We are back at Henly RV Park arriving here in the dark setting up camp as we usually do me and the dogs who are my crew although in fact they are not much help as I do the work all by myself backing and levelling and hooking things up and parking the Jeep in front of the truck going inside and straightening the mess that the bouncing and jolting which is a test of how good I am at packing my stuff as the driving along can be very rough all that rocking and rolling along the road can quickly upset the slightest load set up and ready one more time to live this life we find so sublime and the simple truth believe it or not is Miss Daisy is easy to park in the spot and with the push of a button is perfectly level making life easy for this old fellow I really like this RV life wandering around with little strife with the minimal amount of fuss we are three and it is just us no one else for whom to care and no other person about to share this wonderful life out on the road me and two dogs sharing the load.
Today is Christmas Day which for us in Miss Daisy, is no different than any other day. I do have a problem with my WordPress blog site which is not allowing me to do anything with any of the blogs I have written. Could not happen at a worse time as the blog engineers are all out enjoying Christmas with their families, and I wish them all a very Merry Christmas. That does not stop me from writing, and I can wait until they get back from their hard-earned vacation to fix the problem, something to do with user ID mismatch whatever that is. I am writing this in Word which is a part of the Microsoft Office program that I have, and I used to use quite consistently back in the day. Now, I do all my writing in the blog program as it is a much simpler process and generally works very smoothly and the result is very satisfying.
We went out for our morning walk around the park and generally cover about a half mile. This walk is to give us all a chance to stretch our legs and for the dogs to do their business. The results of the walk whether it is a success or not is based on the number or maybe if any times that dogs go to potty. Not counting peeing or marking as between them, they cannot have anything left in their bladders by the time we get back, especially Sandy. I have never seen a dog that marks as much as she does and of course, if she goes, Mikey must go in the same spot. Dog’s…Makes for awfully slow walking.
I watched as a couple of kids were riding their bikes around the park. Well, one had a bike and his younger brother? had one of those electric scooters that are self-propelled, that it until the battery runs out and then it is back to the good old-fashioned push along method. They were having fun and that is all that matters and at least, riding inside the park is much safer than out on the roads outside.. There was another family playing on the swings and slides in the Childrens Area. We met a few people on our way around, everyone wishing us a Mery Christmas which we reciprocated.
We had no plans for the day so after breakfast and after the dogs had settled down to rest from the morning’s exertions, I sat in front of the computer and spent several hours trying to get the blog program to work but in the end, had to give it up as something beyond my pay grade and wait for the Happiness Engineers response which will be a couple of days. Like I said earlier, this did not stop the creative juices from flowing as I switched to Word at least to do the writing. When the WordPress site is back up and running, I will simply do a copy and paste to transfer the writing to the blog.
Later that afternoon, we went out for a much longer walk on the roads outside and managed to cover 2.1 miles for the day. Not bad for just ambling around with many stops and explorations along the way. I watched a middle-aged gentleman approach from the top of the hill, draw level and then quickly disappear out of site, walking at a much greater speed then we could muster. Even if we did not stop to smell the roses along the way, I still cannot walk very fast anymore. My legs are short at 5’7” and I was never blessed with speed even in my younger days. I could run for ever but not fast. Now, I cannot even run except in an emergency and then probably not for long or for very far. Heck, it is all I can do to keep up with Sandy as she drags us along when she gets one of her “gotta go fast moods.” Back in Miss Daisy, with Christmas Day gone for this year which to us, was just another day, we prepared our evening meal and following our usual custom, watched television accompanied by a glass of cheap wine.
Reading back on this blog, I realized that it may come across as being self-pitying but in fact, nothing is further from the truth. I have been single for almost thirty years and am well used to spending my time alone, a lot of it by choice coming up with excuses when others offer me invitations to join them. I am not anti-social but prefer my company to that of others except for a very few people who I call my loyal friends.
All Saints Church located in Old Heathfield, England
Christmas Eve, an exciting time for those of the younger generation or it used to be when I was a kid, many years ago. I do not know if any of us honestly believed in Santa Clause with his sled drawn by a herd of Reindeer but as a kid, it was a relevant story. As for coming down the chimney, that was very farfetched but possible as many of the fireplaces and chimneys in the old English cottages had fireplaces the width of the room. None the less, we all looked forward to the presents that we got on Christmas day knowing that they were bought for us by Mum or Dad or maybe a brother or Sister. I remember when I was young during World War 2, and we did not have much as things were very scarce. I was interested in working with my hands even at that tender age and my sister, who was ten years older than me, showed me a woodworking kit containing a Fretsaw, attached to a piece of cardboard backing covered in plastic or some other covering that they had bought for me. She made the mistake of walking away and I had it opened and was trying it out in no time flat. When she came back and seeing what I had done, she took it away from me, telling me how bad I was for opening it prematurely. On Christmas Day. I received that same present in the condition that she had taken it back from me. No extra wrapping paper, no nothing, just the torn plastic cover. Still, I did not care simply happy to have it. I loved working with my hands even at a tender age. Now, after a lifetime spent in Construction and working with all kinds of grown-up tools including bulldozers, backhoes, cranes, and other kinds of mechanical monsters and driving Tractor Trailers for a living for a while, not so much anymore. I can still empty the tanks on the RV and do small repair jobs but prefer to pay someone else do the big and heavy stuff. I figure I have earned it.
I have never been a religious person although back in my younger days, I belonged to Church Groups mainly because all my friends did and besides, we had fun and games in the Church Hall playing indoor football amongst other things. I even sang in the choir until my voice broke. I got into an argument with the local Pastor during an educational bible session because I dared to question what he was expecting me to believe and not ask any questions. That ended my involvement with religion as a young man and it was not until I met my third wife, a practicing Catholic, did I renew my interest. Even though I loved her, I could not get into her religion with any true belief and in the end, gave it up as a bad job. Incidentally, her religion did not prevent her from finding another man and divorcing me.
Now, Christmas is a date on the Calendar. A time to send cards or gifts to those closest to me of whom there are now, very few. Many of my old acquaintances are either long gone to a better place or we are out of touch and have been for many years. I still occasionally bump into somebody like the other day when I was in Walmart’s parking lot and heard someone calling my name. Looking up, I saw this older Black couple with the man waving his arms at me. As we approached each other and he introduced himself and his wife, he gave me a big hug and then I recognized him as someone, back in the day, I had taught Football Referee classes to when we were all brothers-in-arms in the Football community. We chatted for a while before continuing on our way and I left feeling so grateful that he not only recognized me but took the time to say hello and was genuinely pleased to see me. Small miracles indeed. In truth, I probably would not have recognized him if I had seen him first but then again, I hardly recognize myself in the mirror anymore, such are the ravages that time and age bring plus of course, a failing memory for names and faces.
I continued back to my car wondering if I would have acted the same if I had seen him first or come to that, would I have recognized him anyway. I drove back to Henly thinking about the incident realizing how grateful I was that he took the time to chat with me. Back in Miss Daisy, I was greeted by two extremely excited little dogs demanding that we go out immediately which we did walking around the park and out on the roads outside. Overall, a very interesting day.
I had to take this through the fence opposite the RV park. What a rack on this guy?
Today was a very quiet day with not a lot of anything going on. No Doctors appointments or trips to the Dentist although I do still need that haircut. I do have a Covid booster scheduled for this Thursday but it is in Dripping Springs a mere 10 miles up the road. We went out for our usual mornings walk around the park just to stretch our legs and for the dogs to do their business before returning to Miss Daisy for breakfast. I had nothing planned for the day except to write and work on a few pictures but I spent some time on renaming/numbering all of the most recent blogs as somehow, they had slipped out of order. Can’t think how that happened but I am not surprised as my brain does strange things every now and then and a mistake in the numbering early on gets more exagerated down the line. This actually took quite a bit of my time as I had to go back more than 15 blogs to get it right and even then, there were several do-overs before I was satisfied. With the blog straightened out but feeling more than a bit frustrated, I took it out on the dogs by making them go out for a walk. Not that they complained as they were quite literally jumping up and down with anticipation when I mentioned “walkies?” Amazing how dogs learn the words that mean more to them and ignore other commands that sometimes mean a lot more to me! Things like stay and sit and stop pulling are all a bit like talking to myself as I never get much in the way of response either physically or activally.
Back in Miss Daisy, I watched as a couple of RV’s left and a couple more drove in. I thought about it and in my mind, there are 3 different types of RV’ers, 4 if you count the weekend warriors. The first group are generally the people who like to drive a lot and usually stay in campgrounds for a couple of days before moving on. These are generally younger people who are always in a hurry to get somewhere, never staying in one place for very long. Sometimes they have kids who are homeschooled. The next group are generally much older and not so interested in tearing around the countryside. These are nearly always older retired citizens usually driving a big Class A that has cost them a fortune. Their success in life allows them this lifestyle in luxury. They stay for a couple of weeks at a time before moving on. The last group are usually much older and don’t drive anymore at least towing their RV’s behind them. They have located a nice campground in an area that appeals to them and have parked their RV’s permanently. You can generally tell who they are as many have built permanent steps and covered porches to their units which are generally big 5th wheel campers. Me, I am in the in-between stage of still travelling and staying in a permanent site as my days on the road are numbered. Then, the last group are the weekend warriors who camp with their kids just for the fun of it. I envy them in some respects as they have their whole life in front of them and have already discovered something that took me eighty years to refind although I guess I had discovered camping when I was in the Boy Scouts what seems like a thousand years ago. The rest of the day was spent in the usual fashion with food and television as we watched more episodes of Yellowstone including the shocking final season episode which has left me wondering and waiting for it to come back on the air.
Wednesday, December 22
One of the quiet roads outside of the park where Sandy taked Me and Mikey walking.
Another day in which we have no major plans except to go to HEB for more groceries to stock up for the Holiday season ahead. Not that we will change our habits too much with only myself and two little dogs and as none of us are religious, celebrating Christmas which after all is a Religious holiday first or at least it was until the commercial world of big business saw it as an opportunity to part the average person from their hard earned money, is just another day. If I sound like a cynic then maybe I am as the true meaning of Christmas has long been lost. That coming form a non religious man.
Years ago back in England when I was just a kid and before my family split up into a thousand different pieces. even though it was war time with the second World War ongoing, we did celebrate. Not the Birth of Christ as my family even way back then was never religious although my Father in his latter years did bend in that direction. Probably for the fear of his afterlife considering the wicked life he had lead, at least in his mind. Our celebration consisted of the luxury of killing one of our chickens for our Christmas dinner and glad to eat it as a special treat along with roast potatoes and brussel sprouts from the garden followed by homemade Christmas Pudding for desert complete with silver sixpences inside. You just had to be extra careful not to bite down too hard. Those are my memories of Christmas and eighty years and a lot of Christmases later, nothing has come close. The simple things of life are what impressed me the most although of course, I wasn’t aware at the time.
In the HEB, a lot of people were doing their last minute shopping many of whom are no longer wearing masks especially the younger members. Whether they think they are invincible or are one of those, “you can’t make me” types is unknown. I wore mine as I would rather be safe than sorry. There are still several sorry looking Christmas Trees outside all marked down to an almost giveaway price, more of man’s mindless indiscretions and lack of caring for anything but him or herself and certainly not Nature or this Planet that we live on and call home.
I walked around the store and observed people with carts loaded to the brim, all rushing and scurrying about trying to make sure they had everything for their own particular celebration. I Iooked at my cart with the few items we needed as I made my way through the check out glad to be away from so much activity. Even then, I managed to spend $145.00 on what I called necessities so I would hate to think what most people were spending with their piled up carts. Mine did include a couple of bottles of wine. One of the things that I have noticed with grocery shopping is that the overall general price of things has gone up quite considerably. It no longer seems possible for me, a single old man with no extravagant tastes to spend anything less than $100.00 or more on a weekly visit for absolute necessities.
I drove back to Miss Daisy but not before joining the long line at Starbucks Drive Thru for a Grande Latte to be welcomed by my best friends, two very happy little dogs. I barely had time to put the groceries away before we were back out the door and walking the park and the roads for the last walk of the day. This time, I let Sandy do the leading and we covered a very circuitous route going in every which direction before she led us to the road and back down the hill before I was able to get her focus back on walking home to Miss Daisy. Still, it was fun and we were not in any hurry. We had a bit of excitement when a Police Car followed by an Ambulance came screaming in with the siren wailing and lights flashing and stopped in front of the RV across the way. They loaded in the tenant and tore off but as they did not go with the siren, I can only hope that the person was not in any danger. So ended another day at Henly RV Park.
Today is Sunday and designated as a day of rest so it was not very hard for us to comply. Heck we don’t do much of anything anyway unless there is an odd meeting or Doctors appointment or we might take a drive into Austin. What we haven’t done much these past few months is to hit the trails. I always have good intentions but never quite get around to it and that has got to change. Today was no exception as we lazed around Miss Daisy, walking the park for both entertainment and exercise a couple of times but spending most of my time in writing. The one good thing with it is that it keeps my brain active and goodness only knows, it sure needs it as my short term memory has really deteriorated. Sometimes, I have to concentrate real hard to recall a name or something similar. It eventually comes back but I find myself writing more and more notes to myself for fear of not recalling something important. The one thing I didn’t forget was the invitation to meet and gather around the campfire and join in with the other campers to celebrate Christmas and at 6:00 pm, the designated time, I ambled off over to outside the Laundry Room where everyone was gathered along with a huge wood fire which actually felt good as the weather had cooled off. There were probably twenty or so campers all sitting around or standing in small groups hardly any of whom I knew. The Campground owners wife came over recognizing me from when I stayed here before and we chatted for a bit. I said hello to as many campers as I could but for some reason, I did not feel comfortable in joining in with the general conversation feeling very awkward and reticent. I hung around for a bit taking pictures and then it started to sprinkle and everyone began to move inside the clubroom. I decided that I had enough of the awkwardness that I felt and went back to Miss Daisy. I don’t think anyone missed me at all as I was not good company and it was almost as though nobody knew I was there. It seems that in my old age, I am no longer the gregarius, hail fellow well met person any more. I never had any problems in the past although I have always been a bit withdrawn around people I was not familiar with but I could hold a conversation as needed. This time, not so much and in truth, I was glad to be back in Miss Daisy and alone. I thought about it quite a bit but I have to accept the fact that old age has changed me. That and spending so much time alone that I have lost most of my people skills. Darn, I was such a chatty, know it all, self opinionated, never wrong loudmouth before so maybe the new me is not such a bad thing.
Monday, December 20
Having recovered from the disappointment of finding my new self last evening, I took the dogs walking and chatted to them in the hope of rediscovering my communication skills. They, of course, totally ignored me and went about their business not realizing anything of the dilemma I was in at discovering the new me. Then, as we were walking, I figured out that, “What the hell”, as long as I can communicate with them, which is usually in the form of mumbled commands or jerks on the leash, if they choose to ignore me which they always seem to do anyway, so be it. I’m used to being ignored anyway as for all of the high ranking positions and titles I held in the past, now I am a forgetful old man happy to still be living a lazy life in an RV. In fact, I am very grateful to still be living. Most people ignore old men anyway…
We had nothing much planned for the day except our usual walks around the park and out on the roads outside of the park followed by breakfast for us all before settling down in front of the computer to continue writing this blog. The one item of importance was a final visit to Dr Ann Epstein, my Dermatologist in Austin who needed to do a follow up of cutting and scraping to a couple of spots that she had discovered at our previous meeting a few days ago. This time, I didn’t even have to take my clothes off and put on the backless wonder gown as the areas in question were my right ear lobe and my left hand by the thumb. She did her usual good work and we said our farewells as she rides off into the sunset of retirement. Even her big fluffy dog that is always in the office with her came over to give me a nuzzle as if to say, “Goodbye buddy”. With a feeling of nostalgia, I made my way up to PostNet on Far West Blvd to pick up my mail, once more before driving back to Henly and two excited dogs demanding to go walkies.
We got up early and did our usual walk. This time, I fed the dogs and then had to jump into the Jeep as I had an early appointment in Dripping Springs at Austin Regional Clinic to get a flu shot. The line moved quickly and before long, I was on my way out of the door but not before arranging a Covid Booster shot which will happen on the 23rd of this month at the same place. With that out of the way, I drove into Austin and back to PostNet to pick up my mail most of which was uninteresting stuff. I did get a couple of Christmas cards, one each from my two Sons in England which was very nice so it did make the trip worthwhile.
On the way out of Austin, I made two stops. The first was at Walmart’s in the hope that like the one in Livingstone, this one may have a Hairdressers but no such luck. The second was at my Optometrist as my regular glasses appear to be cloudy and I can’t get them clean. I think the lenses are scratched. I had resorted to an older pair that worked OK but do need new stronger lenses and made an appointment for the following week. I also needed groceries and thought about trying the new HEB in Oak Hill but decided to continue on back to Dripping Springs and do my shopping in the HEB there getting the few things that I wanted. I also stopped to fill up the car at the same HEB where the gas is much cheaper. On the way home, I spotted a Great Cuts hairdressers and decided to try it but when I walked in, I needed either an appointment or wait 80 mins. I thankfully declined and drove back to Miss Daisy.
After calming the dogs down and putting the groceries away, we harnessed up and went out for a long walk around the park and on the roads outside. This time, nothing eventful happened, no big dogs barking up a storm or anything like that and we returned to settle down for food and the evening’s entertainment. Incidentally, I have finished watching all of the reruns of Midsomer Murders and am now watching Yellowstone. A busy but rewarding day.
Saturday 12/18/2021
The view out of the front window. Luckily, the campsite in front of us is open at least for today.
We awoke in the night to the sounds of heavy thunder but feeling safe and secure inside MIss Daisy, rolled over and went back to sleep. When we woke up in the morning, it had rained overnight and was cloudy and looked threatening but as it was not actually raining, we went out for the morning walk. It had cooled down quite considerably and I wished I had brought a jacket resulting in just a short walk before returning back to MIss Daisy for breakfast and coffee. It came on to rain pretty heavily for an hour or so but we were snug and secure inside of Miss Daisy and watched from indoors. The bird feeders blew over in the storm and I needed to stand the shepherds crook back upright again. Not an easy job as it requires punching a hole in the dirt for the post to stand in and as I no longer have the right sort of tools, I had to make do. I ended up pounding first a long screwdriver and then a flat bar into the dirt to get a deep enough hole to get it started then beat on the bottom of the shepherds crook to make it stable. Satisfied with my efforts and with the crook now upright again, I swept up the birdseed that had fallen from the containers when they blew over and replaced it into the feeders before rehanging everything. That saved wasting a whole bunch of bird seed and hopefully, the birds will clean up what is left on the ground. That turned out to be the major excitement for the day unless you count banging my head on the slideout as I walked around MIss Daisy. Just wasn’t paying attention I guess as my thoughts were on where to find the right tools for the job and I didn’t duck in time.
We have no plans for today and actually have nothing until Monday when I have a follow up with Dr Epstein, my Dermatologist. I was hoping this was not going to happen but apparently a couple of biopsies require extra treatment, darn it. Still, considering the alternative, it is worth the trip. I spent the afternoon writing before we went out for the afternoons walk. The weather was blustery and much cooler requiring both a shirt and a jacket. Once we were out, Sandy made sure we didn’t get cold as she raced along at breakneck speed stopping here and there when an exciting smell hit her nose. Altogether for the day we covered 1.5 miles and for the week a total of 12.5 miles. Not bad for walking the park and the outside roads.
Where would we be without the rain as things just would not be the same instead of life so fresh and green with flowers and leaves and everything growing strong a pretty sight and filling the world with delight our very life depends on the rain to water the land and keep it the same so that all life continues to grow for without the rain this would not be so.
Some of the rockwork at the park. I wonder how old these walls are? I would be willing to bet it is a dying art as nobody builds drywalls anymore.
I woke up late….again and it was close to 9:00 am before I crawled out of the sack to face another day in paradise. Well, maybe Henly is not paradise but the lifestyle is really close. It’s like non stop camping with much more luxury. We went out for our usual half mile walk around the park changing direction a couple of times in order to avoid other dogs also out walking their owners. More of an embarrassment thing with both of my dogs barking up a storm than a worry about any confrontations. I don’t know what it is with small dogs as they are always so noisy. Maybe it’s a defense mechanism and they hope to frighten the other dogs off with their barking. It doesn’t work if the other dog is doing the same. If we do eventually make contact or rather, if Sandy makes contact, everything quiets down as they go about the business of nose touching followed by the inevitable butt sniffing and if they each measure up they are friends for life or at least until the next time they meet when the whole process is repeated. Mikey, usually after his initial barking from afar, hides behind me so that I can protect him just in case….I have noticed that big dogs are much more tolerant of those smaller than themselves, given the choice that is, and are generally much better behaved. Not true every time but generally speaking. Maybe much more confident with their size advantage. As long as they are leashed, that is. This park has very strict rules regarding dogs and all have to be on a leash if they are outside. They do not allow individual dog pens outside of your RV but do allow a dog to be tethered on a long leash outside for a while and under supervision.
Today is a windy blustery day, overcast but not really looking like rain. I have a trip in to Austin to see my Dentist set up for this afternoon and have to drive back in for that. I have also arranged for a flu shot with my regular Doctor on Friday but that is in Dripping Springs. I plan on setting up a Covid Booster while I am there. I have noticed that in the stores, very few people are wearing masks any more. Several of the stores have posted that people with the full protection of the Covid shots do not have to wear them and people are quick to follow those guidelines but I would rather be on the safe side even though I have had both of my shots. Not that I like a mask as it fogs up my glasses but why take a chance?
I had to refill the bird feeders as the birds had managed to empty them. At least there are birds and not deer eating the seed and as I mentioned before, so different from the last four campgrounds where there were no birds of any description that visited the feeders. Still don’t know why that was.
I made the trip into Austin to visit my Dentist who is the third since living in Texas. The other two both retired, one out of choice and the other had an illness that prevented her from working anymore. This one is just a young guy and will definitely outlast me. We had a regular cleaning scheduled, no big deal except the traffic driving in was horrendous resulting in my being 30 minutes late for the appointment. They still fitted me in with no waiting for which I was very grateful. Needless to say that although the cleaning went well, the end result was the discovery that a couple of teeth needed filling resulting in my having to return at a later date. I wonder why it is that there is always a follow up to these things. Is it by design or just because my 85 year old teeth really need the work? Oh well. The trip home took as long as the one going in as by that time, I was in the middle of rush hour traffic, again. When I finally got back to Miss Daisy, the dogs demanded that we go walkies immediately which we did for a mile or so before returning for food and the evening’s entertainment.
Thursday 12/16/2021
Today was a stay at home do nothing day or at least nothing that required jumping in the car and visiting places far and wide. We did our usual walkabout in the morning and it too was very quiet not meeting any dogs or humans along the way. Following our walk we adjourned to Miss Daisy for breakfast and then to the computer to catch up on emails and then to write the blog. By the way, most of my emails are junk and quickly disposed of with the very occasional one that requires some attention from me. A lot are from the different RV emailers that I subscribe to and occasionally I will get some useful information that I find I can use. Mostly junk though. We went out for our afternoon walk and because it was such a lazy day, took the time to walk a little further in the roads outside the campground this time not meeting any noisy or ferocious dogs, thank goodness. All in all, a nice quiet peaceful day something to relish occasionally.
I had designated today as Laundry Day because I haven’t done any for at least two weeks. As usual, we went out for our morning walk and I fed the dogs before heading for the laundry room to get things started. I have an endless supply, well maybe not endless, but a lot of shorts, T shirts, socks and underpants enough to keep me going for at least three weeks if the need should ever arise and usually, I try to do laundry at least once a week. That way, it doesn’t take more than one washer and one dryer and is easier to handle. As with all campground laundry rooms, it’s a first come, first served thing and you just have to hope that another camper is not hogging all of the machines. There are four washing machines and four dryers but they can get taken pretty quickly and timing and luck is everything. I don’t have the luxury of being able to see the laundry room from Miss Daisy so it is a question of trusting to that same luck that a machine is available. There is a sign on the wall requesting that each camper limits their use to no more than two machines at a time but we all know how that can go human nature being what it is. I noticed another sign showing an app that allows a camper to pay with their phone which I installed as I waited. Saves having to mess around with the coin machine plus it notifies you when the laundry needs attention. It is easier to take everything in the Jeep rather than carry it and with the two loads in two machines, I returned to Miss Daisy for breakfast and to work on the blog among other things that needed my attention. An hour later, I went back to the laundry room to put everything in the dryer and spent some time talking to Melinda, the Park Super who was busy cleaning the laundry room as she does everyday before returning to Miss Daisy. Finally, after enough time had passed, I went back one more time to fold and then put all of the laundry back in the Jeep. The easy part was putting the laundry away. The hard part was remaking the bed and for those of you that follow this blog, have read the difficulties involved. It did go much smoother than usual, maybe because I have figured the best way to do it and in no time flat, I had it made with a lot of help from Mikey who insisted that he knew what he was doing. Of course, he got in the way but we had fun. With the laundry done for at least one more week and the bed made and breakfast out of the way, I settled down to write and take care of some business a part of which was to order more business cards that I give out advertising the blog to anyone who may be interested. I had run out some time ago and the cards needed updating to show the new blog and the new content. I used to have one of those magnetic signs attached to the truck door advertising the blog until they started to use aluminum paneling on the truck bodies which of course, magnets won’t stick to. In no time at all, it was time for the afternoon walk. There are no trails here at this park but the roads outside are pretty quiet and the park itself is pretty big. We usually just take a short walk in the mornings and a longer one in the afternoon to try to get in at least a mile or more a day. Following the walk which was uneventful except for an episode when we passed a house that had a mini bulldog running up and down the fence barking with a peculiar very gruff sounding bark. Sandy had decided that she should say hello and we had almost reached the fence line when a huge Bull Mastiff came running out and barking like crazy. The thing was absolutely humongous and noisy enough that Sandy decided that making friends was not such a good idea after all. We all quickly retreated back a safe distance with Mikey leading the way and continued our walk back to Miss Daisy congratulating ourselves on a lucky escape although I don’t think either of them could have jumped the fence. Still, an interesting episode plus an even more interesting choice of dogs by the owner.
I woke up early as I knew that I had to be at PostNet in Austin to pick up my mail by 12:30 pm. For some reason, they want a specific time for pick ups which I suppose makes sense as I am sure they have to gather up a persons mail and hold it somewhere for collection differing from the normal personal locker box where each person’s mail is kept. We went for our normal walk around the park followed by the usual breakfast and then to the computer to check emails. I don’t know why I bother with this habit, email that is not breakfast, as I get very few emails of importance. There is the occasional one or two that require an answer but most are read (or not) and discarded. It’s amazing how much of our time is spent on emails. Way too much from my perspective.
With both breakfast for us and checking the mail out of the way, I went about the business of collecting all of the cameras and gear that I want to trade in at Precision Camera and Video in Austin. Somewhat reluctantly I might add as much of it has served me well over the years and we have shared a lot of adventures together, before putting everything in the Jeep. The trip in was uneventful and I arrived at PostNet and the young lady collected all of what she had to give to me. I thanked her and went back out to the Jeep and was perusing the very large stack when I got a knock on the window. The same young lady was standing there with a package mail that she had missed and had taken the time to track me down in the Parking Lot. Good job I hadn’t just driven off and that my curiosity as to what might be in the pile of letters, had got the better of me. I thanked her profusely and then drove to the Camera shop which was not very far away.
Precision Camera and Video is located on Anderson Lane in Austin and is a huge camera store. I have shopped there many times and most of the equipment that I wanted to trade had been purchased from that store. I somewhat reluctantly presented everything at the Trade In counter and then proceeded to wait a half hour or so as they evaluated what I had to offer. I knew that I would be taking a big hit on what I had paid and what it was worth as a trade in and my fears were quickly acknowledged as I looked at the invoice. But, I had made up my mind that a lighter camera and lens were what I wanted and that the “old” stuff was now history and we went ahead with the trade or rather, they gave me a listed invoice and the prices against each item of it’s worth to them. Altogether, they allowed me almost $2000.00 on the old equipment which I traded in for a new Olympus Mark 5 plus a 14/150 lens that doubles to a 14/300. The weight of the combined camera and lens were probably less than half of my old equipment. This is my first time with the Olympus brand as I have always been a Nikon/Tamron man.
I spent almost two hours in the camera store before walking out with my goodies. The lady that assisted me by the name of Tamra Green was very knowledgeable and helpful plus I might add, also very patient as I kept bombarding her with questions and demands. Incidentally, I originally wanted one of the Nikon Z mirrorless models but my old 16/300 lens would not work with it and neither did they have anything in stock that was compatible. Hence the switch in camera brand. Tamra also informed me that she was teaching a class on the new camera on the 30th of this month which I added to my diary. Incidentally, by the time I had finished, we had spent the full allowance that they had offered me on the trade-ins. Fancy that…
The drive home was uneventful except for the traffic which was horrendous as by then, I was in rush hour traffic, again. I got to work on my timing. I was greeted by two very excited little dogs and we went out on out evenings walk as we usually do covering around 1.5 miles for the day. Most of my time in the camera store was in waiting around hence very few steps not like in the big box stores where I am on the move all of the time.
Spotted on our afternoon walk just outside of the park.
We got up late but not on purpose as we went to bed much earlier than we usually do. I was watching a football game from the English Premier League and woke up at half time having missed most of the action for the first half. I decided that it was pretty stupid to struggle to stay awake like that and so we went to bed managing to wake up late as well. I must have been tired although I can’t think what made yesterday any different than any other day. Must be this worry free and contented living. That or all of that waiting around at the Firestone Store. We went out for our mornings walk and covered our usual half mile before returning to Miss Daisy for breakfast and then settling down to write. It is a beautiful sunny day with the weather forecast to reach 60 degrees, not bad for a winters day.
My Jeep. Just look at those new tires.
I got to meet my next door neighbor and her Boxer dog after we came back from our afternoon walk. Her name is Jessica and she is here for at least six months. Sandy got along fine with her dog but Mr. Chicken Little was doing his usual thing of hiding behind me. I was concerned that my TV which I am constantly trying to control the sound so that it is not too loud at night, might be disturbing her but apparently not, thank goodness. We managed to cover 2.2 miles for the day on our walks so we have done OK for this week. I spent the rest of the afternoon going through all of my camera gear of which I have way too much. My thoughts are leaning to buying a lighter camera, maybe one of the Z models as both of the Nikons are getting heavy to carry around. I just don’t do the camera work that I used to especially as I no longer video the Pond Meetings as I did for many years. In truth, I don’t hike anywhere near as much either except for walking around the park to exercise the dogs and most of the pictures I take nowadays are on my phone, mostly for the convenience. After all, it is always with me and it fits in my pocket.
The park is really in the festive spirit and the lights above are what I can see from Miss Daisy. There are lots of them strung all around the camp ground. Written 12/14/2021 – Read my other blog at https://pondblog2011.com
We got up at a reasonable hour and took our usual walk around the park. A couple of RV’s have moved into the new section that houses long termers. I talked to a couple who were outside and they told me they spend 6 months here in this park and then 6 months in Colorado where, apparently, they have 70 acres of land. They didn’t say it they owned a house on that property. Back in MIss Daisy, it was breakfast all around before I made preparations to take the Jeep into the Firestone store in Oak Hill. I had a 12:00 pm appointment to have work done as the Emergency brake wasn’t working properly and I could drive with it on, which I had done a couple of times, quite accidentally, of course. They told me it would take a couple of hours which I knew probably meant at least three. As it turned out, it was closer to four and a half by the time I got out of there. I ended up with a set of tires and a wheel alignment, an oil change and service, three new wiper blades, plus new brakes on the back which included the disk pads as they were that badly worn. Altogether, it cost me almost $2000.00 but I won’t have to do it again in my lifetime as the Jeep doesn’t get driven very much. As it happens, I have a plug in gadget on the jeep that reports back to my Insurance company on how little I drive and I get a break on the insurance because of it. Brakes are not really something one can ignore as they do come in very useful. I paid my bill and then made a slow drive home. At least, that is what I had in mind but by then, I was caught up in the homeward bound traffic which tended to zoom along at a breakneck speed as people had just one things on their minds and that was to get to wherever it was they were going and get there fast. Then, we all got stuck behind a Sherriff’s Patrol car which immediately brought everyone down to the speed limit. It didn’t help that we were also driving into the sun as it slowly set. Arriving back home, the dogs complained bitterly that I had left them for so long but were soon happy enough as they jumped and wagged like crazy. I had no choice but to take them out for their evening walk All in all, a very good day having accomplished something that I just had to have done with the Jeep. As a side note, I took my computer in with me hoping to do some writing but I had forgotten that it is only half charged which is a safety feature because I keep it plugged in while at home. It would not fire up on a half charge. Consequently, even though I had brought the charge chord with me, there was no place to plug in resulting in me just sitting around for those four and a half hours except when I stood up to take a walk. On top of that, I was sitting outside at a wooden bench for most of the time and I swear that my backside had the shape of every board and ridge possible. Most uncomfortable and also very frustrating. I did get to observe a lot of human nature in action and for amusement, I counted how many people actually stopped at the Stop Sign in the parking lot. Needless to say, I think I counted one as everyone else just drove straight thru. When it came to my turn, I made a point of stopping just because I had been criticizing everyone else. What else could I do…
The view of the Stop Sign. The two cars are parked in front of the store.
Saturday 12/11/2021
Art work on the shed.
It was much cooler when we went out for our walk and I was very glad to have on a jacket. Much different from yesterday as todays high is not supposed to get above 54 degrees from yesterday’s balmy 75. This is Texas after all and as the old saying goes, “If you don’t like the weather, wait a while and it will change”. With today Saturday, it was very quiet around the park with very little activity. A few people walked their dogs and a couple of cars drove around but other than that, nothing. We have no plans and after the busy day yesterday and unless something comes up, will stay close to home. We spent most of the day writing and working on photographs until it was time for the afternoon walk. This time when we walked the outside road, we went further than we normally do to get the exercise and covered 2.0 miles for the day which is where I want it to be. All in all, a very quiet day.
Sometimes the words just won’t rhyme no matter how many times I switch them around from this to that in the hope that for a fact I can get them right to say or maybe try another way in the end I think what I’ll do because it’s obvious I haven’t a clue on how to write a verse today my aging brain will not say the things that I want to write down I’m not a poet only a clown trying to be something I am not an artist a poet and a really big shot so I will give up on this writing today and take the dogs walking out for a play for at least I know that we will have fun me and two little dogs out in the sun.
Another day in what it left of our lives. The sun was shining and it was already 67 degrees when we walked out of the door around 8:00 am for that first uneventful walk around the park. I pretty much let Sandy dictate where she wants us to go with a gentle nudge here and there to point her in the right direction. We did our usual half mile circuit visiting the trash container along the way to dispose of a bag of garbage that we had accumulated overnight. It’s amazing just how much we generate when you consider there is really only me. The dog’s contribution to the garbage is minimal, Everything is in some sort of package and then there are the empty cans, jars and bottles which all add up. Unfortunately, this campsite does not do any re-cycling so everything is trash and it all goes in the big containers for the weekly pickup to wherever it is buried in some landfall or another. I hate to be another contributor to the earths demise in this way but there are very few other choices. I was looking at the wine selection in the Supermarket and some bottles are marked down to as low as $3:00 a bottle and I got to thinking how does anyone make any money on a price like that. Then I also got to thinking that this included a large glass bottle. If bottles can be manufactured that cheaply, no wonder it doesn’t pay to recycle them. This price is probably a marketing gimmick but even for the more regular low price of between $8-10 dollars a bottle, that is still ridiculously cheap for the cost of producing the wine and the bottle, let alone the work involved plus shipping and distribution. It makes you wonder how the vineyards make a living. I’m not complaining mind you as I probably could not tell the difference between cheap wine and the quality expensive stuff. Maybe that’s because I have never tasted the expensive stuff! It’s even worse when you compare the cost of a bottle of cheap wine to a Grande latte at Starbucks with it’s paper cup. The InstaPot finished doing it’s thing last evening and I carefully ladled out equal amounts into six different plastic containers and put them into the refrigerator, meals for the rest of this week. It sure is a lazy man’s way to cook and I love it. Guess that because I am a lazy man…Now all I got to do is to pay a trip to the HEB store for some fresh bread to go along with the stew. The InstaPot cooks other things as well as stew but as I can’t find the book that came with it, along with a whole bunch of other missing items so I’m kinda restricted. Anyway, I like Stew. We went out for the afternoon walk around the campgrounds and out on the roads and covered 2.4 miles for the day, pretty good for just wandering around before adjourning back to Miss Daisy for the evening.
Thursday 12/09/2021
Note the beautiful rock walls, a feature of the countryside around here.
I had to set the alarm in order to make sure that I woke up at 7:00 am as I had an early appointment with my skin doctor and I had to drive to Austin in rush hour traffic. I have been going to see her for many years and in a previous blog, I outlined that fact that she is retiring, rather forcibly as she pointed out, due to her Office Building getting demolished in order that the next door Hospital can expand. The Hospital owns her building so she didn’t have much in the way of a choice. She has been practicing for many years and she told me that it was too much expense, especially at her age, to set up another practice so she chose to retire. She is a great Dermatologist and I will miss her. Incidentally, she attacked me with her magic freezing spray bottle once more and for the final time. I made a couple of other stops after I got out, one of which was to World Market to buy my favorite English Marmalade. Unfortunately, they didn’t have my usual brand so I ended up with with a couple of other different types at least to give them a try. I also bought 3 jars of Marmite which is a very popular English breakfast spread usually on toast. From there, I made a stop at the Firestone Store in Oak Hill to make arrangements for them to replace the brakes on the Jeep as I know that they need it. We set that up for 12:00 pm for tomorrow. My final stop of the day was to the Veterinary Clinic that I have been visiting for 35 or more years with countless dogs and cats, 22 animals in all over that time period. I needed some heartworm and flea and tick pills for Mikey, who unknown to him, will share them with Sandy until I can get over to Bastrop Animal Shelter and pick up her supply. I’m sure he won’t mind. Actually, my real reason for visiting other than the pills, was to say goodbye to my long standing Veterinarian that I had written about in an earlier blog and who was retiring from practice at a comparatively young age, For me, it was a day full of nostalgia and mixed feelings as I said goodbye to two people who have been very central in my life over the past 20 plus years. I will probably never see them again and I wish Dr Ann Epstein, my skin doctor a very Happy Retirement and Doctor Barret Donop, my Veterinarian all the best in his future endeavors in Colorado where he plans on moving. I left the Veterinarians and took a slow drive home which I mean quite literally as there was a wreck on Hwy 290 which goes into Dripping Springs. The usual 30 minute trip took closer to an hour as we inched slowly forward at a snails pace. We finally passed the wreck which involved at least three vehicles, a couple of cars and 5th wheel tractor trailer dump truck, a part of the construction that is going on as they widen the road. Hope that no one was hurt. I finally made it back to Miss Daisy and to two excited little dogs who were ready to go out. We went for a walk around the park and roads before coming back to put away the things that I had bought while shopping a part of which was $480.00 worth, a years supply of Heartworm and Flea and Tick pills for Mikey. Sandy gets hers from the Bastrop Animal Shelter which is trip in the future for us. In the meantime, she can share Mikey’s supply. I wrote for a bit and then decided we should walk again for a couple more trips around the park. The dogs were in seventh heaven with three walks in a day. Altogether, we covered 2.6 miles, good exercise for us all.
Another view of the new section of the Campground.
We got up early determined to break the lazy late cycle that I have allowed to happen. With it getting dark much earlier, I am just wasting daylight by sleeping late on a regular basis. By 8:00 am, we were already out walking around the park and on the outside roads. We didn’t go very far, just a half mile but enough for the dogs to do their “thing” and for me to stretch my legs. I do miss the trails at the last campground but oh well, can’t have everything. We still get the exercise with walking around the park and on the roads. With breakfast and the all important coffee out of the way, I settled down to write catching up on some of the postings that I had fallen behind on. I had written the blogs but had delayed the posting as I wanted some more recent pictures which I have taken in the past few days. it took quite a while to get the blogs to my taste but I finally had them ready. By the time I was finished, it was time for the afternoon walk. Did I say walk, when we got out there walking one of the country roads, Sandy had already decided that she was in a hurry and was dragging me and Mikey along behind her at a breakneck speed. She kept it up for the entire walk of a little over a mile and the two males of the group were glad to be back inside Miss Daisy just to get our wind back and to rest up.
My clean little girl, for a while at least.
Back inside, I straightened up a bit although that doesn’t take very much as the space is so small and swept the floors and at the same time emptied the black and grey tanks, one of our regular tasks that I have to do every few days. As I sit here and write, the birds are very busy on the feeders. Mostly Black Crested Titmouse and House Finches but what the heck, at least they are birds using the feeders which is more than what happened at the last four campsites where there were zero birds. The rest of the day comprised of the afternoon walk and then the usual evening meal and then TV .
Tuesday 12/07/2021
A view from the road outside the Park
We followed our usual procedure of walk and then breakfast before settling down to read emails and messages just in case there was something important, which luckily, there wasn’t. I did some research on how to get a replacement Social Security card having lost or misplaced mine years ago. I guess lost and misplaced both add up to the same thing as I no longer have a card. It’s not something one uses every day and I know the number by heart but I need it to get my drivers license renewed next month which will be another trying time for me. The last time was six years ago and I had to run out to the car to get a different pair of glasses to past that test. I’m hoping that it will be OK this time around although the eyes are 6 years older. Now, I have to provide all kinds of documents including the aforementioned Social Security card and my birth certificate plus my Naturalization Certificate to prove that I really am the person applying for the license. Things sure have tightened up. I had spent some time putting together the ingredients for a Beed Stew in my InstaPot which will take 6 hours to cook. The beauty of it is that apart from an occasional stirring, I can leave it until it is cooked when it will switch itself off. The wonders of modern technology. I started it too late for this evenings meal but it will feed me the rest of the week. We went out for the afternoon walk and on the way, I ran into the Park Super who as it happened was using a step ladder to hang Christmas Decorations. I asked him if I could borrow the ladder for ten minutes to adjust my awning and he willingly obliged. We continued with our walk covering 1.4 miles for the day before returning back to Miss Daisy and sure enough the step ladder was leaning against the tree. I used it to lower the awning, giving it a bit more slope for the rain to run off before returning it against the tree for him to pick it up which he did later that evening. Not sure how long I can leave the awning out as there is a lot more wind here than at the Rock’n E probably due to the fact that campground was totally surrounded by the tall pine trees which acted as a wind break. We adjourned inside Miss Daisy for the rest of the evening for our usual evening meal and watching AC Milan play Liverpool in the Champions League.
A view of the new section of the park. There are trees planted but it will take a few years for them to mature.
We got up early as Sandy has a Groomers appointment and we needed to leave here by 10:30 am. We did our usual morning walk around the park and met a gentleman with a Husky. Beautiful dog and although Sandy actually tried to make friends, the other dog wanted to play which consisted of jumping all over Sandy, She did not want any part of it and backed away. Mikey, of course, was hiding behind me. What else? We walked for our usual half mile before returning to Miss Daisy for breakfast. I got to watch a couple of the campers in the temporary slots working on their RV’s. Whether in preparation to leave or the normal household chores one has to perform on a regular basis. After watching for a bit, I figured out that the 5th wheel and the Class A are preparing to leave as both owners went about the task of packing up their RV’s. The little Teardrop trailer has already left. It was time to drive into Dripping Springs for Sandy’s groomers appointment so all three of us jumped in the car for the short 11 mile trip. Mikey accompanied us into the groomers even though he was not getting “the treatment” just to provide his friend with moral support. I handed her over and did my best to ignore the accusing look she was giving me. Mikey and I then made our way back to MIss Daisy to write and wait it out before we can return and pick her up. Both the Class A and the 5th wheel have pulled out leaving just one RV in the row in front of us. It is very quiet around here. There are a couple of people walking their dogs and a couple more doing their laundry and a car here and there pulling in or driving out. Other than that, it is very peaceful with the only sound the traffic on the highway a half mile away. I received a text to tell me that Sandy would be ready to pick up in 20 minutes which I passed along to Mikey. just in case he might be interested. It should be said that he was in seventh heaven being the only dog and getting all of the attention while Sandy was away but when we arrived at the groomers, he was just as excited to see her again and made a big fuss of her. They had done a wonderful job on her and she looked clean and smart. I asked for her nose and face to be trimmed a little shorter which the groomer, a lady named Ashley willingly obliged. Mikey in his usual excited way had jumped on me and scratched my leg…again. I got Ashley to trim his nails while we were there as it seemed like a good idea. Sandy was very interested in hearing Mikey complain as she trimmed them and was looking with a fixed attention into the grooming salon and I swear with a worried look on her face as it went on. Finally, Ashley brought him back much to Sandy’s relief. Dogs are such interesting animals. Mikey just felt sorry for himself at getting so abused. We drove back taking the long way to see some more of the countryside but the dogs are not very good at travelling in the Jeep as both are vying for a spot on my lap which is really only big enough for one dog at a time. This doesn’t stop them both from trying and it gets very interesting sometimes. We arrived back and immediately went out for the afternoon walk around the park and out on the quiet country lanes that surround us meeting a couple of other campers doing the same thing. Altogether, we walked almost 2 miles for the day which is where I like to be. The rest of the day was spent in the usual way after catching up with the emails, food and television and a glass of cheap wine. Incidentally, the TV reception is very good at this park and I am not having to use my booster.
We got up around 9:00 am and as is our normal practice, went out for a walk around the park. The day has dawned to another sunny and beautiful day with just a few clouds in the sky. On our morning walk which by design, is usually a short one of around a half mile, we didn’t get to see any one else of the human or animal variety which is not surprising as it is Saturday and many of the working people, have the day off. Incidentally, as opposed to the Rock’n E, there seems to be an even split between old and young campers and there are a few kids chasing around. On the other hand, this park has many more transient campers as they are coming and going all of the time. All of the spots in the temporary row in front of me are full and they are quite a mix, an older and a newer model, class A’s, one large tow trailer, another a 5th wheel and finally, a little teardrop trailer looking completely out of place compared to the giants parked on either side of it. It takes all kinds to make a world. Probably, come Monday, most of those temporary spots will be open again. There is one Airstream here that belongs to my neighbors from my previous site. and another two parked across from me. For those of you that follow this blog, you may remember that I inadvertently left the sink faucet running resulting in blowing the GFI circuit breakers in several different places. GFI stands for Ground Fault Interrupter and the slightest drop of moisture will trip these circuits. Well, we had more than a drop with the sink overflowing resulting in several outlets not working in different places, the sink, the bathroom, the bedroom and both the outlets over and under the couch. I worried about it wondering how to fix it or would I have to call in an expert mechanic. I happened to be watching another video about a different subject and it occurred to me that I belong to the RV Repair Club and maybe they would have a video providing the answers. Sure enough, by doing a search, I located the exact video that I wanted and by following their instructions and with the single push of the reset button, all of the outlets are working again. Turns out, that membership has already paid for itself as calling in a Repair Mechanic would cost a whole lot more. Now, all I got to do is figure out why the Navigation system doesn’t work on Miss Daisy. We went out for the afternoon walk and this time we took the outside road away from the campsite which is a half mile walk one way. Altogether for the day, we managed to cover 1.6 miles. I received a call from the local Dog Grooming place with whom I had left a message and we arranged for Sandy to be groomed. Poor Sandy, she doesn’t know she has a busy day tomorrow. The day ended in the usual fashion, food, a glass of wine while watching the Premier League followed by Midsomer Murders, an English thriller series.
We got up around 9:00 am determined to get out of the lazy habits acquired at the the last campground and per usual, went out for a half mile walk around the park. After breakfast, I sat down to write having a couple of days catching up to do. While working, a couple of RV’s pulled into the lots in front of me and I was able to sit here and critique their parking techniques. Both knew what they were doing and in no time flat, they had their rigs levelled and set. As I watched, a truck load of gravel was delivered to one of the outside sites that are not blacktopped and a little later, a small dozer came in and levelled the pile. Even though there are a lot of RV’s here, I don’t get the feeling of being crowded as they are spaced far enough apart. As I am on the end, my nearest neighbor to my right is probably 50 feet away across the road. One of the good things that is happening here as opposed to the last three sites I was at is that the bird feeder pole that I put up yesterday with two hanging feeders on it, is being visited by birds, real birds of which I had not seen any at the other sites. Nothing exotic, just Finches and Sparrows but at least they are birds. Now, as long as the deer leave the feeders alone, we have it made. I know the deer are around as there was fresh deer scat outside on the grass. I worked on the blog for a while before deciding that I needed to go into Dripping Springs, about a 11 mile journey to the HEB located there. This is a large store and has everything that I need which are usually just the essentials and today was no different. I did manage to find the scented cans that I had been looking for. On the way home, I rewarded myself with a Starbucks Latte. Back at Miss Daisy, I received the usual warm welcome from Mikey and Sandy who barely gave me time to put the groceries away before demanding that we go out walking. On the road below the campsite, we met a couple of older gentlemen with a large dog and we stopped to chat for a while. Sandy made friends with their dog and even Mikey stopped barking although he was in his usual position, hiding behind me. Altogether, we covered 2.1 miles, well I did. The dogs not so much as they didn’t walk the HEB store. The rest of the evening was spent in the usual way, food for us all and then TV and a glass of wine for me. As far as I know, Mikey and Sandy are not TV watchers and neither do they drink wine. Smart dogs.
I tried to write a poem today but I could not get the words to say the things I wanted to tell the world just to let my thoughts unfurl things were all jumbled and nothing would rhyme although I tried a number of times and had several different attempts but alas in the end I had to lament the fact that my brain’s not a poet today and I tried to write some other way a story maybe but what about no thoughts of anything not even a shout for my favorite football teams or life at this park living my dream no cares or troubles coming my way at least that I know of and have a say in what to do or where to go next or let life get me down why should I be vexed if I don’t like this particular spot then it’s on to the next with a skip and a hop no cares in the world or none that I know living this life so peaceful and slow at my own pace to set my own speed controlled only by my needs for a change of scenery or to meet new friends who knows what is around the bend except on the days that are dull and dark and then we are glad to be in a park not travelling the roads and not having to race feeling safe and secure and in one place.
This is the first full day back here at Henly. While I was away, they have continued to blacktop the upper sites leaving the new and lower sites and those on the perimeter as gravel. We went out for our usual mornings walk and covered around the normal half mile before returning for breakfast. I already knew that we would have to resituate Miss Daisy to get the wheels back on the ground due to the sloping site. Following breakfast, I went outside and unhooked the Jeep driving it to the front of the site allowing me room to move Miss Daisy. Just to be on the safe side, I unhooked the hoses and power chord and brought in the slides even though I was only going to do a bit of jockeying to make her level. After the first attempt, it was obvious that I need to drive the front wheels up onto some blocking in order to keep them supported after the leveling process finished which I was able to do and with the push of a button, down came the jacks and we had a level rig. It didn’t take long to hook up the hoses and electric cable and put the slides back out and we were set and ready to go. My next task was to unload the Jeep and put out the wicker couch and table and lay down the two outside mats that I have. In no time flat, we had our home set up and ready for our stay here for the next two months or more, depending on the weather.
We spent the rest of the day writing and doing stuff inside Miss Daisy before going out for the afternoon walk around the park. I had an interesting conversation with one of my neighbors who has been here for a long time and who I had met during my previous stay and somehow, the conversation turned to Covid. First of all, she told me she is a nurse and then went on to say she has had Covid, her husband died of Covid and her two sons and a daughter have all had it. She was adamant that she is NOT getting a shot and by God, no one can force her as this is a free country. When I asked her why, she said that she had read up on the ingredients and didn’t like what was in them and no amount of discussion on my part could get her to think differently. She is a believer in vitamins and stuff like that. She kept pointing out that 2 million people have died and said probably a lot more unreported. I gave up on the discussion as it was a no win situation. I bet she is a Trump supporter too! I also ran into another neighbor, this time the attractive younger blond lady who I had chatted with the last time I was here and much more interesting to talk to and got a welcome back from her. Even Sandy condescended to like her dog which is a switch. Oh yes, the Park Manager, Malinda, stopped by to welcome me back although that doesn’t mean too much as she is just as likely to tell me that I have broken one of her rules. Still, nice that she bothered.
I miss the trails at the last park and the neighborly people but so far, this one is turning out OK. We walked 1.5 miles in and around the park and out on the roads outside the park which are very quiet country lanes. Sandy needs an appointment at the groomers where she went the last time out here in Dripping Springs and I was too late for the Farmers Market held yesterday so I will need to hit the HEB tomorrow. I can’t believe how hot it was today. The sweat poured off me when I was setting up and I had to turn the air back on from the heat cycle it was previously set. Even now, it is still 71 degrees outside. The day finished in the usual way with an evening meal and then television.
