Buckhorn Creek, Lake O' The Pines, Jefferson, TX
Last evening about 4PM, we had some ominous skies here…
..and about 10 minutes later we had hail covering our ground….
..All the 3 grands were here..We were babysitting..I happened to be in the basement cutting Peyton’s hair when it began hailing, so Taylor got some pictures for me with my camera….(By the way, I AM getting a new one..Dennis just ordered us a new digital Kodak Z990..YEA!!
OK,…now we are off to Uncle Jr.s for the parade….More later about that!
I need to start this blog with my “brush” with a distressed Monarch butterfly. I was pulling weeds and suddenly realized I was perilously close (for the Monarch, that is), to a gorgeous butterfly. I moved around and he never stirred…
As I moved my hand under the Hosta leaf, he slowly moved to the ground..and I do mean slowly!
This is how close I got…and he only moved his wings.
I have heard that there are a shortage of Monarchs this year and I really haven’t heard why, but I found this whole experience unnerving…I moved away and checked on him an hour later…He was still in the same spot. How do you save a butterfly’s life? I finally decided to let Mother Nature take her course. She has the best judgement, after all, but I will check later this evening to see if he is still alive, rest assured…
I came home from a morning of garage sales and found this little fellow/gal?? pecking around our yard…
I managed to get pretty close and as you can see, he/she has a red head….and also had dark on his eyes and forehead, and a dark spot on his breast..Obviously this is a Woodpecker (I’m not THAT dumb) but just what kind is the question. I think it was a young one because he didn’t fly well as I tried to move in closer. And while I’m on the subject of flora and fauna, we were also growing mushrooms in our backyard…
…and the mushrooms were growing much better than our vegetable garden, as you can see….Too bad they aren’t Morels…I LOVE those darn things, but where they grow around here is a closely guarded secret to only the seasoned Morel hunters…and they won’t tell…even after water boarding.
Last evening, Den’s 2nd cousin, Randy, was visiting Aunt Neenie, who lives just one house away from us. I was busy getting dinner started, but Dennis saw him pull in the drive. Dennis knows how much I slobber over vintage 50’s 60’s cars, and he told me I should go over to Neenies…and to take my camera….I was clueless until I came around the house….
What we have here is a 1959 Chevy Corvette….purple and white….and purtier than any new one! I totally had to wipe the slobber off the camera lens after this photo shoot. I love the 1950’s and 60’s cars…Before and after that time frame, I could care less. Ain’t she sweet???
This weekend is going to be pretty busy for us here at the Cave Dwellings. Our three oldest grandkids are spending the night Saturday so Terrie and Tim can go to Terrie’s class reunion. This means deviled eggs, pizza, fries, and ice cream abounding..Hey, it’s not my job to watch their nutrition, it’s my job to spoil them …and we do! Also, Sunday morning we will drop the kids off at their house in Sugar Grove on our way to Montgomery-fest, where our Uncle Jr. (Clarence) Bark is the Grand Marshal of the parade this year…
Uncle Jr. is Den’s Mother’s Brother….and was a member of the Montgomery township planning commission since 1979. (They have lived since they build a new home in the 50’s.) He is also a WW II Navy Veteran, serving in the South Pacific on board two air craft carriers, the USS Bennington and the USS Lexington. Our whole family is sooooo blessed and honored to have him still among us…And as for Aunt Jeanette….she is just about the youngest 95 (96 in Sept.) year old I have ever met (Jr. will be 88 this month)….They never had kids and have been married 52 years this September…OOOOH, I LOVE A PARADE….!
The above photos were taken Thanksgiving 2007 at our home…Jr. and Jeanette don’t drive out here hardly at all anymore ( and shouldn’t!), so we go to Montgomery to visit them. Sunday at noon, Dennis and I will drive Jr. to the parade line up and Jeanette will come with us to find a good viewing spot…Den will be driving them in their 1987 Cadillac…neither one can get up into our GMC…(I’m finding it a real feat/feet myself!)..Of course, I will be taking my camera. Some of our family members are going up too and it will be a very fun afternoon.
As you can see, when I am deprived of a computer to blog on for 4 days, I tend to take advantage of my followers and ramble on a bit…But, guess what…My next blog of the Montgomery-fest will be a record breaker…bring your jammies and some snacks for that one…!
I SNAPPED THIS PHOTO OF THE THUNDERHEADS JUST OVER OUR TREES A COUPLE DAYS AGO…NOTE THE VAPOR “HALO” OVER THE CLOUDS…NATURE IS SURELY AMAZING AND I AM ALWAYS HUMBLED BY IT’S MAGIC.
“Let us permit nature to have her way. She understands her business better than we do.” ~Michel de Montaigne
Just to let you all know that I didn’t die, leave the country or get arrested…yet. Sunday AM our computer modem bit the big one and we had to get a new one from Hughesnet…I will do a blog when I get done checking my email…which may be a few days….just sayin’…..Please stay tuned….
I need to thank another brave soul who is now following our blog…welcome to Chinatours . I see you are a female travel agent with a tour company for China, but never found a name for you…Welcome to our blog, but I’ll bet it isn’t as interesting as touring China.!
As I have said before, McGuyver and I are relatively new to the RV/camper scene…We got our very first one in 2003, unless you count the pop-up I won in a local contest back in 1971. That little pop-up was only used in our back yard with the exception of one fishing trip to Wisconsin for Dennis and his buddies. Our very first trip in our Cougar was to Hayward WI for 3 nights at Chippewa Lake Campground…and boy, were we “green”…But, we managed to figure everything out through much trial and error . after that little trip, we were “in love” and hooked on the camping lifestyle.
In our travels so far it has been apparent just how many types of “campers” there are out there!
McGuyver has been known to “pull” a few into their campsites…Left, this guy got stalled in the campground road and was blocking traffic….sooooo…TraDa!! McGuyver to the rescue. He always carries a tow strap, and we have pulled a few vehicles out of tight spots on a trip or two!!
Notice the yellow tow strap connecting that motorhome and our GMC…The owner of the MH was very grateful and got his rig repaired the next day.
Here are a few pictures of some RV/campers we have seen on our travels…Trust me, these are only a smattering of my photos, as you can imagine!
Prevost on left (buku buckos!!)….Casita in the middle (these come in a few different sizes, and we see LOTS of them).…Either this guy’s rig on the right was receiving signals from Mars…or he was a Ham radio operator..I prefer the Mars idea.
Now here is a double decker toad mobile, left… Right is what I believe is called a “teardrop”. ..the perfect name for it. I KNOW I would be crying plenty if Den and I had to share that thing for 4-5 months, just sayin’….
Left, the living area was on the top of this 5th wheel????…Middle is vintage travel which is very cool, but needs a new front bumper…and on the right,..looks like 1/2 of a pop up, eh?? But this is the way it was built I think you could pull this thing with a bicycle .…(just kidding!)
Now this his one is very ingenious…..And I DO mean GENIUS. Ya got your deck right along with the camper… The photo on the right….I guess they didn’t pay much for their tickets to that show…..(Notice, they are sitting on the top of their MH. And you all think I am strange!)
The “custom” Prevost on the left is looking like Dollywood! …And a big -ass triple axle beauty on the right…loved the red freightliner!!
Some people really know how to “live” on the road….
These photos are 2 different campers..Left was in Arizona, right was Texas. I don’t care where they were from, I LIKE THE WAY THESE PEOPLE ROLL...MY KIND OF RVING, FOR SURE! No, I did NOT intrude on their “Happy Hours”, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t get out the binoculars to see if I could see the kind of wine they had
This little buggy wasn’t a “toad”, it had it’s own little trailer….Boy, that had to be fun, zipping around Ajo….It seems we always see some really unique campers when we travel…We also have seen some great cooking equipment…
Leave it to the Texans to know how to party. These were taken at Canyon Lake , Potter’s Creek Campground ,at Easter…..They smoked their breakfast, lunch and dinner…and everything in between. That campground smelled like one huge BBQ pit for the whole week! I should have gone door to door getting recipes…
OK, enough of the camper pictures There is no end to the many kinds of camping people do..and how they do it. This has been a very tough year to sit around and look out the window at the lonely Hiker out on the pad. We are hoping to get away in September before McGuyver puts on his bib overalls and becomes a farmer for harvest time. I might just use that time to go on a road trip to visit our daughter in Zionsville……
So, thanks for stopping in…and right now I’m gonna steal a little idea from Judy……
……THE END…..
Well, here they are, my marbles that is, and I have about 30 of them. That’s a lot more than I thought I had.. I was pretty sure I only had a few. Actually, I was sent by my Physical Therapist, Mike, to the Dollar General Store in Sandwich to get them (it would figure that’s where MY marbles were hiding….and yes, I did have to pay one dollar for them.) What I need them for is very much like a side show in the Monkey cages at the zoo. I put them on the floor and move them from one spot to another, one by one, by scrunching one at a time with my toes …
…Then, when I have all of my marbles moved, I have to repeat the process and put them back in the spot they came from….NO, REALLY???? What scares me is that I really am quite talented at this, but I’m not exactly sure what to do with this new found talent…Maybe a competition between two people at a party?? I’m pretty sure there would have to be lots of alcohol involved…..
I have been going to PT twice a week now, and have not only acquired my marbles, but also have been given a big red rubber band. No, I did not WIN it..…This is apparently needed for stretching my foot out….
…I have another idea for it .I think I should dress all up in a sexy outfit (maybe one of my evening ensembles), tie that big red ribbon/band around my head, and give a big surprise Dennis some evening…HMMMM
….If that is my intention, I probably should have the Paramedics standing by to revive McGuyver…Our son, Kelly, is a Paramedic, but he would probably ignore that call…too embarrassing. Although he’s accustom to my humor, I could never explain that one away….
What you have here is a very disgusting photo of my GOOD foot….yes, that’s what I said, my good foot!!
If this thing on my good foot doesn’t get better in another week or so, I will become this Doc’s worst nightmare…a disgruntled 63 year old woman, armed with a bad attitude, sore feet …and hot flashes
OK, this is a short and frustrating blog….Sorry about the nasty photo of my feet….I have no pride nor any common sense.
“The beatings will continue until morale improves”….
“I told the doctor I broke my leg in two places. He told me to quit going to those places.”
- Henny Youngman
This last Spring we planted a garden as usual..8 tomato plants, some carrots, lettuce, spinach, green peppers, jalapeno peppers and ….Yukon Gold potatoes…For some reason, either the excessive rain early in the season or the excessive heat just lately, most of our garden was a bust…The pepper plants looked like they had been grown in Barbie and Ken’s garden. The lettuce was virtually non-existent and we had about 20 carrots,not even enough to make Bugs Bunny 2 meals….
You see before you one of the 3 green peppers that actually survived…barely…So much for using some on our shish kabobs tomorrow!..PATHETIC.
Our tomato plants are only about 3 feet tall, but they do have some green tomatoes on them, so we are in hopes for some good fresh tomatoes soon. I usually put up some salsa and spaghetti sauce in the freezer, but this year looks like a sauceless year….
HOWEVER…. Our Yukon Gold potatoes are thriving….THANK YOU TO THE POTATO GODS, WHO OBVIOUSLY STEPPED IN TO SAVE US FROM A GARDEN FAMIN…(OK, I tended to exaggerate a little bit just then)
TRA DA!!! …AND THERE ARE TONS OF THEM JUST LIKE THIS ONE..YEA!!!!
Today was a nice sunny day here. I went outside and took my camera for a few shots in our yard. I did some weeding too, but was much more involved in the photo taking…(We still have issues with our camera…as I have said, McGuyver is still researching..
I know that there are some of you out there that yawn over the flora and fauna photos.…Not everyone was a botany/biology major, and if you just nodded off I totally “get it”….Some of us are nature freaks, some people watchers,and some just want us to ditch the photos and get on with the story….Sorry about that, though…I do love a great photo!!
The little shack on the right was suppose to belong to a nice young Wren couple, but they apparently didn’t care for the looks of this place, (a bar??) and refused to sign a lease….I’m thinking some low class Sparrows might find it intriguing, but the funny thing is….they can’ t get their large arses in the door hole!! Maybe we could paint it next Spring , lower the payments and lease it as a “fixer upper”……
Well, that’s about it for my burst of creativity for today…Not much going on around the Cave Dwellings…Tonight is “date night”, and my date of almost 42 years is springing for a “Happy Hour” at the local Moose Lodge, followed by one of the gourmet pizzas at our local Pizza Hut…Make ours a “carry-out”, please…I like to eat my pizza in my jammies…
“All right everyone, line up alphabetically according to your height.”
