God's mercy to His children

Friday was doctor day. I arose and rode my bike to our GP to discuss my triglycerides and cholesterol. I had stopped Lipitor August 27 and found that my readings were worse. He suggested I try Crestor to see if that would help and would not cause muscle ache. I came out to ride back and found it raining lightly but steadily. I waited at the hall for Evelyn to finish the exercise and hope it would stop raining. It didn’t so we rode home and drove the car to her oncologist. Today marked her 5th year of taking Arimidex. The doctor gave her the exam and said she could stop the drug and begin an annual check up schedule. She is to have an annual mammogram, the next scheduled for April 5. We can’t get one before then because of Medicare regulations. She then has an appointment scheduled a week later. I would like to see the annual schedule begin next November so that we can leave here earlier and come back at the usual time. We left the doctor praising our gracious Lord and came home. I was tired and napped until noon when we ate lunch and went off to the hospital. Evelyn had to return to her old job at outpatient admitting (she doesn’t like it there). I just did the same thing only with four others instead of the usual three. One of the women who worships with us came in to be admitted because she can’t keep food or liquid down. We had a prayer together as I left her and her husband in her room. We came home and went to prepare for Holy Communion and found that the wine was missing. We went to the bank to cash a rebate check, the grocery for more wine, and went to the local Elks club for their Friday night fish. We brought it home and shared a dinner. We just read and worked before going to bed early. We have a big day tomorrow.

shopping fun

After exercise we left for Mexico for Evelyn’s whitening treatment. We were quite late because Evelyn had to stop at the Weight Watchers to weigh in. I took cardboard etc. to the recycle center. It was 10:10 by the time we arrived. She got the equipment she needed and we left for McAllen. We had parked under a tree yesterday that must have been a bird motel so we were in desperate need of a car wash. We went to the Saturn dealership to leave the car and have them take us to Mr. Ghatti’s for lunch. To our surprise, the car was washed and we were off. We had the salad bar/pizza buffet and then went back to shop at Target, Marshall’s, and HEB for groceries. We found a splitter for the computer, some purple candles for our Advent Wreathe, and ceramic dish for baking sauces, two things we had looked for in several places. We came home and skipped supper because of the large lunch. Instead we strung lights onto our tree and put the garland on our steps. We have been able to decorate more than we expected to but are still not finished. I watched the first half of the Dallas/Green Bay football game until John Hamel arrived at half time. He has cable TV and could not get the NFL network as we could. We drank beer and ate peanuts until the game ended. Evelyn had gone to bed earlier having washed her hair. We both have doctor’s appointments tomorrow morning before volunteering at the hospital tomorrow afternoon.

Open!

Wednesday was a day in Mexico. After exercise we went across the border for dental work. Evelyn has anxiety and takes a prescribed substance to calm her. Once again she took it too early. We stopped to invite a couple in our park for dinner Sunday, but she didn’t even remember seeing them when we talked later in the day. By the time we reached the bridge, she was nearly zonked. I led her to the waiting room and seated her. I was called in first but suggested they let me take her in also so she didn’t fall over. I woke her and led her in. I was put in the chair and watched her sleep in hers until they led her to her chair. I was there for two fillings and ended up with 8. Evelyn was being prepared for three crowns. She wants to have one of the crowns match the color of her natural teeth. They have to make a tray that fits her teeth that costs $70. She thought she had one at home that had been made for her years ago so we returned home to get it and have lunch. We returned without the trays despite scouring the house looking for them. She had to get hers made while I walked almost all over town looking for Negra Modelo, a Mexican beer I like. I must say here that we love our Mexican dentist. She has given us special attention and pricing over the years. We recommend her to many of our friends. We came home and rested because Evelyn was quite tired. I put sandwiches together for our supper. We finished as John, our friend, came to take us to choir practice at Immanuel. I don’t want to sing in any of the regular services because I am not wanting to go out of my way to help the church that dumped me. I will sing in the Advent services. I was pushed by my bride into singing this coming Sunday but won’t be so easy after that. I have my own service at Trail’s End and don’t need to go over there when I am not “wanted”. We came home and I wrote this thing.

A beautiful ride

What a beautiful day for a bike ride on the beach! We loaded the bikes on to the trailer and left with some friends about 8:30. It is at least a good hour’s ride to South Padre Island. We parked the trailer in the usual place and rode off on the usual path. The difference was the beautiful weather. The tide was out and I wanted to ride on the beach but would have had to go alone because no one would go with because of fear of getting sand in the gears. That might have been a problem on another day but not this one. We made the round trip (7.3 miles), reloaded the bikes and our group went off to Dirty Al’s restaurant for shrimp. Theirs are very jumbo. Evelyn loves shrimp. They have a spicy sauce that can be used on their unusually crisp french fries that have some sort of breading on them. We shared a fish and shrimp dinner and I had a beer. Evelyn had a lemonade. (Enough detail, Stacy?) We stopped at a couple of beach type stores on the way off the Island and then came straight home. I made it to the last half of the park choir practice for the Christmas Eve cantata. I think it is the same one we did last year. I came home and found Evelyn asleep, so I worked on trying to fill out the sermon for Sunday. We ate a sandwich for supper, and I worked some more. I also dragged out many of the Christmas items so we can decorate this week. I think we will have to buy some more since we have had many of these things since living in Indiana. I think I finished the sermon and then quit. We did make a tentative plan with Don and Janice to meet sometime for dinner in the next two weeks.

Jury Duty

Monday was my day in court. I dressed and went to the hall to get my door prize ticket and was off to Edinburg, the county seat. I went to the court house and sat with 300 other people in a large auditorium. One of the judges came in and swore us in before going through a nice talk about the structure of the Texas court system. This began about 9:15. We had a break and then at 10:45 we were divided into groups to go to one of the courts. We waited outside the door and were called in about 11:30 to be quizzed by the attorneys in the civil case to be tried. We were numbered and sat on two different sides of the room. Those on my side soon learned that we were not in the running to be chosen. The sheets we had completed categorized us. Each lawyer had ½ hour to examine us. When I learned we weren’t really being considered, I read my daily Bible. Finally, at 1:30, we were dismissed and went home. I stopped at the grocery for milk and other items. I came home, picked up the mail and ate a small lunch Evelyn had prepared. We then rode to the mail store to mail two packages that had to be priced. We returned home and Evelyn went back to reading the book she had become obsessed with. It is by Mauve Binchy and must be quite good. I began practicing the sermon for Sunday and made an order of service for the following Sunday so I can give it to John at choir practice. We ate some of the ton of leftovers from Thanksgiving and Sunday’s dinner. We relaxed, Evelyn reading the same book (perhaps she finished it) and I working on the computer. I also called Stacy in the morning and learned that the Lord in His mercy sent some rain on Atlanta. I also learned that our friend, Paul from Indiana, has made progress in recovering from the stroke he had Saturday.

A red hot turkey dinner

We first put the bird into a roaster we had but saw that it was too small. Therefore we wrestled it out of one pan into the other We had saved the pan for some reason. I guess so we could use it today. I lifted it into the pan and put it into the oven. It only had to be heated through because it was fully cooked. It still took 2 ½ hours so we turned it on and left for church. We came home immediately after worship and finished the final details and Hamels came with the broccoli/cauliflower salad. Don and Janice came shortly after. We served boudin on crackers for an appetizer with wassail and beer. I served one of my Shiner 98s to each of the men. We then proceeded to enjoy the turkey (Cajun turkey is HOT!), creamed spinach, crescent rolls, jambalaya, peach butter and pumpkin mousse tarts for dessert. We had good conversation for a couple of hours and then they left. We gave Don and Janice the Cds and T-shirt we had brought them from Nashville before they left. I then watched the finish of the Bears football game as we cleaned up and loaded the dishwasher. Evelyn went up to rest while I called our neighbors, the Rogers and learned it was only 2 degrees warmer here (in the deep south) than it was there. I also called Phil Loyer, a friend whose wife died just before we left for here. He seemed to really appreciate the call. He is having a difficult time adjusting to his new life as anyone would. I then took the remaining meat off the turkey carcass. It is a messy job that Evelyn dislikes. I am willing to do it because she does most of the other work in any party we have. We put the stripped carcass into a plastic bag and took it to the dumpster. On the way back it began to rain and continued for more than two hours. I made popcorn and we ate while we watched “Christmas with the Kranks”. We had a good evening.

Amazing Grace

Saturday was another busy day once we wakened. The exercise group doesn’t meet on weekends so Evelyn doesn’t have to open the door. We slept until 8:30. I then took the car to Mercedes to be inspected. The price to have this done had increased dramatically in two years. After that I went to have the tires rotated. We have 24025 driven miles and many towed miles so it was past time. This service too has increased. I went to Wal-Mart to return the over the counter drugs I had bought yesterday. I then returned home to find Evelyn working on tomorrow’s dinner. I watched some football but did help with the preparations that I was able to help with. We then went to the Subway to buy two footlongs to take to Joe and Bonny’s for supper. She had picked some fresh green beans and invited us to come to watch “Amazing Grace”, a movie about Wilbur Wilburforce of England. He was a devout Christian and friend of William Pitt in the struggle to have slavery outlawed in England. He fought for more than 20 years, trying to do the Lord’s work here on earth. Just 3 days before his death, parliament passed the bill. It is interesting to hear pagans assert that slavery was sustained by all Christians when in fact no white man ever sold blacks into slavery. It was the warring tribes in Africa who sold each other to white merchants who became slave traders. In fact it was Christians like Wilburforce and Christians who established the underground railroad system that helped bring the practice to an end. We enjoyed our evening and came home for the night.

The Friday afternoon information desk crew

Return to volunteering at the hospital

Friday began quite cool and drizzly. I rushed to the hall to look for Bob Garrity, the man who sold me the cart and has all the connections. He was very kind in telling me where to take the tire for a valve replacement, but then in going to his house and getting a spare tire he had. He took me home and left me with the tire. I jacked up the golf cart, took the tire iron from the car and loosened the lug nuts. It was still very uncomfortable, and I had to kneel on the concrete and pull the tire off. I replaced it with the new one and froze my fingers in starting the lug nuts. I quickly tightened them and took the jack back to Jim and the old tire to Garrity. He and his wife had left for somewhere so I didn’t get to pay him. I came home, got the car and left to see if I could get the car inspected. The place is not open on Friday. I also went to Wal-Mart to get some Mylanta and Benedryl. We left some of our home remedies in NC. I had to get home to eat lunch and dress for our afternoon volunteering at the local hospital. We sometimes ride our bicycles since it is less than a mile. We didn’t today. We were united with our serving group, a man from Wisconsin and one from Winnipeg, Manitoba. One of our neighbors has signed up to serve on Fridays too. We want to plan at least one “pad party” per month so we can enjoy snacks and beer on someone’s driveway, called pads in RV parks. We worked until 5 and then returned home for the evening. We finished more leftovers from yesterday’s feast. We also watched a Turner Classic Movie: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. I think James Stewart won an academy award for his performance. Before dinner, I watched Texas A&M beat Texas. Arkansas also beat LSU, the #1 team of the country. This entire season has been the most weird on record in college football. These are just two examples.

Thansgiving day.

Thursday we were up and off to help set up the table for the big dinner. The table queens take great delight in decorating the tables. There is no contest with a prize but still brings out the competitive nature of the ladies. I drove the golf cart with our plate warmer to keep some of the dishes warm. We returned home and got a call from my brother. We joked around a while and then discussed when he and Linda might come to visit. He thought March might be more convenient due to many things they had already planned until then. I told him that we run the bedroom on a first reserved first reserved basis. I typed the same words twice on purpose. We went off to the hall on the golf cart with our goodies. I thought I was to bring the wine but it turned out that almost everyone had brought some. I was stuck with drinking almost one entire bottle by myself. We had a fine selection of dishes to accompany the turkey: ham, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, raisin dressing, cheesy mashed potatoes, relish tray, gravy, escalloped corn, deviled eggs, coconut cream pie, pecan pie, and pumpkin pie. We didn’t overeat as much as usual and drove home in the golf cart. We didn’t make it home because the troublesome right rear tire. It was completely flat by the time we reached a friend who had an air compressor. Evelyn walked on home while Jim and I jacked up the cart, removed the tire, reseated it on the wheel, and pumped it up. We learned that the valve stem is leaking badly so I loaded it with some “slime” and drove home very fast. I made it and we unloaded the dirty dishes and leftovers we had brought. We (I) watched some of the Cowboys football game and took some of the things sitting out in the Texas room and hung an indoor/outdoor thermometer sensor. It took a long time because it was in a location requiring I do it with my left hand. I also washed the fan blades because I had the tall ladder on the porch. We didn’t eat anything for supper except some of the leftovers from noon. We have a big day planned for tomorrow.

Thanksgiving Eve

Wednesday was exercise and Evelyn was ecstatic because 5 people came. One was a man who had to leave before the end because “I am worn out”. We ate a bowl of cereal and went to a Bible study on Proverbs. The study was over around 11:45 and we drove to the Subway to use a coupon. I went there because I was hungry and knew it would take time for Evelyn to fix lunch. We enjoyed the sandwich and then went to Wal-Mart to get some items we needed for tomorrow and Sunday. We tried to get the car inspected but the place I went last year was closed. We came home and worked on trimming our cactus and Evelyn worked on cleaning our porch railing with a great product called Awesome. It also works on carpet as a spot remover. We had a tarpaulin that we put on the ground and loaded it with cactus paddles. We had used this procedure on other weeds two days ago, but this time I didn’t put all the cactus paddles on it because those are heavy. I could hardly drag the tarp to the front of the house, and I have twice as much left to trim. I wanted to get the residue to the front because Wednesday is one of the days the maintenance guys pick up all the trimmings in the park. We went to the Thanksgiving eve service at church after we shared one of the pumpkin blizzards at Dairy Queen. This is a fantastic year in that we have shared two already! I can hardly stand some of the things the pastor does and keep praying that I don’t do as poorly. We just came home and went to bed.

A long bike ride

Tuesday we were up thinking our bike ride began at 8:30, but it actually began at 11. We came home and I worked on assembling the new Gevalia coffee maker. It was not nearly as nice as the one we have in North Carolina. It has no timer and is more difficult to fill. We now have 3 coffee makers here but will sell one or two at the end of the season. We met around 12 of the bike club and rode over 5 miles to a neighboring park, Victoria Palms, for lunch. The wind was light but behind us on the way. We had a Mexican buffet and then rode back. The wind was now stronger and in our faces. It was a difficult ride back and seemed much longer. When we returned I noticed that our friend had fixed our golf cart. I worked a while on my first sermon while Evelyn showered and began work on supper. We then took a ride in our working golf cart so Evelyn could get a package from a friend. We came home and I watched my sports shows while Evelyn finished supper. I also applied some “Awesome” to the carped on the steps inside the house. They get quite dirty and we have to clean them frequently while here. I washed the dishes from the day and Evelyn worked on making a pie for Thanksgiving dinner. We might play golf tomorrow morning.

trimming and planting

Monday is the park meeting. I did some additional trimming on the Sega palms around our house. I went to the meeting and then came home after looking for the maintenance guy who picks up the cuttings because I didn’t want him to take the tarp to the trash area. I returned and we both went to Siesta Village to check on the date they want the AARP class. We couldn’t talk with the scheduler but did leave a note. We came home and had a light brunch before going to Wal-Mart to shop for groceries, Home Depot for flowers, a local nursery for tomato plants, and Big Lots to look for some storage shelves. We came home and I worked on the golf cart, adding water to the batteries as Evelyn worked at cleaning the wrought iron railing on the front porch. I then went to Joe and Bonny’s to get more horse manure and dirt for our garden. I noticed that they were home. I came home with the dirt and spread it on the garden. Evelyn then planted two tomato plants, onion sets, Swiss chard, zucchini, red beets, parsley and onion seeds. I will be surprised if we get much because it is late in the season. I also spend a great deal of time reading, responding, and forwarding e-mail. I am also fighting with one of our credit card companies. It is a real struggle to get on the web site to pay our bill. I have applied for another card from another company.

plans for next week

Sunday we slept late again. I learned that Evelyn had been up again last night. I hope she can tonight. Holy Communion was again an extreme blessing. The message was not delivered especially well again. The pastor must not practice reading the Scripture because he makes mistakes that cloud the meaning. I pray that I do a better job. We talked with many people that we have known in seasons before. We always enjoy re connecting with them. We came home and had hamburgers left from a few days before. They were very good. I called the Waters from Rio Hondo and invited them and the Hamels for dinner next Sunday. We then both rested before pulling some weeds out of our small garden area and around some amaryllis plants. We put the weeds on a tarp like we did with the leaves in the fall in Indiana. We pulled them to the front of our unit for pick up tomorrow morning. We went to the hall where I served ice cream again. There were only 38 people last week and even fewer this week. Last year this was a big event. We came home and I made popcorn for the first time in several weeks. It was certainly good. We watched a documentary about Andrew Jackson and were confirmed in our opinion as to how vile a man he was. One of the historians called him a criminal. Some of his actions were good but more were dastardly. We just went to bed early.

golf punishment restarts.

I was up at 7 and went to the doctor to have blood drawn for my lipid profile. I have discontinued my Lipitor and want to see how my cholesterol and triglycerides are doing. I went from there to a Mexican restaurant for a breakfast taco. I had to eat on the run because I was to tee off between 8:30 and 9. I played with a friend from church in a best ball team outing. I hit a few good shots but am still playing poorly. We were finished first but I didn’t stay to find out how our team did. I was home by 1:30, ate a light lunch and went off to see if I could talk with our pianist who plays for our worship services at Trail’s End. He wasn’t home so we left a card and went on to another helper with the service who has been quite weak and slow in recovering from surgery. Evelyn had made her some chicken soup to help her appetite. She was grateful and we were home for the kickoff of the Old Oaken Bucket football game. The first half was embarrassing but the second was much better. Purdue came back from 24-3 to tie the game but lost in the last minute on a field goal. We were disappointed but also felt shocked that they even came that close. We will wait to see which if any bowl offers them a bid. If it is the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, we plan to go but not to any other. We tried to take our golf cart to the dumpster but, despite my charging it for over 20 hours, it wouldn’t start. So we walked to it and then went into the hall. The people were cleaning up from the cook out and were dividing the leftover food. They offered us some baked potatoes so we brought three home and ate one for supper. Evelyn had made some sausage that we put on the potatoes. We then settled in for the evening. We had tried to meet with one of our Valley friends but they were busy. We will go to church tomorrow in Mercedes for Holy Communion.

party hearty

Friday I arose and went to Mercedes to see if I could trade my 30 weight Coastal motor oil for some 5-20 to use in our Saturn. The people of Auto Zone were gracious and made the trade. I bought an oil filter and went to my friend George’s to do my work. He has a pit in his barn floor and lets me use it for my cars. He was there and I changed it without incident. I went to the HEB and bought some groceries we need for our dish at the Thanksgiving dinner. I also bought one of their “meal deals”. This week featured a buy a smoked turkey and get bread, creamed spinach, sausage, 12 sodas, 4 oz of coffee and a quart of ice cream. I brought them home and began working on the screened porch. I found Evelyn working in the back yard, removing many weeds. She stopped and began making lunch and went on to clean many items on the porch. We took a nap and showered to go to our neighbor’s for a pad party. They served many hors doerves and then a marvelous seafood dish that contained shrimp, lobster and cream cheese. It was served on a half shell with a potato crust around the outside. We had a great time and were home by 7 and watched “Bull Durham” on the TV. It is a baseball movie we had seen several years ago. Evelyn didn’t remember ever having seen it.

A windy ride

Thursday morning was usual at first, but around 9:15 we took our bikes to the trailer to be loaded. We carpool with the bike club and it was our turn to drive. We drove 15 miles to Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge where we unloaded the bikes and road on the paved path through the park. Evelyn road 3 miles and turned around to go back. The wind was stronger than it had been and the temperature was lower. I rode on for a total of 11.3 miles round trip. The path was protected by “trees” (actually they are tall brushy bushes) so we didn’t ride with too much wind resistance. On the way back, Evelyn and a pastor saw a huge indigo snake that was 8 inches in circumference and 6 feet long. This excited both of them. We all gathered together for our brown bag lunch and then drove back home. We both took naps and dressed for the evening at the concert series. We picked up our friends and went to Appleby’s in Harlingen for dinner. On the way I stopped at Erchingers to ask if I could come to change oil tomorrow morning. Their phone is not working so I couldn’t contact them any of the dozen times I had called. We shared a meal and went on to the concert, The Celtic Tenors. They had wonderful voices but some of the songs were too soothing and lulled us to sleep. The second half of the program was a bit more lively and we stayed awake more easily. We came home and went straight to bed. I guess I was more exhausted from the ride than I thought.

A worthwhile meeting

Wednesday Evelyn opened the exercise room and was the only one again. I picked her up and we went off to LaFeria for the AARP meeting. The meeting was worth while, especially the special presentation by a cardiologist who discussed how to stay younger. Evelyn learned something special about when and how to take the Niaspan she takes. She should take it at night with a baby aspirin. It has made her itch quite severly. In fact all cholerterol meds should be taken at bedtime when the body is not digesting food. That made the trip valuable. We also had a lovely lunch and then left. I was also recruited to help a woman with her first class presentation. I am also supposed to go to that park and learn when the park wants the class. We stopped at the outlet mall to get some kitchen items, especially a small heating crock for serving hot dips at parties. We left there and Evelyn went to get her false nails filled in while I went to get our new license sticker. I was done more quickly than I could have ever guessed. I returned to Wal-Mart and bought two night lights. Our old ones just won’t work for some reason. I brought Evelyn home but checked whether either of us had a doctor’s appointment. We didn’t but I will go have blood drawn to check my lipid profile Saturday. I have stopped taking Lipitor and wonder how my cholesterol is doing. We had chicken salad for supper and watched TV the rest of the evening.

Errands

Tuesday was the first flea market of the season. I took a suitcase, some spark plug wires, a bag full of women’s golf clubs and a DVD player that didn’t work. I sold only the latter. Evelyn has taken charge of the morning exercise room and played an exercise video. She was the only one present but must always go because she has the key. When we came home, Evelyn began working on making a chicken salad from the leftovers from Sunday. I went to the hall to make some calls, one to AARP to get materials for a class I will teach in January. I also made arrangements to teach one in our park in February. I left and went to have the car washed. We had not washed it for several months because of the drought in NC and many bugs were plastered on the front. I wanted someone else to scrub them off. I also tried to mail a package to the Beeli children. I had to send it USPS which was the cheapest way. I came home for the delicious lunch, and then we went to renew our license plate. I forgot the checkbook and will have to do it later. I went to the bank and was blessed to get rolls of Washington and Wyoming state quarters. I had looked all summer for WA and thought I would never find any. We came home and I worked on organizing our storage while Evelyn did some ironing until 4:30 when we went for a bike ride around our park and the one next door with the bike club. I barbecued hamburgers for dinner. Then I picked the rest of the chicken off the neck, back and wings to use in some soup. We have a friend who has no appetite and might eat some. We then rode in our golf cart trying to visit some friends who are leaving for 10 days tomorrow. We couldn’t find them but did find a spot at a table for the Thanksgiving Day dinner. We came home and picked some pecans out of the shells. I have been trying to see when Llano Grande Park might want me to preach. I don’t want to be scheduled and miss the service. I still don’t know anything. I did forget one important thing yesterday: I found the camera we have searched for since leaving Waynesville. I have had the neighbor searching our house for it. I will have to call her this weekend and tell her.

Shut my mouth

Monday was the first park meeting. We try to attend these each week to learn some of the events happening in the park. We plan to take a bike ride Thursday around the Santa Anna nature area. We also made plans to drive to the first of the concert series with George and Peggy Van Well on Thursday evening. We are still without a table for Thanksgiving dinner because someone erased our name from the table sign up sheet. The meetings end with a drawing for some small prizes. This gets people to come and stay until the end. We didn’t win this time but have in the past. We left for Mexico to get my hair cut and pedicures for both of us. On a chance we went to our dentist to make an appointment to have our teeth cleaned and were surprised that we could have them cleaned immediately. We also scheduled work for the week after Thanksgiving: Evelyn will have three teeth crowned and I will have a filling replaced. All of this took us to 1:30 so I decided to eat lunch at one of the restaurants. We shared a lunch and then drove home to rest. After that we went shopping because we still needed some staples. After we got them we went to Dairy Queen for a pumpkin flavored blizzard. Evelyn needs at least one of those each year. We came home and I priced a few items for the flea market sale tomorrow morning. I also made some announcement papers to post in Trail’s End RV park where lead worship. We will begin services on December 2 to coincide with the Advent season. I called a friend and learned that the worker who left his tools here last spring is back in the area. Perhaps he will pick them up sometime this week.

Finally settling in

Sunday we were up at 7. Evelyn was working on the chicken we would have for dinner. I went out and sprayed Roundup because the breeze was calm. I also tried to pump up some tires, especially the flat one on the golf cart. It is parked in front of the steps and would cause a problem for our guests who were quite old. They were from church, and he is a retired electrician and has helped us before and they were good friends when I worked for Immanuel. I couldn’t get the tire up so we brought them in a different door. We went to church and brought them home for dinner. He found a breaker that needed attention and repaired the outlets. He did make a suggestion about the gasket on the refrigerator door. It is not sealing properly and is allowing moisture to collect. They left around 2 and we all went to a 60th wedding anniversary celebration. The couple were good friends when I worked at Immanuel. We left the reception hall and found that our friends from Winnipeg arrived the same day that we did. We couldn’t talk much because I had to get back to get ready to serve ice cream at the hall. I did that and that was our supper. We came home and watched a movie, “Fever Pitch” and part of “For the Boys”. We liked them both. We plan to go to Mexico for haircuts and pedicures tomorrow after the park meeting.

Mail and Mayhem

Saturday we began working again. I went to the hall to get our accumulated mail to look over during the football game. Evelyn worked more on getting the kitchen cleaned, and I continued unloading the car and emptying some of the plastic tubs we had brought. We had some spaghetti for lunch. We had pasta that was at least 3 years old and some really good Classic Italian sausage sauce. Then the day fell apart. As I sorted a large tub of mail, the Boilermakers were beaten around by Michigan State. I don’t know who would invite them to a bowl game. I begin to wonder if we would go to the Alamo Bowl if they are invited. I wonder if they can even beat Indiana next week. What a collapse! The best thing was that I did get through the mail. We had many charity requests and a few cards and letters. We scored big on catalogs and magazines. After the game we just worked on the house. I did discover that the outlets in the bathroom don’t work. We have no nightlights. We had planned to finish the spaghetti we had for lunch but ended up just snacking instead. I had a glass of wine and Evelyn a Pepsi. I had learned that the people who built our pergola had bought a unit and moved hear from Peru, IN. We went out to see if we could find them but couldn’t. We learned later that they hadn’t moved in yet. We went to bed to be rested for worship tomorrow. The days are hot but the nights are extremely pleasant. We are blessed to be here.

coming to the winter home

We slept late this morning before starting the repacking process. I took the crawfish out of the motel room freezer and found that they were partly thawed. They had done well in the ice for three days. I repacked them in ice as well as the drinks. Somehow I was able to get everything into the car with some room to spare. Off we went to Seguin so we could look for a pecan farm we had visited last fall. We were blessed to find it again but were surprised at the price. Last fall the crop was small because there had been little rain. This year it was small because of too much rain. We bought 3 pounds of cracked pecans anyway. We then proceeded to Shiner to buy 6 of their new anniversary beer--Shiner 98. I got the 6 pack and then went to the brewery to sample the new dark beer just developed. They hadn’t tapped it yet so I missed out. I did have one sample and half of Evelyn’s. I poured the other half out. This is an unheard of event. We went on to Goliad and had lunch at a Whataburger. We went on from there, realizing that we could easily get home before dark which we did. We turned on the electricity and water before going to Long John Silvers for supper. We also took our frozen goods to the hall freezer until ours gets cold. We went to the grocery for some staples and then returned home. I worked at unpacking and Evelyn worked at cleaning some of the shelves and doing laundry. We had not done laundry since we left NC and were ready for washing. We forced ourselves to stop working about 9:30 but will continue tomorrow.

More Wurstfest

Thursday we slept late and had breakfast at the motel around 10. We drove to the outlet mall in San Marcos and spent about 4 hours there. We found some clothes and some other things to take back to the Valley. This funny because we didn’t have enough room in the car to bring what we did from NC. We had decided to just have snacks before going to the Wurstfest for supper. We rested and then dressed for the evening. We went to the small tent (there are two) and listened to some music because we could sit outdoors. It was very muggy and it was more comfortable. We went to the Wursthall where the dancing occurs and danced for half an hour. We didn’t care much for the band and went to the large tent for entertainment. There was a great band, the sauerkrauts, playing. They worked the crowd in a similar way to last night’s band. We stayed quite a while. We also ate our dinner. Evelyn had 5 sausages on a stick and I had potato pancakes and applesauce. We finished and went back inside to dance to Jimmy Sturr’s band. He is a big favorite here, but the crowd stands in front of the stage and makes it difficult to dance. A few of us found a way regardless. We danced a while and returned to hear the sauerkrauts again. They had a different act but were still great. We came to the motel and thought about the trip to the Valley tomorrow.

From Cajun two step to polkas

We woke earlier than usual, packed again, Evelyn ate some breakfast and we left for the Best Stop for boudin and pork tasso for making gumbo. I also bought a link of hot boudin for my breakfast. I ate as I drove and loved it. We were into Texas by 10:30 and learned some good news. First, we called a motel in New Braunfels and made reservations at an Executive Inn at the coupon rate. Second, we were about 100 miles closer to our destination than I thought. We drove straight through Houston without having to stop and then went to a Landry’s restaurant for more Cajun food. Evelyn had not had enough. We had the buffet and overate as we always do when ordering a buffet. We did have good food--chicken/sausage gumbo and shrimp etouffee--featuring hush puppies. We loved it. We went on to New Braunfels, checked in, unpacked and left for Wurstfest. The music didn’t begin until 5:30 and we were there shortly after. We decided to not have supper because of the huge lunch so we just bought some drink tickets and danced. We ate a bucket of popcorn that was the worst I have had in years. It was loaded with salt and stale. Even microwave popcorn is better than that was. We also went out of the main dance hall and listened to the most animated accordionist we have ever seen. He and his band played one polka that was 21 minutes long. We were glad we weren’t dancing to it. My legs are tired enough without being in a torture chamber. We were home by 10 and I finished blogging. Tomorrow we will return to the Fest for another evening before leaving for the Valley.

dancing and more dancing

Tuesday we arose, packed and ate breakfast. I have to pour water out of the coolers and replace the ice each morning. It has been working well because there is always ice left in the coolers and the sodas are always cold. We left for Lafayette which was only about 150 miles away. We arrived without incident around 2 and went directly to Dwyer’s Cafeteria for lunch of great catfish. We then found a motel. We carried what we needed into the room and left for Scott where Early’s market is located. We bought two pounds of crawfish tales and some Cajun seasoning. We returned to the motel, changed clothes and left for Randol’s for dinner and dancing. We shared a half etouffee/half fried crawfish dinner. We danced while waiting for dinner. We learned that they didn’t have hush puppies again. This happened to us last year too. We may not go back there for dinner again. We enjoyed dancing but were terribly outclassed. This should be no surprise since they were mostly Cajuns. We did meet a couple from California that used to be the city manager of Palmdale where Pieder works. He and Emily live in the neighboring town of Lancaster. We returned to the motel and decided to drive to New Braunfels tomorrow instead of staying in Lafayette another day. There is a great Wurstfest festival going on there and we will dance polkas and waltzes.

Finishing the Natchez Trace Parkway

Monday we arose around 7 and prepared to leave. We went to the lobby for breakfast which had cereal (Evelyn needs it) and biscuits and gravy (I love it but don’t need it.) We packed were on the road by 9. We had fueled up last night, went directly to the Parkway and drove south. It was still beautiful but not spectacular until the afternoon. We stopped frequently at historical sites and reached Kosciusko, MS around noon. We stopped at a museum and learned that Oprah Winfrey was originally from there. We talked with a precious voluntary retired couple--he was 92. They were very entertaining and recommended a local southern cooking restaurant. We weren’t hungry yet so we drove on to Jackson. We got off the Parkway to look at a craft center and got directions to another southern restaurant, but it closed at 2 and we were 5 minutes late. I am glad because they would have been upset for us to come as they were closing. We left there and went to a Popeye’s Chicken for lunch. We drove on and went to more historical sites, the most interesting of which was the “sunken trace”. This was a deep ditch that was actually used as a walking trail toward Nashville. It was deep enough that a bus could have driven in it without being seen from the ground level. We walked in it for the flavor of the experience. We continued and arrived in Natchez around 5 as it was getting dark. I had gone on-line last night to roomsaver.com and found a coupon for the Day’s Inn so we went there and were allowed to get the coupon rate. As a surprise, we were offered a complimentary supper of red beans and rice. I ate them but took Evelyn to a Chinese seafood buffet. We learned from the Internet that the Wurstfest is in progress in New Braunfels, TX. We went there last year and had a good time dancing. We may not stay here in Natchez more than a day so we can spend some time in Lafayette dancing and eating. We are only 150 miles from there and only 436 from Wurstfest, a day’s drive. We see what develops.

beautiful Sunday drive

Sunday we were up early enough to put some things into the car before going to McDonald’s for another parfait. We then continued to the Cowboy Church. It was held in the theater connected with the Earnest Tubb record store. It is recorded and broadcast over a radio station. It began with an 8 piece band playing followed by an opening prayer. Then three guest singers came to the microphone one at a time. One of them had been nominated for the Inspirational Country Music Award to be presented tonight. He sang one particularly beautiful number. There was a message about Jonah and a long altar call. We were blessed by it although I did disagree with some of the theology. We returned to the motel, finished packing and left for the southwest side of Nashville at only noon. We followed the GPS to the entrance of the Natchez Trace Parkway. We stopped for a barbecue sandwich and then drove south. It was a bright, crisp autumn day and the sun made the leaves even more beautiful. There was little traffic and we stopped at several sites, the most notable of which was the monument to Meriwether Lewis of the Lewis and Clark expedition to the Northwest. The monument is where he committed suicide. It is a long way from Nashville to Natchez so we couldn’t drive the 400 miles in one afternoon at the speed limit of 50 mph. We stopped at around 5:30 In Tupelo, MS (it was dark because of the end of daylight savings time. The desk clerk at the motel recommended an Italian/Greek restaurant for dinner and we loved it. We had the Greek sampler platter. We returned to the newly renovated Howard Johnson for the night. We want to make Natchez tomorrow and it is 260 more miles. We were able to talk with both daughters on our way. It is always fun to learn what their families are doing.

Honkey tonking in Nashville

Saturday morning we went to the McDonald’s for the parfait and then walked down to an RV sales lot to look at some Rvs. We came back to the motel to watch the Purdue/Penn State football game. We just ate peanuts and beverages for lunch. Evelyn watched the first half before leaving to walk back to the mall area where we bought many Cds as gifts for people in the Valley. The record shop was opened by Earnest Tubb many years ago and one of his tour buses inside the store. It was probably quite luxurious for its day but not so by today’s standards. I stayed for the finish of the ball game in which Purdue was able to throw it away as they are in the habit of doing. We rested a bit and then dressed for the evening. We walked to the Caney Fish Camp (a restaurant). Evelyn went to buy a red cowgirl hat, and I ordered an appetizer of crab stuffed portabella mushroom and an entree of almond coated trout for us to share. We didn’t like either of them very much. We returned to the motel and caught the Gray Line bus to go honkey tonking downtown. The tour included $10 spending money that we should have used for our dinner. The guide bought us one drink, and Evelyn didn’t want diet Coke (we like diet Pepsi) so I got two beers. I drank them as we listened to the music, and we then left to visit the other bars along Broadway Street. Most of them were crowded and loud, causing Evelyn distress. We went to four and then sought out the Wild Horse Saloon where we had entry tickets included in the tour price. We wanted to have a demonstration of line dancing and do some ourselves. It was closed to the public until 11--the time we were to be taken back to the motel. We went to the Hard Rock Cafe instead and shared a brownie and ice cream treat, paid for with Evelyn’s $10 coupon. I spent mine on some mugs to give to the man taking care of our lawn in Texas. The bus came half an hour late because of the traffic, and we didn’t get home until 12. I had just bought a beer when the bus arrived so I smuggled it onto the bus and finished it at our room.

a great Friday

Friday we slept late again and walked to the hotel again. We went through there and on to the Opry Mills mall. It was another beautiful, temperate day. We enjoyed the walk and additional trip through the luxurious hotel. The mall must be more than 1 ½ miles from where we were staying. I had called the Opry ticket office to buy tickets for tonight’s performance and was told that parking downtown was free but learned later that it was not. We went past a golf store that was closing for the winter, and I wanted a new golf bag so I bought one at a very good price. The man wanted to sell so he agreed to pay most of the shipping cost to Texas. We don’t have room for a golf bag in the car. We also found a food court and shared a lunch at a TGIFriday restaurant. It was very good and we both wonder how people eat a full meal by themselves. We walked back through the hotel and saw a lady on stilts on her arms and legs, wrapped in vines and painted green. She is billed as “DiVine”. She moves around slowly, appearing to be attached to walls. It is quite entertaining and fascinating to watch her. She was trained as a gymnast. We returned for a nap and just snacked for supper. We drove to the Ryman Auditorium where the Opry is presented during the winter. Normally it is performed at the auditorium in the hotel near here. We were early downtown and, after finding a place to park along the street, we went to the Sheraton and listened to a pianist until time to go to the Opry. The seats in the old Ryman are old church pews and are not comfortable. We did tolerate them and enjoy most of the performers (there were 16 over the course of the 2 hours). We had heard many of them on our XM Bluegrass station. We left and came back to the Crackerbarrel for an apple streusel pie and ice cream. Evelyn was hungry and needed an ice cream fix. We came home for another good night’s sleep.

medicine run

Thursday we had an important mission. Evelyn needed to have some potassium so we ate breakfast (she had her parfait) and drove to the Wal-Mart on Lebanon Pike. It took much longer than we anticipated, but we did finally get there. The prescription was in their system so we were able to get it. We had to wait for half an hour, so we shopped around for other things. Evelyn found a blouse she had been looking for, and I found a golf glove. We left there and went to a local Kroger store for sodas on sale. We considered getting some hazelnut/poppy seed bread. We didn’t because we learned that there are Kroger stores in Sugarland, TX--a suburb of Houston we travel through on our way to the Valley. We came back and finished more leftovers before our daily nap. We dressed for the evening and walked to a local restaurant called John A’s. We shared a dinner and waited for the live entertainment to begin at 8. It was a pretty good band and the area in the aisle of the place was big enough for us to dance. There were even as many as 4 couples dancing at once. We had a good time and a good meal. We also decided to go to the Friday night Opry tomorrow because we knew more of the bluegrass performers that would be there then. We came home and enjoyed a good night’s sleep. The bed is firmer than either of us like but doesn’t seem to keep us awake.

attempted recovery

Wednesday, I called Jim, but he was gone for the morning and afternoon. I did finally get him later in the day and asked him to overnight the item and possibly the camera. He will look tomorrow. I also called another neighbor, asking her to send some small items in another package but not overnight. After the muffins provided for breakfast, we took a walk to the Opryland Hotel. It was about a mile walk but the morning was very pleasant. The hotel is very luxurious, featuring a huge indoor atrium. We had been there 20+ years ago but this place had been nearly tripled in area. It was now big enough that we were able to take a gondola ride around in a manmade canal. We returned to the motel where we shared a stromboli we had bought in one of the many restaurants in the hotel. We also shared some of the cottage cheese we were trying to finish off. Then we took a much needed nap before finishing off the pork and dressing we had brought with us. We walked around the area some more before retiring. Evelyn needs more fiber than the muffins offer so we walked to the nearby McDonald’s to get her a parfait for tomorrow’s breakfast. We also bought some ice cream from Bob Evans next door.

troublesome Halloween

Tuesday we finished loading the car and left around 8:30 for the post office and Taco Bell. I noticed we had forgotten to pack a travel pillow. Little did I know that was a sign from God that we should return home to get it. We didn’t. We had decided to drive through the Smokey Mountain National Park instead of the Interstate. We did, but I couldn’t stay awake, so Evelyn drove and I slept through most of the scenery I wanted to see. Just as we entered the park, I noticed that we didn’t have our camera. Remember the pillow decision? It was already too late to return, so I was to say the least. We went through Pigeon Forge, and I debated whether we should knock around there for a few days instead of the planned days in Nashville. We went on--not a tragic one but mistake number 2. We connected with the Interstate and traveled on to Knoxville. We got off to gas up and as we reentered the highway, our atlas and my Thrivent calendar slid out the rear window. We could not safely stop so on we went. Disaster 3. We had a good trip to Nashville, stopping at a Red Lobster for lunch. Normally we eat from the cooler at noon, but were hungry for fish. We arrived at the Countryside Lodge around 4 (we had crossed into the central time zone). We were able to get the desk clerk to accept the coupon from the Interstate magazine from the highway even though it was not yet valid. We paid for two nights. We ate warmed leftovers from the cooler and took a walk around the area to check it out. We needed some exercise after riding all day. When we returned, I fired up the computer to blog and discovered that I had forgotten the power cord. Disaster 4. This was the most devastating because I need it to use during the winter months to write sermons. Naturally I had some trouble sleeping but decided to call our neighbor Jim and ask him to overnight it to us