A Windy Thursday

It was a very windy day...per Weatherbug, we had gusts up to 41 m.p.h.  Thankfully we also had mild temperatures.  High of 78 and low of 62.

Had errands to run, so I fired up dad's old car and headed to town.  I have mentioned many times before that I only go to Walmart on Thursday.  In my personal experience it is the perfect day because people have not been paid yet and are waiting for Friday and the weekend to hit the store.

Shoeless Joe,  if you are reading this and think that 4:00 a.m. is good any day of the week to visit said store...you are probably right...but that was when I lived in Houston and could still see well at night.  I now limit my visits to daylight hours :)

My rain catchment system for Dummies yield 4.5 gallons of murky water.

Gasoline prices have been holding steady this week.  Of course,  if you buy a store cash card at HEB, Stripes or Walmart they will knock .12 cents off the price per gallon...I don't play those games...I like one price whether I choose cash, credit, or any other form of payment!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Speed Bumps/ Dead Battery/ UPS Delivery

Yesterday there was heavy duty machinery by the church on the main road not far from mother's house. My old time readers might recall this is where Walter almost got ran over.  Figured they were putting in new water pipes or something but when I went to close the gate last evening, I witness how unsuspecting vehicles hit the speed bumps that up until yesterday were not there. Must say they were really needed, now if they would only put them on our street, I would be truly grateful!

This morning I headed into town in mother's mini van but when I went to start it, it was dead :-(  It is my fault for not having started the van in a couple of days and besides that the Sears Die Hard battery has lasted a long time.  I'm thinking seven or eight years, so it was time.

My uncle swore me to secrecy, he told me that my mother called her worthless plumber to see why he had not been by.  Per my uncle he said he had been busy with church stuff but would come by this Thursday.  Do you think it would have been too much on his part to make a one minute call and let her know that without my mother having to call this individual?  Guess I am just asking for too much...

Shoeless Joe of Traveling with John fame http://travlinwithjohn.blogspot.com had ordered himself some Christmas presents but was going to pretend he did not know what they were.  I thought it was a great idea!  I would not have to pretend very hard what with my CRS and all :D

Decided I could NOT depend on Santa to bring me anything so I ordered myself a present and the UPS tracking said it was going to be delivered today.  Heard on the news that thieves in big cities are following UPS and FedEx trucks and then stealing the packages off front doors and porches.  Decided to set up a table and take my laptop outside as I did not want my present to suffer the same fate.  He showed up at 8:40 p.m. but the box looks like it has been through the wringer!

As you know my cheap camera does not take good night time pictures, so I am waiting until tomorrow to photograph the box in case my gift is damaged :(

Want to welcome two more new followers to the blog Jeff and Vanwrinkle.  Thank you for your readership!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Will I get it all done in time?

I have so much to do to get ready for my trip.  For one I need to go through my winter stuff that is in Terlita (my camping van) as you never know what the weather will be like and NO you cannot believe the weather forecast.  Last year I about froze to death on Tuesday night and I am NOT exaggerating.  Of course I am to blame as I choose not to pack my sleeping bag or enough warm blankets in order to save space. 

Except for the first year that I rode to the chili cook-off with a friend I have always taken Terlita as she is a full size van and can carry everything including the kitchen sink.  Sadly after 20 years of faithful service Terlita is experiencing transmission problems and I now have to make do with a sedan.  Obviously I cannot fit everything I am accustomed to taking and it is creating a dilemma.

When I was in Houston I went to the dollar store to buy some mothballs and died laughing when I saw that they made the box the size of a box of baking soda.  That will not do, need a very large box to place all around my campground as I do not want to experience another “rattling” moment like I had to last year.

Remember I mentioned that I was freezing to death on Tuesday night?  Well I could not wait till Wednesday morning so I could drink a warm cup of coffee at my friends camp even though I don’t particularly care for coffee but I needed to unthaw.  As soon as they were up I went to their camp and did not even bother to dress (get out of my pajamas) or put on my glasses…that is how desperate I was!!

After a wonderful breakfast I walked back to my camp when I thought I saw something move by my tent. Remember I mentioned I did not put on my glasses?  I froze on my tracks and then I saw something about two feet long and the color of dirt slithering.  I camp all around my friends and the nearest camp was like 20 feet from me.  I screamed but I could not hear myself screaming and I turned and ran toward their camp but I felt like I was running in slow motion and could not get there fast enough.  I yelled for everyone to help me as I hollered SNAKE, SNAKE!!!

The guys came with a shovel and another one with a rake (he was just going to flip it over the ravine) glad my friend with the shovel did not share his sentiments and he cut his head off…love you Hector!!!  It was a baby rattler but make no mistake they are just as poisonous as a full grown one.  My thoughts were if this was a baby, surely he or she has sisters and brothers and a mother and father, YIKES!!!

Needless to say I had to go back to my friends camp and calm my nerves with a stiff adult beverage.  There they told me that in fact I had yelled quite LOUD.  Next day some people were riding around and when they saw me they said “you were the girl that was screaming about the snake yesterday weren’t you, we are camped across the ravine and heard you” :D

So you see I am not taking any chances and I am buying as many mothballs as I can carry as I am told snakes and critters do not particularly like their scent.

Want to thank Shoeless Joe and Jimmie Lane for signing on as followers.  I appreciate you taking your valuable time to read me.

Nine more days to Terlingua!!!