Answering E-mails

I devoted today to answering my backlog of e-mails.  I apologize to everyone involved but as you all know...I am a procrastinator and/or sometimes with my CRS syndrome...I do not remember whether I sent a reply or not  :-(

Late this afternoon we had to run an errand in town so decided to drive dad's old car.  It ran good, however  when I turned on the lights to come back home...found one of the headlights was out!  So what to do?  I did what everyone with a busted headlight does...turned on the bright lights :D

Seriously, we live in South Val Verde County very close to the Rio Grande so there is always all kinds of law enforcement vehicles of various entities and I just knew I was going to be pulled over and my fine was not going to be cheap like the one I paid in Mexico.  Lucky for me I made it home safely.

Noticed gasoline prices went down...that was a welcome change!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Practically No Damage

Was  up early surveying the aftermath of yesterday's strong winds. Actually it did us a favor by knocking down a small dead tree.

We also had a couple of branches that broke from some of the mesquite trees.

So as you can see we were very fortunate.  The neighbor down the road lost a good part of the shingles on his roof and he was at it early making the needed repairs.

Could no longer put off my trip to the laundromat.  While waiting for the clothes I decided to walk to the nearby store and purchase our local newspaper so I could see what damages the wind caused in Del Rio and surrounding areas.  Told the clerk how surprised I was that they still had the Sunday paper and she said that was because there is no Monday edition.  For some reason probably my CRS I forgot it was Tuesday and did not ask nor did I see today's paper on the stand, lol :D

I did however buy El Zocalo which is a very good Mexican newspaper printed in Ciudad Acuna, Coahuila, Mexico and whose coverage of Del Rio news and events is excellent.  All in all it appears there was some damage but nothing severe on either side of the border.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

A Rather Windy Day

I can not say we were not forewarned and for once the weather people nailed it.  I am so glad I put away everything that could blow away or cause damage as well as watered the trees and weeds to try to keep dust to a minimum.

You know I suffer from CRS...to new readers that means exactly what you think it means...Can't Remember Doodoo.  However, I can not recall when I have seen it so windy here in Del Rio, not gusts to 48 mph.  Not saying that it has not happened before, just do not remember it happening while I was here.

The strong winds started around 2:14 a.m. and were relentless throughout the day.  There was no way I was going to venture going outside.  This was a stay inside kind of day.  Looked at my little Kodiak canvas tent swaying but staying put like it was designed to do.  She has seen worst winds, Chili Cook-off 2011 comes to mind.

The electricity went off several times during the day, the longest being for 44 minutes.  Looking out the window I saw one of mother's dead trees succumb to the wind and a large branch fell from one of her many mesquite trees.  Tomorrow I will assess the damage.

Wanted to welcome Great Scott to the blog.  Thank you for your readership.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

New Blog

It was a very windy day but nothing like what is expected for tomorrow.  Went around the yard picking up things that may act as projectiles.  I had been hoping to take down the Kodiak Canvas tent but first I need to empty it out.  The problem is where do I put the things I have stored there?

This afternoon I was able to capture the same bunny rabbit I saw yesterday.  I do not think it was Sofia as it has been a long time since she visited me.  To be honest I do not know what the lifespan of a cotton tail is.  However, like Sofia she was not scared of me.

Today I began a new blog that documents my relationship with Walter as I receive a lot of inquiries about him.  If you care to check it out here is the link http://mylittlewalter.blogspot.com/

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Whoever heard of watering trees in February?

I have been busy as a bee.  Speaking of bees...well more like wasps...they are already out and about and buzzing me!

Mother has been making comments about how full and lush our neighbor's trees are because he waters them every day.  Like I told her...he only has two trees...you have a lot more than that.  The only reason he waters them is because he is a "Nosy Rosie" who runs and grabs his water hose whenever he sees something so the neighbors wont think he is prying :D

Guess what I did this afternoon?  Yeah...I watered her trees and plants! I also hosed down our vehicles and my wonderful Kodiak canvas tent after those wicked winds on Thursday.  Made me wonder how strong the winds were down in Terlingua?

Mother's mini van is running good after her recent tune-up. He also fixed the lock on the sliding door and sold us some new (to us) hubcaps that make her look much better.  Hopefully the mini van as well as Dad's old car wont need his services anytime soon.

I have been thinking about starting a separate blog so I can document what is going on in Walter's world and maybe one day Val Verde County will form an animal abuse unit or at least follow up on cases that have been reported to them.  I am still kicking that idea around in my head.

Both last night and today a different horse (of the three that came last week) has come by to eat his hay and it has made him go crazy.  I don't blame him one bit.  His owner is not dumb, he knows if he has bales of hay outside of his corral, the sheriff will not be stopping by.  Apparently these horses that have come for a visit, are hungry too.  If the Deputies could only see that the bales do not get consumed at the rate that a horse of his stature would normally eat.

I heard Walter do his yell (sorry I do not know proper horse terminology) and I ran outside.  If I could hear it two lots down how come his owners did not?  Had to yell for that kid even though his father's vehicle was there.  I almost died laughing when he got a rope and was going to try to lasso that horse...yeah like he really knows how...horse didn't wait, he took off...jajajajajaja :D

Their family dog had the nerve to bark at me!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Frustration

Remember I was shopping around for a better electric rate plan for my mother's house?  One of the factors that made it difficult was that I wanted to see if I could include the outside light in the plan.  Did not find a single one that did so.

In the meantime the outside light had gone out but we did not bother to report it since I figured we would not be billed for a non-working light...wrong again...CPL billed us as if it was working.  I called their customer service department but dealing with their incompetent personnel is more than my nerves can handle!

Today they came to replace the light bulb and it puts out half of what the other one did.  Guess I will have to call them back whether I want to or not.

I called the mechanic so he could bring me mother's mini van and I could then drive him back to his shop.  Saturday when we went to the lake he left a message saying it was ready and that he had found no evidence that the gasoline was getting into the motor oil.

I was on the phone to him so I heard when he tried to start it...and it wouldn't!!!  He finally got it going but said that he did not like how the choke performed and perhaps it would not hurt to give it a tune-up.  HELLO!!!! Did he not have time to check that out all these days that he has had it?

When oh when will I find a knowledgeable and competent mechanic?  I know he is going through a lot right now but he needs to focus on his work or his customers are going to go elsewhere.

OK...end of rant!

It was a windy day in the high 70's.  A lot of the trees are starting to bloom.

I could not believe when I saw what gasoline prices were going for today.  I guess I better get used to it because it seems this is just the tip of the iceberg  :-(

I have never had much of a sweet tooth until recently.  I will have to blame Billy Bob (as I obviously can not blame myself)...but ever since he blogged about his famous chocolate and cherry cake...I seem to have a strange craving for chocolate cakes.

I bought this Three Leches Cake on our last trip to Ciudad Acuna, Coahuila, Mexico.  It came in handy in helping me forget about my problematic day. :-)

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Beautiful Afternoon at Lake Amistad

You might recall last week we went to test drive mom's mini van to Lake Amistad. Today we did the same to dad's old car.  It was a beautiful sunny afternoon.

At first I thought my eyes were deceiving me and when I asked mom she said she was about to ask me the same thing. The water was a spectacular blue, it looked like someone had dyed it like they do some rivers on Saint Patrick's Day.  The sky was equally blue and it made for a good photo op...if you had a good quality camera...which of course I do not :-(

Drove to my favorite campground, Governors Landing and four RV's were camped there.

Then we went to Diablo East Marina and found it was buzzing with activity...

Have I mentioned that I do not buy our local newspaper?  No need to, I found the answer for all the activity at the Exxon gas station by the Lake.  If you are ever in this area I highly recommend them, they have clean restrooms and a friendly staff.  This is also the only gas station in town with FREE air and water.

It made me very happy to find out that they still hold fishing tournaments at the Lake and that they have a large turnout.  So come visit us at Lake Amistad, even with low lake levels there are plenty of fish to be had :-)

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Feliz Dia de San Valentin

Hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day.  Since Santa Claus has ignored my request for "a tall weathered cowboy" for two years in a row...I do not have a honey to celebrate with...poor me :-(

I spent my Valentine's Day in Ciudad Acuna, Coahuila, Mexico.  I went to my dentist's office to pick up my night guard and it fits like a glove.

Since this is also my cyber journal I wanted to mention that as I was getting ready this morning the lights went out. What gives?  Last week it was the water and now no electricity?  It did come back on after 20 minutes.

Even though the morning low was 35 it warmed up to 71 per WeatherBug but I think it was much higher than that because I had to turn on the car A/C.  After we got through with the dentist we went to do our monthly grocery shopping.

Note the big banner advertising their Cuaresma Specials...that means Lent.

We shopped at Bodegas Aurrera, Merco and Gutierrez.  There were so many photo ops all along the way  but when driving in Mexico you really have to be alert because they don't bother signaling or slowing down like we are used to in the States.

Here is a helpful tip...if you hear cars honking, do not think they are honking at you...even though they may if you are going too slow :D  In Ciudad Acuna, taxi cabs honk at people who are walking to see if they need their services as opposed to the U.S.  where we have to flag them down.

For a while it brought back memories of when I lived in Houston and street vendors peddled their roses at the corners on Friday nights (though I have no idea if they still do that).  Every corner you looked there were people selling roses or Valentine baskets.

If you wanted to sell your Mexican pesos to buy dollars, today's rates were very favorable:

On our way back to Del Rio we were so surprised at the lines going into Mexico.  They were long and backed up past the toll booths.  On the other hand it was smooth sailing to the United States, no lines at Customs and I only had a one car wait.  I will call this my Valentine's Day present, you will seldom if ever find short lines to cross back to American soil.

These are the toll booths on the American side

Gasoline prices did not care if it was El Dia de San Valentin...gas went up .10 cents from yesterday. :-(

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Horse Fight!

I do not know what is wrong with me...for a couple of days here...I have been going to bed early!  Those of you that have been reading me for a while know that I am a night owl but lately I can't even make it past the ten o'clock news.  This is by no means a complaint...having suffered from  insomnia for what seems like a lifetime, I welcome this early slumber.  On the downside...I am too sleepy to make my nightly post!

I had just gotten back from town today when I found a message from the mechanic that Dad's old car was ready to be picked up. Called and told him about Mom's mini-van smelling to gasoline.  He asked me to bring it down and he would check it out.  I was walking to the garage when I spotted Walter's owner's kid in the corral. It was about darn time, as earlier this morning I had to feed and water him.  Guess with the high winds yesterday he forgot all about him!

Dad's car got a new fuel pump and hopefully I wont have anymore problems with it not wanting to start up.  My cash outlay was $125.00  I do not know if that is good, bad, or average but at least it is once again in running condition.

On my way home, as I passed Walter's house, I could not believe what I saw...there were three more horses by the side of his corral!  WTH...the owner can not even feed and water Walter and he brought three more horses?  I was stunned to say the least :-(

I parked the car and walked over to Walter's corral.  By this time Walter was going nuts, he was running around like a mad horse and standing on his hind legs obviously very angry.  He was about to butt heads with the male horse who was eating his hay.  Poor Walter, as little as they feed him and then for some strange horses to take his food....he was having no part of it...at least not without a good fight!

I was afraid he was going to get hurt, I was yelling at them both to stop but neither one paid a lick of attention to me.  The other two horses, I believe were females decided to leave but the male horse was determined to keep on eating.

I shouted for the darn kid to come out but he did not, so I ran over to his house but no one answered the door and that is when I noticed that his mother's car was not in the driveway.  I then went to the corral and yelled at the other horse and he took off to the back of the church which being Ash Wednesday was packed to capacity.  You might recall this is the same area that Walter escaped to a couple of months back.

I tried to calm Walter down but he totally ignored me and kept on running around in circles.  After what seemed forever he finally calmed down.  I believe those three horses are the same ones that escaped from their owner last year and ended up in Mom's yard.  I did feel a bit of relief that these horses belonged to someone else and were not new additions to Walter's world.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Test driving Mom's Mini-Van

It is not often that I go to bed at 10:45 p.m. on a Saturday evening but I did last night.  It is no surprise I woke up equally early.  Decided I would treat myself to the breakfast buffet at Sirloin Stockade and at the same time test drive mother's mini-van farther than one mile.

I am worried... it smells to gasoline when usually the vehicle that smells like that is dad's old car...not this one.   Swung by the P.O. Box and came on home.  As I passed by the area where they broke the water main, I saw several City of Del Rio Water Dept. personnel at work. Yeap, you guessed it...when I got home the water had been turned off yet again!  Hopefully for the last time.

This afternoon I told mom I wanted to run her mini van on the highway to see how it performed versus city driving.  We don't really have much choice it is either Highway 90-E toward Brackettville or Highway 90-W toward Lake Amistad or what is left of Lake Amistad with all the water the International Water Commission releases, it resembles a creek now :-(

Many of you are familiar with Barney, of OFM Adventures fame http://ofmadventures.blogspot.com/  he just left Del Rio after having spent a couple of weeks here.  On his blog he had pictures of his adventures on Lake Amistad and some were really sad, as they showed the very low lake levels.  I must say that seeing it in person is even sadder.

I had not been to the lake since November when I took my uncle to see the old now visible 277 bridge that used to be underwater.  It is much worst now.  I also noticed that the store/gasoline station/camping ground at the Y had closed.  Guess I am going to have to break down and buy our town's newspaper, misspelled words and all, so at least I know what is going on around here.

 I saw this vehicle at my favorite campground at the lake...Governors Landing.  I apologize for the poor quality.  For those new to the blog I am a member of a vandweller's forum.  I love to see all the creative ways people come up with to outfit their vans and other vehicles.  Some only use them to travel in but many make them their full time home.  I would have loved to have asked them where they were from, what cities they had visited and where they were headed but alas they were not outside.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

No Water...Again!

Yesterday afternoon I went to the laundromat up the road.  Noticed that there were a lot of electric crews installing new telephone poles, did not give it a second thought.  It was a pretty hot day so came home and showered before eating my supper.  It was a good thing because when I got ready to wash the dishes...there was no water!

I knew I paid the water bill but who do I call to inquire if it is only our house or area wide?  The neighbors have all ditched their landlines and I have no idea what their cell phone numbers are.  The water department was already closed so went online to the City of Del Rio webpage.  There I found out the contractors putting in the telephone poles broke a water main.  They refer you to their Facebook or Twitter account for further information.  Darn, I don't do Facebook or Twitter or for that matter use social sites!

The day before I had given Walter 9 gallons of water and since I was in a hurry I did not fill them back up,  the good thing was I still had 8 gallons left.  Heard the toilet tank filling up around 2:14 a.m. but it was filling up with a lot of force...I was afraid it might bust the tank!

This morning I went to water Walter since I knew the owner's son was not going to fill his water barrel before going to school.  As you can tell from the angle the sun hits the barrel...it was empty and had been for two days. Darn kid!!!

By this afternoon the water looked clear so I found some more milk jugs and managed to fill 20 gallons worth.  Good thing I did, because around 7:00 p.m. the water went off again!

On a different note... I spoke to the mechanic earlier this afternoon and he told me to send him Dad's car.  Called Triple A at 1:15 p.m. and they did not show up until 3:55 p.m.  Heck I get faster service in Houston than I do here. On the positive side, it is on its way to be fixed.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

My Reward

Yesterday's trip to Ciudad Acuna was exclusively to get my dental work done.  So much so that I did not even take my mother with me which does not happen often.  I figured I would be in pain and in not so good of a mood and would come right back.

I was not photographing this store but the exchange
rates on this block

To my disbelief the opposite was true, I was in a good mood and had no pain (was still numb). I therefore decided to go purchase my medication for this month instead of waiting till next week.

I am always looking at the dollar exchange rates and if they are favorable I will buy or sell pesos depending on the occasion.  Today was an odd day, it seemed the exchange houses had different rates.

It was not a good day to sell dollars but it was a good day to buy them.  Since the Dentist charges in US dollars it was not an issue.  However this is also a Cyber Journal so I wanted to document today's rates.

A little known secret if you happen to purchase your medications in Mexico.  As you go further away from the main tourist district the price of medications drops even at the same pharmacy branches.  I prefer to buy mine at the pharmacies located inside of grocery stores like Gutierrez and Bodegas Aurrera.

As I made my way to the pharmacy...I happen to pass by their bakery and this cake called out to me...

Decided that I deserved a reward and what better reward than a chocolate cake with strawberries and slivers of white chocolate on top?  It was 115.00 Mexican pesos.

                                      115.00 divided by today's best rate of 12.45 = USD $9.24

The lines to cross back were not very long and I got a nice young officer to greet me back to the United States of America.  Home Sweet Home!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.