11/26/2021

Another day and it’s getting closer for us to move on. I have mixed feelings about leaving this park as I have really enjoyed our stay here. The one major drawback is that the internet has been really dodgy even with my booster. But needs must and I have business back in Austin in December and January. The plan is to head up North to New York State next year but we will see how things work out. As per usual, the first walk of the day was around the park and onto the short trail. It was quiet out and we didn’t get to meet any other dogs or humans come to that. With no serious plans for the day, it was a question of finding something to do other than to write in this blog.

I solved that problem by harnessing up the dogs and hitting the trails. We opted to take the longest one for a distance of 1.5 miles. That coupled with the .7 miles this morning put us well over the 2 mile mark which is our goal for most days, In the past 7 days, we have walked a little over 13 miles so pretty close to the mark. We had one wet day when we only walked for about a half mile for the day. Gotta stay fit somehow and as I can’t run or kick a ball anymore, walking is the next best thing. I have to thank Sandy and Mikey for getting me out there.

We had an interesting development while we were watching television later on in the evening. I heard a knock on the door and at first thought it was on the TV and then when it came a second time, answered it to find a neighbor standing there telling me that I had water pouring out of Miss Daisy. I thanked him and and turned to check only to see that the sink was overflowing. Somehow, I had managed to leave the faucet running and this being an RV and not a house, the grey tank had filled up and the sink was full and coming out the top. It must have been running for a couple of hours and I have no idea why I didn’t notice it. I spent the next half hour mopping up after emptying the grey tank. As far as I can tell, there is no damage but I left the cabinet doors open with a fan in front blowing cold air to dry things out.
As there was nothing more I could do, we all went to bed with me chastising myself for being so dumb and wondering why I didn’t hear the water running.

11/27/2021

I got up and then I remembered the happenings of last evening and got to checking to see if there was any damage. Everything appeared to have dried out but the outlet on the counter wouldn’t work and neither would the one under the dining seating which supplies power to the computer among other things. The outlet above the dining area was working so I did some maneuvering and used a multi outlet unit to provide the power where I needed it. The one bad thing, ok, one of several, is that there are too few outlets in the RV and in order to have more than a couple of things plugged in like the computer and the printer, I have to be a little inventive and use the extension unit that when plugged in, allows for three or six other items to be attached. I usually never have more than two plugged in at the same time as that would put too big a load on the system resulting in more blown fuses.

With the power taken care of at least temporarily as I still need to locate the cause of the blown fuses, I decided to put that off until after coffee and breakfast for us all. Well, coffee for me and a burrito. Following breakfast, although I hadn’t planned on it, I had to do a load of laundry to wash among other things, all of the towels I had used to mop up the water last evening. I threw everything into the Jeep and drove the short distance over to the Laundry Room and I was lucky that no one else was using any of the machines which by itself, is very unusual. I dumped the soggy mess into the washing machine and drove back to Miss Daisy to wait it out. An hour later, I went back over and threw the clothes into one of the dryers and an hour after that, I folded the clothes and brought everything back. Them came the process of making the bed, something I have described many times before and today was no different, After much grunting and complaining to myself, the dogs having experienced the trauma of bedmaking before and knowing when to disappear, I finally got it made and after congratulating myself on a job well done, noticed that it was already getting dark so it was time for walkies. We made a circuit of the park running into the little Schnauzer who also happened to be walking with his Mom and stopped to talk. Continuing on, we bumped into the Super who had a Grandson with him and talked to him for a bit. We confirmed that indeed, we would be pulling out on the1st of December and he offered me a spot if ever I wanted to return in the future. Told me that I was always welcome which is nice to hear. Who can foretell the future, As were completing our walk, it came on to rain making our timing perfect. The evening was spent in the usual way, food for us all, a glass of wine for me and then watch football of the English kind.

Written `11/27/2021 – Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com

11/24/2021

Another sunny day in this beautiful park. As usual, the first thing on the agenda was the early morning walk. We stopped to say hello to the horses, well I did. The dogs just ignored them. We managed to cover a mile just walking around without hitting any trails, a great start to the day. I decided that I needed to do laundry and gathered up the clothes and washing detergents and made my way over to the Laundry Room where only the dryers were in use. I grabbed a washing machine and loaded it out adding detergent which is of the little plastic podules kind and went back to Miss Daisy. An hour later, I went back over to put the laundry in the dryer but for some reason, the wash had not completed properly and the liquid detergent was all over the clothes. I had no choice but to set up another wash cycle. I spent some time talking to Alice who helps out with running the office and then retuned back to the RV to wait it out. An hour later, I made my way back and this time, the wash had completed successfully and so into the dryer and again returning to Miss Daisy. An hour later, I headed back to the laundry room and the wash was dry. I spent time folding it and putting into my laundry bag, headed back home. I’m pretty good at this as I have been single for almost 30 years and have had a lot of practice although it was much more convenient back at the old house with my own washer and dryer.

Back in Miss Daisy, I put the laundry away which comprised of underclothes in the drawer, shorts and tee shirts in the closet and towels in the bathroom. Real easy. By the way, I can almost stand in one place and just shuffle my feet to complete this task with no walking involved. By then, it was time to go grocery shopping in Livingstone and this time, I went to the Walmart’s as I wanted that rotisserie chicken and I also wanted to add to my steps for the day. I found everything on my list with the exception of cans of scented spray that goes into a battery operated gizmo which quirts out a jet of nice smelling stuff to keep Miss Daisy fresh. I walked all over the place but could not locate it. Giving up on that, I checked out and made my way to Starbucks (of course) before making the drive home. I had previously stopped at Lowe’s on the way in as I need a clamp to stop the carrier from rattling as much and I know there is one available to do just that. However, Lowe’s did not carry the unit and neither did an Autoparts store which I found on my way out. Both of them had everything tow hitchwise but not what I wanted

The drive back was uneventful except for a wonderful sunset that I wanted to photograph. Unfortunately, there are no real shoulders to pull off and too much traffic which did not give me the opportunity. I arrived back to two very excited little dogs who helped me put the groceries away, at least those that needed to go into the refrigerator and leaving the rest strewn all over the floor, we harnessed up and headed out of the door. We walked the park staying mostly on the roads as by now, it was getting dark and I could not see where I was going without the help of the street lights around the park, Arriving back, we settled down for the evening with food for all of us and TV with a glass of wine. Altogether for the day, I covered 3.8 miles, a very good day indeed.

11/25/2021

I managed to get up early and we headed out the door for the first walk of the day. Like yesterday, we walked the park perimeter staying as wide as we could to get in the extra steps and like yesterday, we stopped to say hello to the horses. Such beautiful creatures. I didn’t know it then, but that was the last time that we would greet or see them. As I was walking the short trail, the neighbors black dog suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Sandy growled a bit and Mikey for once, stood his ground but nothing happened in the way of a fight. I thought at first the dog was loose and was getting ready to turn back and take the dog with us when my neighbor appeared and called the dog over. We chatted for a bit before heading back down the trail. We completed the circuit and walked almost a mile before returning for breakfast.

I settled down to write and as I sat there, I saw the people leaving with the Horse RV and for some reason, I felt so sad. Amazing how the love of animals can make you feel that way. Shaking off the gloom, I got back to work with the everyday task and continued to write. Yesterday, because I couldn’t locate the part I needed to stabilize the Carrier unit on the Jeep, I decided to order one through Amazon and it should be here tomorrow. That is an amazing company as I have ordered stuff before and received it the next day which is great for us mobile people with no permanent address at least for deliveries.

Today is another beautiful sunny day although a little cooler with the temperature around 62 degrees as Fall slowly comes to an end and the Winter season approaches, officially on December 21st. With the exception of one semi permanent RV, the temporary row B which is where we first parked, is now empty. A couple more RV’s pulled in later in the day but they went into the more permanent spaces although that doesn’t mean they are staying long.

I decided that we had sat around long enough and thought that we should at least drive to Lake Livingstone State Park if only just to take a look and maybe take a few pictures. We harnessed up and I made sure that I had my real camera with the telescopic lens with me and off we went. Lake Livingstone State Park is only a few miles from the RV Park and in no time at all, we arrived where I got out and paid my $3.00 fee. The lady behind the counter asked if I was hiking today but I told her no as I wasn’t planning on it. I guess they do that for safety’s sake so they can account for everyone’s movements.

The Park is fairly big with over a hundred RV and tent camp sites most of which were full up. There were a lot of the younger generation running and playing and many Parents sitting around camp fires. Compared to the Park I am staying at, this one was like a city in rush hour. I found where most of the trailheads were and seriously considered taking a hike anyway but then decided against it. I did take several pictures of the lake and boat ramps. Maybe I’ll hike another day. We took the drive back and discovered that we had a problem with the Jeep. Not a serious one and I did learn a bit more about it. This is the first time that the dogs have taken a ride in this vehicle and of course, they are always vying to see who will sit on my lap. By itself, that is not a problem except that the dividing console has the 4 wheel drive controls plus when I got out to use one of the restrooms, I noticed that all of a sudden, the Jeep was further off the ground surprising the heck out of me. Turns out that the control to raise and lower it are also in the center console and with the dogs busy jostling each other, they activated both the height and the 4 wheel drive. Something for me to keep an eye on in the future. By the way, I knew about the 4 wheel drive but had no idea that the Jeep could be raised and lowered so actually, the dogs did me a favor.

We arrived back at the campground and went out for that evenings walk that we never got to do at Lake Livingstone State Park. We did a complete circuit around the park and the hit the short trail. On the way back, apart from the visible signs of where the horse corral had been, there was a very strong smell in the air. There is no mistaking the smell of horses. We stopped to chat with our Artist neighbor who was working on another painting of the same couple. He is very good at it although as he pointed out, it is getting a bit chilly to sit outside and pursue his art. Altogether, we covered 2.5 miles for the day.

Back in Miss Daisy, we prepared for the evening with food and drinks and TV.

Written 11/23/2021 – Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com

11/20/2021

Another day in heaven. We walked around the park stopping to talk to a couple of the neighbors on the way. The horses were not in their paddock but at the end of the walk, when we were sitting on the wicker couch, I spotted them running loose and jumped up to help try to catch them but the owners finally caught up with them and my help was not needed. I guess they had them loose grazing in the spray fields where there is some long grass and they had wandered a bit. No harm done. Yesterday, they had gone riding on the trails as we spotted some of their tell tale signs that horses always leave. On our usual walk around the park this morning, Sandy insisted that we take one of the trails. I fooled her though by taking the shortest one available which satisfied her doggy curiosity and her bossy ways. The way we walk is that I point her in the general direction and she kinda takes over and steers the ship. We do tend to wander a bit but it makes life interesting. I noticed that another RV was sitting in our old spot which must have come in very late last evening as it was already set up

We sat and worked on the blogs as we usually do and before I knew it, it was 2:00 pm. I have no idea where the time goes as it just flies by. I had even got up earlier as well as I realize that getting up late is wasting daylight which is now gone by 5:30 pm when it gets dark. I still haven’t made it to Lake Livingstone State Park and it needs to happen this coming week or it won’t happen at all as we are scheduled to leave December1st. On our walk around this morning, one of the neighbors I was talking to expressed dismay that I was planning on leaving December. Must be that I have the right personality and am quiet enough to belong at this park. Who knows what the future holds. I may end back up here permanently when my travelling days are over. Maybe I can rent the tiny home that is here and not deal with an RV. Wonder what sort of price deal I could get?

We went for a walk in the afternoon much earlier than we usually do as Sandy was being an exceptional bug which usually signifies the need to “go”. We harnessed up and taking a bag of garbage with us that needed to go in the dumpster, set off only for me to realize that I had forgotten my walking pole. We did a quick about turn, picked it up and set off for the second time walking one of the trails. We hadn’t gone no more than a half mile when Sandy yelped and then started licking her foot. I took a quick look around but could not see any crittures and so had no idea what was wrong. She let me take a look but didn’t like me prodding around. We did a quick about turn with her limping on three legs all the way back where I took another look. She may have cut her paw on something as there was some blood. There was not a lot I could do for her and she curled up on the passenger seat of Miss Daisy and went to sleep feeling very sorry for herself. Even cutting the walk short, we covered 1.5 miles for the day.

Another RV pulled in late afternoon and the man of the family quickly set it up as I watched through my window. It was very obvious that he was organized and knew what he was doing and in no time flat, he was done. Now, all of the “temporary” sites are filled up for this weekend and all with long RV’s. Thirty plus footers and all trailers. No 5th wheels with the exception of the horse trailer. As I said before, most of the residents are permanent but at least two long termers have moved on these past few days.

11/21/2021

We got up to a very cloudy day with a chance of rain in the forecast. Sandy’s foot seemed to be OK as she was more than willing to walk around the park but I noticed that she stayed pretty much on the roads. She took us to the trails and we started to walk a short one when all of a sudden, she decided that she didn’t want to go trail walking and turned back dragging Mikey and me behind her, I guess the trails hurt the foot she complained about yesterday. On our walk around, the horses owners were leading the horses and were walking around the park. Perched on top of each one was a kid from the last trailer that pulled in yesterday. They are an Oriental family and it looks like they have three kids. One of them, a girl, has made friends with one of my neighbors cat and spent some time playing with it. This particular cat is very curious and even tried to make friends with Sandy until Mikey chased it off. Mikey doesn’t trust any cat, friendly or otherwise. Come to that, Mikey doesn’t trust humans either other than me. Like I said before, he is a chicken little and hides behind me if we stop to talk to anyone especially if they try to make friends with him.

It came on to rain but only briefly and I sat here and listened to it as it dripped off the trees. Very soothing. One of the RV’s packed up and pulled out this morning but none of the others show any sign of moving on. I know that the horse people are here for a week but not sure about the others. We have ten more days before we head back to Henly, a 250 mile drive. I toyed with the idea of staying overnight somewhere along the way but decided that I can drive that without too much trouble. Just need to get up earlier that day to get an early start as I don’t want to be driving in the dark. The old eyes don’t do too well with the glare of the oncoming headlights anymore.

We went out for the afternoon walk and this time, we hit the longer trails. An uneventful walk and Sandy did just fine. Mikey too was really into this walk which is unusual for him as he normally walks behind me. Today, he was right up there with Sandy and at times even leading the way. Altogether for the day, we covered 2.0 miles which is really good for us. Only when I walk around the enormous Walmart’s does it go higher as that adds another mile to the count. Not to say that I couldn’t walk further, I could, but it is difficult with two small dogs as they do get tired. When we got back, the Asian family had pulled out so they were just weekenders. Great way to spend family time. We sat on the wicker couch for a while before heading back inside for the rest of the evening.

Written 11/21/2021 – Check out my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com

11/18/2021

Another day only this time, Sandy was not with us when we awoke. By the looks of the bedcovers, I must have had another bad dream where I was being chased by demons or something similar as the covers were all over the place. No wonder Sandy chose to sleep on the passenger seat in the front cab. Probably felt safer there with all of my wild thrashing around. However, Mikey, my faithful buddy, had stuck it out and was curled up right alongside me where he usually sleeps. Sometimes, when he is that close, his body heat is almost too hot for me to put up with and I have to move away. He really is a loving little fellow. I crawled out and got dressed and took them out for their walk. We walked by the horses just to say hello and then continued wandering around the park grabbing a couple of horse and RV pictures as we went. The park was quiet as it usually is and even the Schnauzer was not out in her run. The morning walk usually covers around .06 of a mile and only if we are really energetic do we bother with more steps. I generally use the afternoon walk to get the mileage up.

I completed yesterdays blog and posted the couple of pictures that I had taken of the horses and their RV. I should probably do laundry but from where I am sitting, I can see the Laundry Room and it looks like there is a car parked in front which generally indicates that someone is using the machines. I can wait as I have plenty of tee shirts, shorts and underwear which is all I ever dress up in. I will probably be buried in the same clothes. I guess “dress up in” is not really a good description as what I should really say is that these are the clothes that I wear on a daily basis. Dress up really refers to just that, getting ready for a special occasion and I have very few of those nowadays. Thank goodness.

We went out for the afternoon walk and met the lady with the horses. Her name is Elise and she told me that they have had horses for thirty or so years and have been RV’ing full time for five years. Interestingly enough, when I mentioned that I write a blog, it turns out that she also writes one and hers is on Camp Ground reviews. I need to get the name of it so I can check it out.

We walked the Park and then went on a couple of the shorter trails before heading back to Miss Daisy. On the way, we stopped by the horse paddock just to say hello to the two horses, Sandy wasn’t very interested and Mikey was in his usual place, behind me. We also stopped by my next door neighbors dog who is a friendly young lady but a little skittish. At least, the dogs don’t bark at each other anymore even if they are not yet nose touching friends,

Back inside Miss Daisy, we settled down for the evening and after feeding us all, I started watching my current favorite show, Midsomer Murders on the Roku channel which is an English production and has some wonderful views of the English countryside and the old houses. It is really a murder mystery and each installment lasts an hour and thirty minutes with always a couple of people getting murdered in each show, A lot of the characters are of the English nobility or of families that go back hundreds of years and the characters portrayed are mostly snobs while some of the regular people are the opposite kind, rough and hard speaking who don’t give a damn who they are speaking to. Makes for very interesting watching. The show goes back a long way starting in 1997 and is still running today with between six to eight episodes a year. That make a total of around two hundred and thirty or so. I am up to season 17. I spent last evening running through each series starting from the very beginning just to make sure that I had seen every one of the episodes as they have a habit of jumping forward when I tune in. I estimate that I have watched eighty or more of them so far. It didn’t seem like that much at the time. I guess all that really matters is that it keeps me amused.

With the latest of these still swirling around my brain, we went to bed. Somewhere in the night, Sandy decided to sleep on the passenger seat of Miss Daisy so she was either too hot or I was dreaming again. That’s what comes of watching murder mysteries last thing of the evening.

11/19/2021

We actually got up earlier this morning but before we did, Sandy came trooping back in to reward us with her presence after leaving us in the night to sleep on the passenger seat of Miss Daisy. She ambled over as if to say, “I forgive you Dad for having another bad dream night. Try not to do it again, OK”. After showering and dressing for the day, the first thing was to go out walking. We said hello to the horses as we wandered around but except for my neighbors dog, none of the others were outside. It was a very slow walk stopping at almost every other tree or other interesting spots and it takes a while just to cover the half mile which is one circumference around the park.

Back inside Miss Daisy and following breakfast, we settled down to write as is our usual fashion. We didn’t have any new pictures to work on and was limited to strictly writing so we didn’t spend as much time as we usually do. The dogs were ancy so I decided that we would take an earlier walk which we did. They, of course, were very happy with the arrangement. We hiked a couple of the trails and altogether, we covered 2.3 miles for the day making a total of 13.1 for the week. If I can just keep that up.

Another RV pulled in across from me and I watched as they positioned it and then set it up. It went very smoothly so they had done it all before. This time, the driver had a wife that actually helped in the positioning and levelling which made it much easier on him. I, for some reason, always feel much more comfortable when I see that people know what they are doing as without the proper care and knowledge, accidents can and do happen. With the light fast fading and nothing more to see outside. I drew the blinds to close off the outside world for one more day. We ate our evening meal and then watched more of Midsomer Murders. No wonder I have bad dreams.

Written 11/19/2021 – Check out my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com

Written 11/14/2021

I awoke late and crawled out of bed before going out for the first walk of the day. We stuck to the perimeter of the park as that gets us the most mileage and therefore, the most exercise plus it is the easiest walking. Sandy had to greet the little Schnauzer as we drew level and I chatted to the owners who were sitting outside. Other than that, the walk was uneventful. The kids were playing on the swings and in the playground but as I passed, I could see the grownups were already breaking camp getting ready to head back to their respective houses. Great way to spend a weekend especially for the kids as it does get them closer to Nature and away from TV, computers and the ever present mobile phone.

My other neighbors in the RV had already pulled out even before I got up. Must have a long trip ahead of them to leave that early. Wait a minute, I just remembered that I got up late, again. My other neighbors in the Class B also pulled out. I think they must be new at this camping thing as the only thing I saw them do was hook up the electricity and water and it was not until they were getting ready to leave, did they hook up their hoses to empty the tanks. They never did level their rig and did seem a bit lost as to what to do. Good luck to them for the future and I hope they build a lot of camping memories. Nothing like hands on experience to learn. They sure do have a nice looking rig though. By the way, it is considered bad form to offer advice unless it is specifically asked for. With all of the new arrivals gone amid a flurry of excitement, the park settled down to it’s usual quiet place made even quieter by the fact that it was Sunday.

Everything was peaceful as I looked out of Miss Daisy. My next door neighbor was working on his RV and he told me that he just replaced his refrigerator as the old one stopped working. That’s the thing with this RV life, with older rigs and sometimes, even the newer ones, stuff wears out or breaks and has to be repaired or replaced. Some, the average handyman can take care of but sometimes, it means calling in an expert or taking the unit to some RV repair specialists which can be a problem if they are going to keep it for a period of time and this is your house and only abode. Plus, it may contain all of your worldly possessions as in my case. For someone that once had a lot of possessions in an 1850 square foot house and two workshops, mine are now very, very few all packed into 250 square feet of space. By the way, I still can’t find anything. Incidentally, my painter friend two RV’s down with the 1995 older unit has been working on rebuilding it and has almost finished with rewiring the electricity. Don’t know what else he has left to do.

When the internet service is not very good as it is in a lot of RV Parks, this one included, I rely on my Netgear booster through ATT which enables me to get internet most of the time. It may still go in and out occasionally but most of the time, it is a steady signal. The service costs me $55.00 for a 100 gigs but I have found that I run out halfway through the month if I have to use it all the time and at the last campground, it cost me $250.00 to buy extra gigs of service. I was fast running out here and called ATT and spoke with a very nice but very difficult to understand Indian lady who told me that I could renew the original service by changing the renew date which is what I have done. $110.00 is a lot cheaper than $305.00 for a month. Some parks like the last one at St Ives had very good Internet service and I didn’t use the booster at all. It still costs me the $55.00 as it doesn’t roll over to the next month. A small price to pay for what is to me, my most important pastime, writing this blog. Why is it important? Well, for one thing, it allows my artistic side to come out in pictures, writing and in the poetry but probably the most important of all is that it keeps my brain very active in the hope that the deterioration that has already started, will be slowed down.

I looked at the clock and was very surprised to see that it was already 3:30 pm. I have no idea where the time has gone but somehow, it has slipped away and another day has almost passed. With us being back to normal time, it gets dark much earlier by 5:30 pm and sooner than that on a cloudy day. So, it means that our afternoon walks which used to start at 5:00 pm or later now need to start much earlier if we plan on walking any distance. With that in mind, I got the guys (and girls) ready and we headed out the door. I decided to forgo the park and headed straight for the trails. We walked for a little over a mile before heading back to Miss Daisy where we sat outside for a bit. My neighbor came over and chatted before I headed back indoors. I worked on this blog and then fed the dogs and then myself before settling down for the evenings entertainment. And so ended another day…

Written 11/15/2021

The sun was shining as we walked around the park taking our usual route on the outside perimeter to get the most steps in. Sandy got to say “Hi” to her Schnauzer friend and I chatted briefly with the owners. A couple of other people were out and about otherwise, the park was quiet. It is Monday and some of the tenants have gone to work. it would be very interesting to know more about their backgrounds. I’ll just bet there are some very interesting stories out there as I think there are a lot of retired people here and the Super told me that there are no kids at all except from the occasional visit.

Following breakfast, I settled down to write and the dogs also settled down but for them it was to sleep. What a life! If I had a choice and if there is an afterlife, I want to come back as a dog to a family that loves me. I wrote for a couple of hours and then I decided to go into Livingstone to stock up on groceries as I was getting low on a couple of things. On the way, I passed an HEB and on the spur of the moment decided to do my shopping there. This was not a huge store but pretty much had everything I needed but they didn’t have a meat counter. All meats were pre-packaged which is OK except I had my heart set on a rotisserie cooked whole chicken which they didn’t do. I had to settle for the prepackaged turkey.

I have been looking for body lotion with sunscreen which, on the advice of my Dermatologist, is what I use everyday to help ward off the sun’s damaging rays but a couple of stores in which I had previously checked, didn’t carry what I wanted. Lots of body lotion but not with sunscreen so I paid my bill and lo and behold, there was Walgreens across the street but they didn’t carry it either. Driving down the road, I located a CVS Pharmacy and lucky for me, they had it. I bought 3 bottles which should last me for a while. Next stop was, you guessed it, a Starbucks which did me very well for the drive home. BTW, I won’t go back to that HEB again as it is not a patch on the gigondous Walmart’s which has rotisserie cooked whole chicken.

On the way in, I had spotted what looked like a King Charles Spaniel wandering on the side of the road but it was in a small village. I couldn’t stop as I had traffic behind me and in the other lane so I had to keep going. On the way back, I took a detour to re-cover my tracks just in case that dog was still wandering but I did not see it so hopefully, it either went home or someone rescued it. That’s the second dog that I have seen wandering on the side of the road. I stopped for the first one by she ran away and as it was a busy road, I did not want to scare her into it so I gave up. She wasn’t there either when I drove back later. I wonder what it is with all of these loose dogs? Some people don’t worry over their pets like I do and I understand this but even so.

Altogether today with walking the park and the stores, I covered about 2.1 miles and am averaging between 10-12 miles a week. I am amazed just how fast the days are flying by for several reasons. One is that my time here is drawing to a close. This is an absolutely beautiful area and the scenery is out of this world. I passed a huge field today that must have had more than 100 cows or steers or whatever they were. Definitely not milk cows but more of the meat kind. Wherever you looked, there were animals just contentedly grazing. Lucky for them, they don’t know their future.

I have received two email notifications in the past week. One was from my Dermatologist who I have been seeing for almost 20 years in which she said that she is giving up her practice and retiring. She had mentioned it the last time I was there only at that time, she wasn’t sure what to do as her office building was being demolished for the Hospital expansion. So, rather than go through the hassle of setting up somewhere else, she is retiring. Good for her. Then today, I got an email from my Veterinary service to say that Dr Donop, my animal doctor for as long as I can remember, after 22 years of service is also retiring. He actually is pretty young, not even 50 as far as I can tell so he must have done pretty well in that clinic or maybe he has other independent means. I know he had a lot of my money but he really cared about the animals. I am gong to miss him as we have been through a lot of trauma together and on top of that, he is a really nice guy. BTW, he has an RV and is going to move to Colorado and do a lot of camping. I have been going to that Vet service when the original owner had it more than 30 years ago.

I keep outliving my medical people. I guess that is a good thing but since living here in Texas, my first Orthopedic surgeon retired as did my first Dentist followed by my second Dentist who only lasted a couple of years before she retired due to illness. Another Ortho retired who did my knee replacement surgery but I still have the Ear Doctor who has been with me for 33 years. He too is getting old and I wouldn’t be a bit surprised to get a notice that he is retiring sometime in the future and now my Vet who is actually, Mikey’s vet as Sandy still goes to Bastrop Animal Shelter for her shots. Dr Donop treated a lot of my pets both cats and dogs going back all of those 22 years and between us, we have suffered a lot of grief as we lost different ones and happy times when others recovered. He is such an understanding man and I will miss his service and dedication to the animals. He is the only man to see me cry.

Upon my return, we took our usual evening walk and stayed around the park. It was already getting dusk as the evening darkness was creeping in so we adjourned to Miss Daisy for the usual evening repass and entertainment.

Written 11/15/2021 – Check out my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com

Written 11/12/2021

Another week has flown by at this beautiful park. Shame that I have to go back to Austin on December as I really like it here. All of the people that I have spoken to on my walks are all very friendly and curious and like to spend time visiting and I really like this glorified camping life. It’s not like tent camping of my youth where you are a lot closer to nature as Miss Daisy has all of the mod cons that I need even if space is a bit cramped and that I can never find anything.

We went out for our morning walk and just strolled around the park. I have discovered that if we walk the grassy perimeter we can get in a lot more steps and besides, it is much easier walking than on the gravel roads with it’s larger rocks which make for uncomfortable walking even wearing boots as I always do. We try to get in at least a half mile on the morning walk before heading back into Miss Daisy for breakfast. The first part of my days is pretty set and I generally always follow the same routine which only gets varied if we happen to have something special or different planned for that day. That routine comprises of walking the dogs, breakfast for us all and then sitting down to answer any emails that require my attention followed by writing about yesterdays adventures in the blog.

I spent a couple of hours writing and then Sandy, who I am sure has learned that if she is a big enough bug, she gets to go out for a walk. Mikey, on the other hand, is content to sleep the day away only going out to answer the call of Nature. Remembering Sandy’s performance of a couple of days ago when she really did need to go out to do her business and breathing a deep sigh of resignation, I put on my boots which only excited both of them even more. They patiently wait as I strap on their harness but after that, its a “Lets go Dad” as they pull and tug until I open the door and out they fly. By now, I am prepared and brace myself for the inevitable tug as they hit the ground running. We walked the Park perimeter and this time, I walked behind the RV’s on the far side, a route we hadn’t taken before. We got to meet more neighbors and one little Schnauzer in a caged run that Sandy managed to touch noses with. Mikey, not so much as he stood behind me in his usual spot when other dogs are around. We completed the perimeter circuit and I was prepared to go inside but the Madam, had other ideas and led us down to the trails and made us walk one of the short ones. Finally, she led us back to Miss Daisy as she had tired herself out at least enough she didn’t want to walk anymore.

As I was sitting on the couch, another large 5th wheel pulled in a parked in our old site. I watched for a while and again, the man did everything while the wife just stood around. She didn’t help in anyway that I could see as far as setting up the RV. No directions, no nothing. They also had two smaller kids, a girl and a boy. Incidentally, I got a better look at the man and he appears to be much older than the woman so maybe it’s his daughter and grandkids which would account for her not helping. Talking about tent camping, a couple of families moved in today and are doing just that, tent camping. There are several children and at least three different families with the kids of all ages plus a dog or two. They are in the grassy area in front of the office and not far from the playground. Wonderful way to bring up the kids and teach them how to get closer to Nature.

Then it was time for the evening meal and the usual round of television and a glass of wine. Tonight, the Internet reception was very good and I got to watch a football game plus a couple of episodes of Midsomer Murders, an English thriller series that shows wonderful views of the old English houses and countryside interspersed with the odd murder or two just to spice things up. Reminds me of home.

Written 11/13/2021

We awoke to the sound of the children that moved in last evening, playing on the swings in the Playground. It’s great to hear them enjoying themselves. Sandy was ready to go so out the door we stepped in our usual tangled rush and headed for the grassy area to walk the perimeter again. Like I said before, for me it is easier walking and does take us away from the other RV’s and whatever dogs may be tied up outside which usually ends in a cacophony of barking, jumping up and down and generally being very noisy. We made a full perimeter of the park and ended up close to the Trail head which was one of my many mistakes for the day as Sandy was determined that we needed to walk the trails. I tried to talk her out of it but being the woman of the group, she easily won any arguments that Mikey or I could come up with so off we went. Actually, I had the last word as I took the shortest route turning back onto a return trail at the first opportunity. She didn’t know any different. We walked almost a mile for the mornings walk, a good start to the day.

The rest of the morning followed our usual routine, breakfast, coffee and then reading and answering emails and writing in my blog. As I watched, another one of the long term residents to my left and across the way, packed up his RV and pulled out. A little while later, he came back with a trailer to pick up his two outside grilles and a couple of other items and then left again. Obviously, they have moved campgrounds but have not gone very far. There is quite a bit of activity in the Park with a lot of comings and goings by the Residents, others are busy doing “stuff” around their units or heading off somewhere in their vehicles. My new neighbors have set up their grille and are busy cooking a meal but then again, they do have two small kids that need to be fed on a regular basis. For myself, I eat two meals a day, breakfast and the evening meal and very little in between. I’m not much of a barbecue enthusiast as I don’t eat much in the way of meat. I’m limited to occasional chicken or turkey and I buy them prepared so I don’t have to. I have never been much of a meat eater my entire life and at age 85 and in good health, am not the worse for it.

A very nice looking Class B pulled in with a young couple inside and parked directly across from me. The camper looked new and they didn’t bother to level it up so I knew they were not staying more than overnight.

The rest of the day was spent in the usual fashion of writing in this blog and working on some photos that I took before heading out for the afternoon walk at Sandy’s insistence. We walked the park and then a couple of the trails and covered about 2.5 miles for the day. We actually ran into another couple heading in the opposite direction which was a bit of a surprise as we normally don’t see anyone on the trails. Not sure that too many of the residents are into hiking as many are older. So am I but I have always run or hiked and I find no reason to ever stop, that is until I can’t anymore. Besides, Sandy won’t let me.

We sat for a while outside and as my next door neighbor was working on his RV, I walked over just to chat with him mostly about RV stuff before calling it a day and going back inside Miss Daisy for the evening meal. For some reason, the TV reception was not very good and I ended up watching on my laptop.

Written 11/14/2021 – Check out my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com

Wednesday – 11/10/2021

We got up around the usual time and as we normally do, the first thing was to take the dogs out for their morning stroll. It was quiet out with only a couple of people out and about. I passed the Laundry Room and it appeared to be busy even at that time of the morning. I guess some people get up much earlier than I do. Change that to “Most” people. We wandered back to Miss Daisy and breakfast before settling down in front of the computer to write. I am pretty caught up on writing nowadays which is just as well as my memory is slowly going and I have a hard time recollecting what I did a couple of days ago unless it was something big like going grocery shopping. A lot of that is because very little changes on a daily basis and one day is pretty much like the rest and it takes something different to make it stand out. With the writing finished for the day, I sat and listened to an Audiobook story for a while, something I like to do but never thought that I could relax enough to spend the time. In my past life, time had to be filled to the limit with whatever was going on. Nowadays, I am quite content to listen to a story read to me by another artist with no feeling of guilt that I should be doing “something”, not wasting my time sitting around.

From where I sit writing, I can see the Laundry Room and can sometimes tell if it is being used. At least I can see when a car is parked in front but for the walkup customers, I have no idea if the the machines are being used. There are only two of each, washers and dryers so they can get busy. They are all older machines and a couple work on the honor system where you put the money into a collection box as the money slide doesn’t work. I eventually chose a time when I thought the machines would be open and loaded everything into the Jeep for the short drive over. Alas, my timing was off as both washers were busy and I had no alternative but to head back to Miss Daisy and wait it out. After a couple more false trips I eventually got lucky with the assistance of Alice, who helps out around the office, as she grabbed the machines for me. My next door neighbors, Anna and her husband were using the driers so we got into a conversation about the British Royalty, a subject that I know little about other than what I read or hear or from what I can remember from my early years in England. We both returned to our respective RV’s with me waiting for the wash to complete which I figured to be about 45 minutes. In fact it took almost an hour as I patiently waited it out. What choice did I have? With the clothes safely in the dryer, I went back and took the dogs for the final walk of the day before heading back once more to fold the clothes and then going back to Miss Daisy with the laundry done for another week or in this case, ten days. I noticed a single sock mixed in with my laundry which I know didn’t belong to me and remembered that Anna had been folding socks of the same variety. By now, it was dark and I had grabbed a flashlight to find my way to their RV and found her husband was sitting outside under a tent cover and the by light of an electric lead lamp, was working on a painting of a couple dancing. He was painting with oils and was doing some correctional work. Apparently, it was for a client of his and he was working off a photo on his cell phone. Pretty neat and obviously, he is a talented guy. Anna had told me that he was an Art Major. Who would have thought it as he doesn’t come across as the artsy type. Quite the opposite in fact as he is pretty aggressive in his actions and manner of speaking. Or maybe, my idea of Art Majors is that they are all laid back. I complemented him on his work and went back to Miss Daisy.

Back in the RV, I put the laundry away and then went about the task of making the bed which, as I have described before is always a chore. This time, it went a little better as I am beginning to find ways to make it easier. Who would have thought that making a bed could be so difficult and frustrating. The rest of the evening was spent in the usual way with the evening meal and then watching the television which these last few days, has become increasingly “spotty” even with my booster. I am still trying to get used to how dark it gets and so early. I personally would be very happy if there was no such thing as daylight saving time. All we have to do is start the day earlier although that in itself would be quite a chore with many people starting work at 8:00 am or a little sooner. It was explained to me back in England when I was just a young 4 year old kid, that DST was implemented during the second world war to give people that worked outside an extra hour of daylight all as a part of the war drive and it was increased to double daylight saving time when the clocks were changed an additional hour for a total of two hours. Then, when the war ended, it kinda stuck although it was reduced to just the single hour of the regular DST. According to my Iphone, here in the US, DST was invented by George Hudson in 1895 during the second US industrial revolution era of inventions (1850-1914). In England, it was the brainchild of a man named William Willet and the Summer Time Act was finally passed in the UK in the summer of 1916. For better or worse as apparently, several countries have had different people “invent” the same thing. I read an interesting comment by an American Red Indian Chief who quoted about DST, “Only a white man would cut a foot off the end of a blanket and sew it on the other end to think that he had a longer blanket”. So true and we think we are so smart.

Thursday – 11/11/2021

It rained hard during the night accompanied by a lot of lightning and really loud thunderclaps. It was close enough that Miss Daisy shook with the repercussions. I lay awake and listened to the storm first in the distance, then closer and closer until it seemed to be right on top of us before slowly receding back into the distance. I was afraid that the wind would get up and that I would need to bring in the canopy, something I was reluctance to do until I blow it off as I know that it has a good covering of leaves and pine needles. Luckily, there did not appear to be any wind and as the storm receded into the background, I drifted back off to sleep. By this time, Mikey had snuck under the covers and could not get any closer to me, worried by all of the noise. Sandy, who was on the other side, is made of much tougher stuff and was content just to push up against me a little bit. Normally she won’t at all as her little body gets pretty hot and she is uncomfortable. Morning came and with the light, I crawled out of bed hit the bathroom, dressed and was ready to face another day with whatever it may bring.

We went for a short walk before returning to Miss Daisy for breakfast and then settled down to write which is something that I look forward to every day. I really like to get the creative juices flowing even if it is only to recount the happenings of the day. I have tried to write a book and actually have completed two separate ones but have never bothered to pursue getting them read or published. As both of them are really Autobiographies and they would not be of much interest to others. The second one is incomplete anyway as I am still alive and will probably never get finished. I am not inventive enough to write a novel. More of a reporter than a novelist.

We went out for the final walk of the day as Sandy was being a bug and was very insistent. As it happens, she was just letting me know that she had to “go” which she did at least a couple of times. Mikey was in the same boat and also caught up in the same urgency. Must have been something they ate that didn’t agree with them. One thing is certain, I will definitely pay more attention to Sandy when she starts being a bug as now I know that she has a reason. We sat outside for a bit although it is almost getting too cool to enjoy it for very long and my next door neighbor came over to chat for a bit. He offered me a green pepper that he has growing but I respectfully declined. Hot peppers are not my thing unless they are in a mild salsa and eaten with chips to take off the edge. My stomach can’t handle that sort of food.

We ended the day in the usual way with food for us all and then a glass of wine to watch the TV before heading of to bed. The wine is for me, not the dogs and they don’t watch the television either usually sleeping somewhere close to me.

Written 11/11/2021 – Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com

Friday – 10/29/2021

I was awoken by both dogs fussing like they had an urgent need to “go” so I quickly got out of bed and threw on some clothes and headed out the door. Sandy, in the meantime, managed to upchuck before we got out as I put on my boots which only increased our urgency to get out of the door. Turns out that both of them had upset tummies judging from the amount and number of times of poop and eating of grass which usually promotes more upchucking. No idea what had not agreed with them as I have not changed their diet. Once they had gone through whatever necessary routines they needed, the rest of the walk was just fine as we strolled around the park. I got to meet the new people with the Class A that pulled in yesterday. They have two little dogs that were outside in a pen and they barked louder and kicked up more fuss then either Mikey and Sandy combined. In fact, my dogs hardly said a word as I think they were too amazed at the noise those other dogs created. We continued on with our walk back to Miss Daisy and breakfast.

I checked my emails and found I had a scanned notification from PostNet. This one was related to a life insurance that I carry which I needed to pay additional money on. I called the number provided and spent the next thirty minutes on the phone before we finally got it worked out. Apparently, the monthly payments are not enough to cover the cost and it required additional money to do so. Go figure. Guess I will never understand the intricacies of high finance.

As usual, I worked on the blog but did not spend any time on the pictures that I took yesterday. I managed to locate the electric chord to the InstaPot much to my relief and spent the next thirty minutes preparing a stew for the evening meal which should last me at least four days. That is the beauty of using that gadget as after I have prepared the ingredients, I can go do other things and not have to worry about it or need to turn it off as it has it’s own built in timer. The only problem is that with something like a meat stew, you don’t have to mind eating the same thing for a few days although I suppose, I could always freeze some for a later time. I like Beef Stew so in my case, it is just fine.

We went out for the evening walk and took a stroll around the park to see what was happening. Three new RV’s have pulled into my row. My next door neighbors have a small tow along and have two young sons I guess about fourteen or so. It looks like the boys will be staying in a tent next to me and the parents in the RV. Should be interesting. We continued walking around and then I decided that we should hit the trails for a bit to get in some real exercise. We ended up walking 1.8 miles plus this mornings walk, when I forgot to bring my Iphone, of at least a half mile, maybe more. So, a little over 2 miles for the day. Not bad at all.

We sat outside on the wicker couch and there was quite a lot of activity with people coming and going. I listened to an Audiobook before going back inside. The InstaPot needed another 45 minutes and I filled in the time working on this blog before sampling the stew. Turns out it was not quite to my liking so I need to doctor it up a bit tomorrow. I ate it anyway. The rest of the evening ended in the usual way, feeding the dogs and then me and watching a Premier League game on the television.

Saturday – 10/30/2021

I got up late again this morning although I am beginning to think that it should be my “normal” time. I sleep really well and for most of the night before the call of nature gets me out of bed. Even then, I have no difficulty in falling back to sleep. My new next door neighbors and the one next to them that pulled in yesterday are Hispanic and the Super told me, are friends and like to camp together. Between them, they have several children both boys and girls and the youngest looks to be around fourteen or so. The boys like to throw a baseball around and I am waiting for it to hit my car. Both families have large tents on their lots for each family of kids to sleep in. It all adds up to the great adventure. I hope that they really enjoy themselves as it’s a great way to spend family time.

We went out for our morning walk and this time just wandered around the park. Another neighbor has erected a tall fenced in area for his dog and when we passed the campers that pulled in yesterday with the Class A. Their two little dogs, who were in a one of the small fenced areas made for dogs, began barking up a storm. Heck, they are noisier than mine are. Actually, apart from a feeble bark or two, Sandy was very quiet. We wandered back to Miss Daisy for breakfast and coffee for me before settling down in front of the computer. Today, the internet was a bit slow which can be frustrating. but I waited patiently for it to do it’s thing. What else can I do? I suppose that I could jump up and down and curse and swear but it isn’t going to help any. No, it’s better to just be patient and wait it out after all, anything I do isn’t going to help any except to make me more frustrated.

I took a lot of pictures yesterday as we walked around the park and the trails and spent some time in developing them. I use Photoshop for this which is a much more powerful program than what I do to the pictures. Still, it is on my computer and so I use it although I am barely scratching the surface when it comes to all of its capabilities. I have a couple of other programs which are easier to use but they are not able to add my copywrite signature when I export them to my file. I also have a signature program that I could use but then it is one extra step and I am growing lazy as I get older. With the photos taken care of and imported onto my computer, I was able to concentrate on writing.

It is strange how one changes as they grow older. In my youth, it was all sports and activity and this continued through most of my adult life. When I eventually quit playing at the age of seventy two due to knee replacement surgery, my activities were then restricted to hiking and working out in my garden on the five ponds that were there. Now I no longer own a home, my activities are much more relaxed and although I make sure we walk every day, weather permitting, it is nothing compared to the hikes I used to take both in distance and difficulty of walking. To be truthful, I don’t think I could do the five or seven mile hikes anymore. Age tends to do this to you. The mind is willing but the flesh is definitely weak. Now, the mile or two that we walk on most days is my limit. I may have told this story before but this reminds me of one of the hikes I went on at Pedernales State Park and somehow, I managed to get turned around and ended up hiking in the dark. Luckily, I always carry a flashlight so I was able to eventually find my way back but it was 11:00 at night and almost twelve miles of walking before I did. If that happened nowadays, I think I would just find a place to curl up and try to sleep it out until the morning and for sure, no one would know I was gone except maybe Sandy and Mikey. Frightening thought.

It got to be later in the afternoon and Sandy reminded me that it was time to go walkies. Mikey, on the other hand was fast asleep and could care less except the minute I stood up, he was wide awake and ready to go. We made our way to the entrance and on the way, passed a group of four people throwing horseshoes by their RV. We all waved and exchanged greetings as we passed by to walk the long trail, the entrance to which is right by their site. We entered the trail and this time covering a little over two miles so we really reached our goal and then some for the day. I found a couple of different whimsies that I had not seen before probably because we had not walked this trail all the way to the end. Usually, I branch off on one of the other trails that are marked “Exit”.

Back at Miss Daisy, we sat outside and watched the next door neighbor’s kids throwing a baseball around. This time, they had moved to the play area which I felt much better about. I guess it is every man (or woman) each to their own sport but for the life of me, I just don’t get throwing a baseball. It doesn’t seem to have much purpose and looked really boring. I get it that there are different levels of skills to throwing and catching which was obvious as I watched them at it. Being Hispanic, I would have thought they would be kicking a ball not throwing it. Boy, was I wrong.

I sat there for a while listening to an Audiobook before taking us all back inside for our evening meal followed by the usual TV watching. This time, the team I support, Manchester United, managed to win convincingly over Tottenham Hotspurs. Better than last Saturday when they lost 5-1 to their oldest rivals, Liverpool. Win some and lose some which is what makes watching so interesting. We went to bed happy and content after another busy day of doing nothing (important).

Written 10/31/2021 – Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com