A Weekly Trip To Civilization..

  In a comment on my last blog, Michael and Dee asked how close we are to civilization.  Well, if you count Falcon Heights, population about 50 on a good day, it’s about 2 miles.  I would, however, put Roma as the next big center of population at 10,000…and Roma is about 12 miles South on Rt. 83. Roma has a fabulous historic area and I will post about that soon…

Yesterday we did our weekly drive 35 miles to Rio Grande City …Going through Roma on the way we pass the HUGE Roma School complex, just North of town. It is at least 7 years old because it has been there since we have been coming here to camp…

You can’t see much because there is a huge wall around most of it with locked gates .  You have to stop and check in at the gate to get anywhere NEAR this place.  There is a High School, a Grade School, an outdoor stadium, a big auditorium, and even a golf course.  I have to believe that the reason for so much security is the location..it isn’t far from the Rio Grande, maybe one mile…. The mascot here is the Roma Gladiator, and the kids seem really proud of their teams…Not a bad brand new school complex for a town of 10,000, eh?

Above is my very most favorite store in Texas..The H-E-B…PLUS!

The H-E-B stores were started over 100 years ago in the Hill Country of Texas by a family blessed with the last name of Butts…Fortunately, they had the good sense to avoid naming their  groceries The Butts Store, Butts Are Us, or Family Butts…I would love to tell you more, but my Internet Explorer is refusing to let me “surf” the net at all right now!!  If memory serves, the gentleman who started these stores was named Herbert E. Butts.. , and if I am incorrect, my apologies to all the Butts out there whom I have offended…Regardless of what your name is , sir, you have a mighty fine store!!! Why doesn’t one of the family take their “Butts” to Illinois ?? Just sayin’.

We filled the GMC up on the way back and this is what they were advertising for  food..No, we didn’t get any, but we DID get some cheap diesel for $3.66 a gallon..

The left photo is overlooking the W-I-D-E open spaces we see as we turn off Rt. 83 and take the old road to Falcon Heights back to our campground.…Right photo IS Falcon Heights…US Post Office on the right, followed by a little grocery store …I went in there once when I was desperate for Coke…Let me just say it was very small, very dark, and VERY “interesting”…been there, done that.

This morning was my pre-assigned day to do our laundry at the Rec Hall.  McGyver went with me this time.  They have a TON of wildlife books and photos, so I tried to brush up on some of the critters one can find here in the park..

 

 

Will ya just look at all of those books spread out there to wander through??  I will try to remember some of the names of birds I have seen…Yea, yea, I  KNOW  I’ve seen Orioles, but there are several different kinds….and WHAT  are those little green birds fighting with the Orioles for our oranges??? I will find out and report back, playing the role of a good Biology student on a field trip.

 

 

Here are a few  of the “Wild Things” you could possibly encounter here at Falcon State Park….

..Love Tortoises..                       Big Cats …scary!                   Snakes make me vomit. yep.

                                                                                                    

THIS IS ABOUT AS “WILD” AS IT GETS FOR MCGYER AND MYSELF…AND WE LIKE IT THAT WAY.

 

 

 

Actually, there are some warm and cuddly things that approach our campsite and have a drink with us…This  brave little bunny is betting that all the nasty snakes are still fast asleep underground, so he can roam free and not be “a snake snack” for a few more weeks…Isn’t he cute?? Did I say that I HATE snakes??oh, yea, I did..WELL I STILL DO!

 

 

Tomorrow we are going back into Roma…Yes, we are making our second trip this week to “town”..Woopie!..I want to do a little wandering around the old section and refresh my memory of the history…Also, “The town is the scene identified as the burial site of artifacts from the Library at Alexandria in Clive Cussler's novel Treasure. Filming for the 1952 film Viva Zapata!, scripted by John Steinbeck and directed by Elia Kazan,  starring Anthony Quinn,  and Marlon Brando as Emiliano Zapata, took place in Roma. The film and the city are recurring motifs in Larry McMurtry's 1972 novel All My Friends Are Going To Be Strangers, and the book's conclusion takes place in and around Roma.” I know darn well some of you won’t have a clue who Elia Kazan is, but John Steinbeck,  Anthony Quinn and Marlon Brando should ring an intellectual bell!

I must admit, history is not our only reason for cruisin’ into Roma..I have an ulterior motive..A large Super Supreme pizza at the Roma Pizza Hut…for $10…and “to go”… Thanks for pointing your mouse at our blog and clicking yet again!!

A strong people is the only way to freedom!    ~ Emiliano Zapata