http://www.blogger.com/html?blogID=4316350785635987648 Cave Dwellings: December 2011
Cave Dwellings

Buckhorn Creek, Lake O' The Pines, Jefferson, TX

Friday, December 30, 2011

I JUST CANNOT SEEM TO STAY OUT OF TROUBLE!!.

  Our weather is finally getting better here…The campfires have been much more tolerable when not bundled up like a “fasionable” Eskimo.. McGyver is in his glory…

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Our Hiker is a real  DIRTY site…She hasn’t bathed since October (PEEEEYOU!)..And we have driven some dirty, wet, icky roads in the 6 weeks we’ve been gone.  I wanted to give her a bath, but after reading the park rules, (and amazingly, I actually DID read them), I discovered there is NO washing of RV’s or vehicles in the park..OK..I can understand that since the wildfires..I’m sure they are conserving water.  Alas, our fiver’s front side was covered with bugs and black streaks, and under her it tongue was caked with dirt..(Checking under the tongue of a fiver is no easy task…Open Wiiiiiide!….BATA BING, BATA BOOM!)..I told Dennis I was going to put some water in a bucket and take my spray bottle of 409 outside…Maybe if I just sprayed and used a scrubby I could clean her up a bit under the tongue and on the front..I started under the tongue and got it pretty clean using minimal cleaners and lots of elbow grease, and I rinsed with a wet rag….NO HOSE WAS INVOLVED IN THE CLEANING OF THIS RV!…This worked so well, I drug out the ladder and began to attack the front end with the same menial tools, except I needed our long handled brush to reach to the top…This was my big mistake, I guess….

  I filled the bucket half full with clean hot water from the sink…NO, I CERTAINLY DIDN’T GET OUT THE HOSE!!.. I put a small hand towel over the  brush, dipped it in the water and climbed the ladder to see if I could at least loosen the bugs a bit…Just as I was seeing some results, the park Gustapo lady rolled up on her little moped and screamed at me..”I’m sorry, Ma’am, you are NOT allowed to wash your camper in the park!”..My answer was “Ma’am, I have no hose hooked up, I am just getting the bugs off the front..”  And her retort was, “Would you like to read the rules?”…OK, now you all know me by now.  I CAN be one to stretch the rulesSarcastic smile, but I figured a spray bottle of 409 , and a wet towel was not wasting any park water. ..I politely yelled back, “I’ve read the rules, and I don’t consider this washing my whole camper, I’m just cleaning the bugs and dirt off the front!!”…She just shook her head no, and started to drive off..I couldn’t resist the last word, so I said shouted at her as she zoomed away, “I just have a spray bottle!!!!”… What I wanted to say was #^@!*##@!!!!!

  So, with 1/2 of the front looking somewhat better, I begrudgingly put my SPRAY BOTTLE away, and mumbled to myself the whole time. “And,where was McGyver?”, you ask…Actually, he came out earlier and offered to help me reach the top, but I said I could do it, so he went back inside. I KNEW I should have allowed him to help..He could have been the recipient of the abuse I received from Moped Park Cop.!  I did keep the ladder out, (partly just to antagonize) and washed the Hiker windows with a SPRAY BOTTLE of Windex.  All the time, I was whispering to myself, “Just let her come and tell me to quit washing my window…then there WILL be a problem!) ..Hmmm, did I remember to bring my bail bondsman card?”..Better yet, what would our son-in-saw, Detective Heiser, say??

“WANTED”

…RULE BREAKER AND ABUSER OF GOOD FASHION TASTE..

 

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Above, is our view looking East, out McGyver’s back window, the other is looking West out my side window this morning..

Yesterday we took the drive to do laundry and get groceries…Rt 306 into New Braunfels is very a very hilly and pretty drive..You might notice that I also managed to wash our truck windshield yesterday, pushing the envelope even further..Angry smile

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Above, left picture is the Canyon Lake Dam.  We drive by it on the way to Sattler to do laundry…

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Middle photo is another RV park along Rt. 306.  There are lots of huge rocks from the hills around here…

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This is a photo of some of the condos built up on the hillside around Canyon Lake..The view of the lake from the balconies must be fabulous!!

(No, that’s not a comet in the sky..That’s a streaky “windshield meteor”)Nyah-Nyah 

 

I have been having an issue with our stove light, or lack thereof, since we got the Hiker.  It is so dim, I can hardly see to cook..(That has been my excuse, anyway.)..Well, yesterday, McGyver and I stopped at Camping World and he picked up a new light with mucho more illumination.  And after some swearing about not being able to remove the range hood to attach it ,( and some superior flashlight holding from MOI),…..

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TRA DA!!……Charlie Alpha Victor Edward  niner one zero, cleared for landing on runway one three....10-4.

Well, we have decided that when we leave here Monday AM, we will program “Carleton”, the  GPS,  for Falcon State Park, North of Roma, TX.  Yes, we know…they have had big trouble (AK-47 killing, for one) on the lake there, concerning the drug cartels.  After some online safety checking,we found that the park is still busy and security is good.  The worrisome part is for the fishermen, who stray on the Mexico side of Falcon Lake.  This is too bad, because this is a big Bass lake and they even have had fishing tournaments.  Well,  McGyver and I won’t be fishing any time soon.  And, as it is anywhere near a border town, everyone is encouraged to be very cognoscente of your surroundings and stay away from certain areas.(.not unlike going into Chicago…Annoyed!)..

We haven't’ been there in 3 years, and know for a fact the weather is always much warmer in that area.  They are still under a burn ban, but they usually are…At least I can sit outside during cocktail hour in my “Spring like” ensembles and enjoy the Green Jays,  Wild Javelina,  (no, those are NOT cocktails, they are hogs and birds! Thank you, Judy) and the occasional Roadrunner visiting our campsite..Maybe I can even wash my Hiker…Rolling on the floor laughing

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I must say, we have had a few very strange “characters” wandering through our campsite here!!  But, then..I should be the last one to comment on “characters”!! Thanks for following THIS one!!

 

“It is a good idea to obey all the rules when you're young just so you'll have the strength to break them when you're old.”  ~ Mark Twain

Monday, December 26, 2011

Finally!! Some sunshine this week.

  OK, got my Xmas decorations down..which took all of 5 minutes, much different than when we are home!  Christmas night, I concocted up some kabobs for MacGyver to grill for our dinner…and they were so yummy!  Usually I put some potato chunks in them, but this time we just had some rice..

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I’m going to pull a few photos from  my “vault” for most of this blog..Turns out we haven’t exactly been burning up the social scene here lately.  It seems this long period of rainy, gloomy days has managed to take it’s toll on my Xmas spirit.  We have been away from home for about 5 of the last 7 Christmas seasons, but this one really depressed me.  The sun finally showed up yesterday afternoon.  I am now a firm believer in how gloomy days can affect your state of “well being.”   I was beginning to trip over my bottom lip.  (and watching all those tear-jerking Christmas movies didn’t help..boy was THAT a dumb idea.) But…it’s on to the New Year  now…and I’m lovin’ this sunny, warmer week forecast!!

  Den and I took our walk this AM in our winter coats,… yet one more time.  We ended up by the entrance and checked to make sure our extension was approved…I was hoping no one had complained about the crazy lady residing in site #13,  the one with the nasty and offensive campfire attire. Nyah-Nyah Apparently no one did, and we had been approved to pay our $84 and stay one more week.

This place has lots of neat places to see….The deer are all over in our side of the campground this year because they are being hunted on the other side of the park.  MacGyver and I are not sure exactly WHAT they are being  hunted WITH?? We haven’t heard ONE gunshot since we arrived…Either they are bow hunting…or using poison dart guns…

 

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Above pics were taken here at Potter’s Creek in the Spring.  You better have a reservation if you hope to be camping here in the month of March…This place is full of families on Spring vacation, towing their own BBQ pits behind them…I’m trying to get MacGyver to build us one like in the middle photo…I just know he could do it!

 

The local ranchers decorate their entry gates for Xmas each year…and the Guadalupe River runs all the way from Canyon Lake to New Braunfels.  Sometimes we drive down what is called the River Road on our way to get groceries…What a fabulous drive that is…a great tubing spot in the summer….New Braunfels is home of the famous water park, The Schlitterbahn .  Kinda sounds like a German swear word to me…OH SCHLITTERBAHN!..WHAT THE SCHLITTERBAHN?..THAT ROTTEN LITTLE SCHLITTERBAHN!

That photo on the right is a house on the opposite side of the Guadalupe River…all 3 stories of it..and yes, that IS a copper roof you see on top.   That top story of this place is worth as much as our whole house back in Illinois..No, wait..make that 3 times as much,  these days.  One thing we have noticed here in Texas, is that the recession hasn’t seemed to have hit here..not like elsewhere in the US..Here in Texas, they are building commercial buildings, new homes… and repairing roads and Interstates like lemmings being led to the sea…

OK…You can get wake up and get your drueling heads off the keyboard now.  I am done transferring my need for mental therapy on my poor followers and fellow bloggers…I must thank you for  your patience…I hope I didn’t pull you into the abyss I was stuck in…I, myself, am feeling much better…OOPS!..I think I neglected to thank Page, a new follower who somehow got caught under the crowd in the back seat of our GMC….After this blog, she might just want to jump out the windowSleepy smileBaring teeth smile!!!

“Weather forecast for tonight: Dark. Continued dark overnight, with widely scattered light by morning.”

~ George Carlin (The Hippy Dippy Weatherman)

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Merry Christmas from the Caves….

  Just a quick Christmas note…What does it take to complete a Christmas Eve ensemble for MOI??..

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A FEW TRINKETS OF BLING….

 

 

 

 

 

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…….THE MAKINGS FOR A BRANDY MANHATTAN (JUST ONE, FOR ME, PLEASE)..BUT MAKE IT SWEET…

 

 

 

 

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..AND….HERE YOU HAVE IT…MY XMAS EVE ENSEMBLE

MERRY CHRISTMAS ONE AND ALL…(AND DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME, YOUR KIDS WILL KILL YA!)

Friday, December 23, 2011

Holidays in the Texas Hill Country…YEEEEE HAW!

  I first would like to say “Howdy, Y’all” to our new followers Michael and Dee .  Climb into the back seat of our GMC..Yes, I know it’s dirty..I intend to clean it up next week, IF it warms up…OK, everyone…SHIFT, and make room for them..and no fighting!!!

   OK, I think the rain is almost over..Well, the key word here is ALMOST.  It rained all Wednesday night, but Thursday dawned with a beautiful sunrise over the Hill Country of Texas..

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…and the promise of a lovely, sunny day.  Thank you , Jesus…and Happy Birthday, by the way.

  We did the laundry in Sattler, and got some groceries in New Braunfels, which is becoming a Thursday ritual.  MacGyver is a huge help with the laundry, and does NOT subscribe to the “real men don’t do laundry” adage.  He helps by changing paper into coin, sort of like Rumplestiltskin.  He also operates the dryers, which have been known to gobble up coins and NOT work, resulting in having to move the whole wet load into another dryer…MacGyver does this for me..  Keep in mind that at any moment, a Laundromat dryer can cop an “attitude” and refuse to dry your clothes, or..just eat them entirely.

  Last night it was so nice, we had the Hiker door open and played our Christmas Carols by the campfire again. The sun was setting magically and cast long shadows on the open field in front of us..

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The setting sun shone on the homes up on the hill overlooking Canyon Lake…Pretty nice real estate.  Cave Dwellers would have to rob a bank to live here in sticks and bricks, but we can talk our way into Potter’s Creek for lots less $$ with the same view, albeit temporarily!!

As the sun dived…dove…set into the Live Oaks, and darkness wrapped around the RV’s,  you could hear our Christmas music softly playing, being enhanced by the lake as only water can do to sound.  I was wearing one of my favorite ensembles, complete with polka dot purple socks, sweats, Moon and Stars nightshirt, Lighthouse fleece, black fuzzy jacket and crocks…Oscar de la Renta  eat your heart out! (You know damn well I had to look up THAT spellingNyah-Nyah)…I’ll bet he doesn’t have a 2006 Disney Xmas mug, either!

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The picture on the right?? My Goodwill Store candle décor.  This charming little “brandy snifter” is the perfect match for my ambiance of the evening.  “What are the colored little circles?,” you ask?…Why, they are different colored marbles, embedded all around it with some kind of decoupage…So, for those of you wondering what happened to my “lost marbles”…now you have your answer…and, NO, I did NOT make this.

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Here is what it looks like with the flash on…My contribution to the centerpiece was the pinecone branches confiscated from Sam Houston National Forest…HEY!! I ONLY TOOK 2 SMALL BRANCHES, OK??

 

 

After such a lovely evening, we woke up to 38 degrees and a cold wind….A different outfit for walking this AM…

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There’s more…Tomorrow we have an 80% chance of rain…OK, Donna, shake it off!! It’s Xmas Eve, doggone it, so suck it up and get festive.  After all, you have Skype to see the grandkids, you have a very nice “fireplace” in the Hiker, and a sweet little Xmas tree..Your Xmas Carols are on you I-Tunes for your enjoyment, your stockings are hung, you have a pine scented candle and you DVR’d the movie Christmas Vacation…(Not to mention the huge shrimp waiting to be Xmas Eve dinner)…PLUS ,( and this IS a plus), you will be closer to the cocktails for cocktail hour if you have to be inside Martini glassFlirt male

At this time I would like to thank you all for this great year in Blogland, and for being brave enough to jump in the GMC with us..The Cave Dwellers wish you and yours ALL a blessed Christmas at this very special time…

“I see skies of blue and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself what a wonderful world.”

~From the song, WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD….

Songwriters: GEORGE DAVID WEISS, GEORGE DOUGLAS, BOB THIELE