Daniel stopped by and picked up the Propane tank, later bringing it back, filled. I gave him the tire step that I had bought when I had a truck which he said would be very useful to him. I will probably never own another truck. One more thing to clear some space and a bit less weight to haul around. 

I hooked up the tank and then went inside to try it after shutting off the main Propane tank. It worked just fine and now we have a much simpler and easier way to replenish our Propane supply. Save having to move the RV every time. The RV tank is almost full, and it will be our reserve supply as needed. There is enough room for it in one of the storage compartments when we travel. 

The stray dog re-appeared back at the park and as well as hanging out around Quatro because it knew that Sandy and Mikey were inside, it also hung out around other RV’s especially if they had dogs. He made himself at home and so far, is proving to be very friendly. Still, it needs to go back to its own home but until the gate is fixed with wire mesh on the bottom, not much point. Later, the Hays County Animal Control Truck came and took him away, much to my chagrin. I hope that his owner claims him back. 

As I sat around, my mind turned to taking a walk at one of the local parks. As I had not made a reservation for the State Park, I decided to take a drive to Reimers Park, one of my old haunts. It took about 30 minutes to get there and probably because it was around 3:30 pm when we arrived, the sign on the window at the toll booth read, “No charge for entry, drive on in”. I could hardly believe my luck and we headed for the first parking lot.  

It too was almost empty, and I harnessed up the excited dogs and taking my real camera with me, we set off on the trail that runs alongside the Pedernales River although way up high on the cliff top. We wandered along the trail which was a mix of concrete in some places and gravel in others before turning to come back. This time, we crossed the road and walked a separate trail that headed in the same direction. Altogether, we covered 2.2 miles for the day which also included a short walk around when we got back to Henly. 

The little Boston Terrier walked by with his master as we were going into the RV. We had to stop just to make a fuss of him. He is a real cutie and so friendly. 

The rest of the evening was spent in the usual fashion with food followed by watching TV. 

Written January 9, 2023. Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com  

The Diary of an Old Man and an RV. Henly RV Park, Dripping Springs, TX Day 41, Tuesday 01/10/2023

This is the dog that has been subject to so much discussion. He is a very nice dog but is big. Much too big for me to adopt.

We got up at a very reasonable hour, for us, and following a shower and a change of clothes went out for the morning walk. It was a beautiful day and the sun was shining brightly as we walked around the park. Saying “Good Morning” to the other campers walking their dogs. Or were the dogs walking the humans? Who knows? We made a couple of circuits of the park before returning to Quatro. 

I skipped coffee and breakfast as I needed to go into town after having arranged to pick up my mail which meant driving to the other side of Austin to Far West Blvd. I toyed with the idea of taking the backway and then decided that at the time I was leaving, traffic should not be that heavy. This turned out to be true and we made good time all the way to Far West Blvd. 

They recognized me when I walked in, and the clerk went back and retrieved my mail. One of the reasons for bothering to come in to get it was a couple of prescriptions and a new set of checks that I had been waiting for. Not that I write many checks but not all companies accept credit cards so I never know when I might need them. 

With the mail collected, I drove down MoPac to the Walmart’s located on the Oak Hill side of town and spent the next 30 or more minutes just wandering around. I really did not need anything specific except a few food items which I quickly grabbed. These included a roast chicken that I have not bought in a while. I even bypassed the wine section as I was well stocked in that department. 

I found the RV section but there was nothing that I needed which was true of about everything although I did buy a new phone case as mine is kind of worn out. I also looked at shoes for something to replace the sandals that I wear indoors. These have become paper thin in the soles and I can feel every knot in the floorboards. I had no luck in finding a replacement in the current stock on display. 

From Walmart’s, I drove home the back way for a change of scenery stopping to buy my usual Latte and as I had skipped breakfast, an egg sandwich. This was quickly devoured as I had no one to share it with or any sets of begging eyes making me feel guilty. As I drove back, the Latte lasted all the way home. 

The dogs were very pleased to welcome me back and helped to put the few groceries away before harnessing up to go out walking. I decided to take the bottom road, the one the big dog that was taken to the Animal Shelter lives on, in the hope of seeing some sign of him. I reached his gate and he had not appeared, and neither was there any form of blockage placed under the gate to prevent him from digging out.  

From what I saw, I could only conclude that the owner had not retrieved the dog from the Animal Shelter, but it is early days yet. I would have rescued and adopted the dog myself if it had been a small breed dog but as it is not, there is not enough room for anything of any size along with Sandy and Mikey and of course, me. As it is, I have 1/4 of the bed IF I am lucky. Apparently, the dogs cannot count either as I should at least get 1/3. 

Back at the RV, we sat outside for about an hour listening to an Audiobook, this time a Stephen King story, until it began to chill off. We then adjourned back inside of the RV where I played catch up on the computer with the days ongoing events before feeding us all. This was followed by the usual English Premier Football to round off the evening. 

Written January 10, 2023. Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com