My next life will be as a German barmaid…..

Dennis sat by the fire last night..I was out there for about 5 minutes and gave it up…pretty muddy and windy, and a threatening sky in the West. 

Dennis is a hard core campfire aficionado.  Our neighbors next door are also a determined group.  Did I mention they are of German dissent?? They set up their table again, complete with fresh bottles of wine and some lovely wine glasses.  First they brought out hors’ de vours, followed by lots of singing ( yes, I did say singing) and toasting. Then they brought out the main course… I think there are a total of 5 sleeping in the camper; 4 adults and 1 child.. Tonight they had a few dinner guests from the RV next to them, who I am sure are Germans also. I think they are all traveling together.  I love when they start singing German songs….and they certainly do enjoy a good bottle of wine!! Did I mention I love the spirit of these people?? and did I mention I want them to adopt me??

  I probably should explain, to those who do not know ,that this area of Texas was settled by lots of Germans…A little history lesson, kids…(Sorry, but I just have to do this……)

“In the late 1830s German immigration to Texas was widely publicized in the Fatherland. The publicity attracted a group of petty noblemen who envisioned a project to colonize German peasants in Texas. The nobles hoped the project would bring them wealth, power, and prestige. It could also, they thought, alleviate overpopulation in rural Germany. Their organization, variously called the Adelsverein, the Verein zum Schutze Deutscher Einwanderer in Texas, or the German Emigration Company, began work in the early 1840s. They chose Texas as the site for their colony, in part because of the favorable publicity surrounding the Ernst-inspired migration and perhaps because Texas was an independent republic where the princes might exercise some political control. Though the Mainzer Adelsverein was a financial disaster, it transported thousands of Germans, mostly peasants, to Texas. Between 1844 and 1847 more than 7,000 Germans reached the new land. Some of the immigrants perished in epidemics, many stayed in cities such as Galveston, Houston, and San Antonio, and others settled in the rugged Texas Hill Country to form the western end of the German Belt. The Adelsverein founded the towns of New Braunfels and Fredericksburg.” ..and so you have it…Lots of Germans down here in this area!!

(Segway to last night’s dinner..  FYI, the turkey patty melts were great, especially the red onion sauce.)

  It was still really windy when we went to bed, but not very cold.  About 2AM we were awakened by a high pitched beeping..it scared the bejesus out of me..It was our weather radio.  This was the first time we had heard it since we left in December and we had better get use to it…we are in Texas and it is spring, which, added together, equals severe weather.  Den got up and shut off the noise.  I stayed in the bed and feigned sleep. Secretly, I did hear them say something about a storm with a possibility of tornadoes.  So now I have to have a look out my window.  I guess I wanted to see the storm that was going to blow us away. What I did see was lots of lightening to the Southeast, but I wasn’t concerned enough to let it keep me awake. I need to add here that Dennis and I have been known to sleep through a tornado warning in Texarkana, when the rest of the campground was cowering in the shower house. “So why the weather radio?”, you ask.  Good question.

  We were up at 7:30AM and there was a cold wind from the North.  Gosh, we are not familiar with that…We did our walk about 9:45, me in my “Nanook of the North” winter wear. I saw a young doe lying back in the woods..They know when to stay out of the wind.  I wanted to join her, but she would have none of it, so I just took her picture and kept on walking out in the cold wind.

   Of course, I am not sticking my head out the door for a tanning experience today, so I started to peel shrimp for dinner tonight.  Den knows how I hate to peel them, so he offered to help and I gratefully accepted.  Tonight’s menu is garlic shrimp in white wine over linguini.  Want to come over?? Let me know and I will see if I can borrow another cup of wine from the Germans.

 

  You guessed it..Those aren’t any other color caps but white in the photo on the left…and in the other photo is one of our great neighbors, trying to stay warm on the South side of the RV, enjoying his pipe and coffee.

Dennis got in the truck this afternoon and checked the vacated tent sites for some left over firewood, but came back empty handed.  It isn’t like we need it, but the Cedar has the greatest smell when it burns.  Actually, he did pick up some Walnut the other day.  Personally , I would rather he made us some wooden candlesticks from it, but that ‘s not in my future. As I sit here and blog, 2 big 5th wheels pulled into our loop.  Should I warn them about the wind?…Nah, they will find out the minute they step out of their trucks…Oops, there they go, back up the road and into another area..”out of the loop” , so to speak.  They must have figured out that if your truck is leaning sideways as you circle the bay that the wind is a factor out here.  You have to be TOUGH to handle this wind..Listen to me…big talker, little winey baby.

   Well, I guess it wasn’t a bad day…the sun was out, talked to one daughter on the phone, the other one on Skype with our youngest grandson.  That makes it an award winner in my book.  In the words of “Annie”…”the sun will come out tomorrow”…I just hope the wind stays IN!!!