Christmas 2016

 

For this year's Christmas we went over to the kids' house on Christmas Eve and spent the night so we could be up at the crack of dawn with young Everett.

 

Leigh and Brooks had really decorated the tree and it looked beautiful in the finished living room.

 

The next morning it was hard to restrain Ev as he waited to open all the gifts that Santa had left.

After reducing the pile of presents to a mound of wrapping paper and each participant playing with his or her respective present, it was time for breakfast. Below, the chefs prepare pancakes with mutual seriousness and dedication.

And then time to play. Here's Jo and Ev battling it out with the new rod hockey set just like the ones we had used as kids. He actually got pretty good with just a few sessions.

After all the celebration and concluding another wonderful Christmas event we headed back to the Flying Scotsman the next day to relax ... and Bandit agreed with us that the partying and gifting was just too much! Actually he spent the night by himself in the RV ... but what the heck, eh.

And finally on Sunday evening the view from the Blogger/BBQ master's  vantage point overlooking the lake from our patio.

 

It looks like we will head out to Arizona in the new year and so we have started to plot our course and stopping places along the way ... always with the weather at the forefront of planning.

Happy 98th Birthday Mom!

On the 22nd we all gathered at the St Jo Manor to celebrate Mom's birthday as well as Christmas for her. Her birthday is really the 23rd but the coordination to get us all there made the day before fit.

 

Rich and Kerry, Brooks and Leigh and Ev, as well as the blogger and the photographer were there to wish her a great birthday and holiday. We gave her a cd player and some CDs for her room as the music from the Manor was infrequent at best. The selection was from favorites during the WWII years from all the big bands as well as the popular singers of the time; and also a couple of Christmas CDs that we played right then.

 

She's doing great and of course has her up and down days, but when we mention some of the historical people and places she is right on top of it. She also sees and hears superbly ... probably better than some of the rest of us in the room and still has a quick wit and sense of humor.

We drove down from the Dallas area rather than take the RV and the kids drove down as well; all staying in the Home2Suites in College Station. After the birthday celebration we went to Cenare's restaurant as has become a tradition, only now Mom can't make the restaurant scene any more ... that part's kind of sad as she and Dad really loved the place.

Hot Flying Scotsman

 

I know we have posted pictures of the Freightliner Oasis repair place on I-20 in Dallas before ... well here we are again.

We have been plagued by an constant overheating of the Cummins diesel for a couple of years and it finally became too much to ignore, especially if we intend to take some new longer trips in the new year.

So on the 12th we set our alarms for 4:30 in the morning, gulped down some coffee and some cereal, and headed the 30 miles or so toward the southeast part of Dallas. We didn't even get out of the Vineyards RV park before it overheated and had to be shut down for a bit. This is the first time we have broken camp in the dark and it was certainly different ... let's see, where did we leave those flashlights?

And so went the next three hours as we slogged through morning traffic .... start again ... heat up ... turn off on some side road or shoulder ... start again, and so on; finally arriving at the garage at about 8:30.

They did their diagnosis and subsequently replaced the thermostat and coolant over the next 7 hours as we (with poor Bandit the cat) waited in the lounge, went shopping, and went to lunch; just to pass the time.

By 4:30 pm and $1400.00 later, they were done, as we were, and we went through the truck wash and then an uneventful slog through evening rush traffic to arrive back at our park at about 7 that Monday evening. Um ... now re-setting up camp in the dark ... note to self ... prominent place for flashlight!

Way too long for the older humans and felines involved, but glad it SHOULD be over. We'll see on the next longer run if the temp stays corrected, eh.

Hola Cuba

 

 

While we had eaten several times in Carrollton at Amici's Italian place we always looked out the front window and looked at this place and thought it might be good. This is the Cuban Dulceria International Bakery in Carrollton.

 



You walk into the front room of what looks just like an old home and the deli case is stocked with a wide variety of bakery meat and cheese and sweet stuff. We ordered at the counter and walked back to our table in the back room of the small place. The walls are decorated with many old photos, newspapers, and artifacts reflecting old Cuba.

As the Spanish speaking wait person brought our dishes it really reminded us of being guests in a Cuban person's home. Below are their signature Cuban sandwiches. In front of me is the Ybor Cuban and across the table Jo-Anne had the Shredded beef version both on fresh Cuban bread.

If you make the menu larger you can see the ingredients of both excellent sandwiches. Actually we could have split just one of them and been quite full. For about $10 each and a couple of hot teas, this was an excellent lunch choice. Even the parchment paper under the meals was a replica of a Cuban newspaper ... fun.

The menu was large with a lot of choices featuring many sweet and meat and cheese things all made from the freshest ingredients and baked right on the premises. They've just applied for an alcohol license and their choices of drinks might be really representative of what you might get in Cuba.

After all that food the blogger and his editorial director enjoy a nice quiet glass of single malt ... ahh.

Holiday Lights and Art

 

One of the must see places during the holiday season is the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine and their awesome displays. Above is the view as you come into the hotel lobby and it is at least four stories of beautiful lighting.

And Below is one of many tree displays of multiple colors and sizes throughout the hotel common areas. Even the Riverwalk part of the hotel is decorated with thousands of lights for the season.

Also in the lobby area but not quite in the holiday spirit was the guy below ... hey it's Texas.

Then over at the Chamber of Commerce we saw this really creative bronze sculpture reflecting many aspects of the winemaker's art and product.

Turning around from the above picture you get this view of the Chamber's wonderful staircase and beautiful seasonal displays that took a lot of time and care to put together.

Later in the evening they closed the main street of Grapevine and we strolled around with several thousand other folks and listened to carols and gaped at the decorations. They actually had a snow machine blowing plastic snow over the top of this business below.

And finally they synced the fireworks to the singers as they did several more carols and it was quite impressive.

We also had dinner at Farina's on Main Street, so it capped off a really festive time in the neat little town of Grapevine.

Airstream Appetite

 

You would assume that for those of us who live, eat, and sleep in an RV of some sort that looking for another RV to eat in would be out of the question; not for us crazy travelers.

 

In Addison is a restaurant called Ida Claire where we have eaten before, however, in their normal table and chair section. Well, they also have an Airstream trailer on the property where you can eat, so we thought it would be a hoot to surprise our Canadian visitors by reserving the thing for lunch.

 



Above are the nutty hosts as we got ready to enter the dining room. And below snuggled into the psychedelic patchwork quilt interior after we were served our brunch. We had the entire thing just for the four of us.

Jeanette and I had the duck confit and Jo-Anne and Morgan had the chicken waffles. The trailer had both heater and air conditioning and the day was about 60 and breezy, hence the jackets and sweaters ... but still comfy.

On the eclectic menu below you can see the neat variety of food items and the description of both the duck confit highlighted in red on the left and the chicken waffles in the red square on the right; both the ultimate in comfort food. Shared of course with some Mimosas and Bloody Marys to blend it all together, eh.

And the ubiquitous sign which often adorns other rigs in the RV travel world, but not a lot of rocking while we ate and talked.

 

Our guests were truly surprised by this different venue and we all had a great brunch.

Cowtown

 

 

On Saturday we hopped the Grapevine Vintage Railroad and rode the hour and a half down to Fort Worth. The 1890's coach car was really decorated well for the season.

 

However, you have to notice the purple window coverings .... well. Because the train would go next week on their special Santa run of 12 minutes duration and the entertainment would be inside after dark, they covered up the windows with this decorative plastic stuff.

 



They forgot to realize that before that the train would have several of the longer, day runs, to Fort Worth where the customers were paying $26 a head to see outside for the hour-plus ride each way. After several folks walked out and demanded their money back before we departed ("we didn't pay to ride on a subway"), the balance of the unruly mob took matters into their own hands (finally management capitulated and let us rip) and peeled the pretty stuff off the windows. Here's Morgan, Jeanette, and Jo-Anne as we joined the ripping party.

The balance of the trip was quite nice as we were able to see out and we arrived at the Fort Worth Stockyards of international fame.

We strolled around the shops and bought some cowboy/cowgirl themed things and then went up Exchange Avenue to the old Stockyards Hotel to take a break from our tough day.

Inside the 100+ year old hotel as we sipped some nice wine we could really put our brains back that 100 years to what it might have been like; here's Jo relaxing on the cow-sided chair, looking pretty regal indeed.

As we walked back to the train depot the cowboys had rounded up the longhorns for the daily cattle drive down Exchange Avenue just as they had done in times past and what made this cattle to train shipping depot so important.

And lastly, everybody knows the famous western cowgirl called "Cowlamity" Jane, eh.

Then back on the comfortable train ... with windows we could see out of ... and returned to our lake spot on Lake Grapevine ... super day and lots of fun!

Home in Grapevine

 



We initially arrived in the Dallas area and stayed at the Sandy Lake park to be close to the kids as I did the wall construction. Below is the charming view of a typical lot at that park in Carrollton ... its only redeeming value being the closest park to downtown Dallas.

 



 On the 6th of November we motored about 15 miles northwest of there to the totally charming town of Grapevine and its first class park called The Vineyards ... gotta love just the naming of the place. So the picture above is about 10 in the morning shot from the front window of the Flying Scotsman and the one below is the view at about noon on the same day as we hooked up in our new location.

What a change! And that is the reason we still are doing this RV thing and loving it; you can change your whole scenery and mental outlook within a couple of hours and take your living quarters with you.

The Vineyards campground is on lake Grapevine which hosts a huge population of creatures and the view from our yard on the beach in the evening, sitting in the rocker with a glass of wine, is beyond awesome.

We'll stay here until the 6th of January to get through the holiday season and have already begun plotting our next adventure after that down the "road less traveled."

The Great Wall of Leigh

 

I've been promising Leigh and Brooks that we would put up a partition wall in their house for the last few years. So upon arriving in Dallas I decided that the time was right. The wall will create an office and laundry room off the kitchen and get the clothes operation out of the garage.

 

Above, grandson Everett holds his ears and Brooks takes pictures of my effort to make a straight cut.
Then the top and bottom plates are laid out where the wall is to be erected.

Below, the thing is starting to take place. Because I already had a compressor, I rented a nailer to speed up the process ... what a change to the old banging nails and thumbs.

And then the wall really started to take shape. You can see what the long "bowling alley" living room was like and the reason that a wall was a convenient step to break up the space.

Here's Jo-Anne the pro slamming in nails at the speed of sound. Her next appearance will be on This Old House to replace Tom Silva, eh.

And the inside of the wall where the new laundry/office will take place. We'll leave the wall board off for right now for the electrician to run a couple of outlets inside the wall and then board it up.

And the view below from the new, smaller and more practical living room.

Not having a house of our own this was a fun project like we have done several times over the years. It took about 5 days to do with about 5 hours per day. Actually on day 5 I got the wall plastered and primed and it looks pretty good. Leigh should have the final paint coat on today.

Back In Texas

 

After we departed from Nashville the boring 200 miles down I-40 to the Memphis area was pretty boring. Although once we hit Memphis, rather than going to the Naval Support Activity on the north side of town we decided to head south on Highway 61 toward Vicksburg.

 

We had thought that trip would be more interesting than the interstate but we were wrong and 61 is a flat piece of highway without any scenic merit whatsoever.

 

Just after leaving Memphis to the south is a large casino area that we thought might be a good place to park for the night. All the major casinos are represented there and right on the Mississippi. Below is the Sam's Town casino growing out of the flat and parched cotton fields.

 

Rather than Sam's, which was very uninteresting, we went across the boulevard to the Hollywood casino. Both places had RV parks for $19.95 a night. The park was pretty new and well maintained but these casinos are obviously on hard times. As I went into the hotel to register it was pretty sad with the lack of patrons and the threadbare carpet and finishings ... I'd give these places along the river about a year before they are totally out of business ... somebody has lost a bunch of money here and that's not the customers.

Off on the morning of the 12th of October and as we finished up Highway 61 we found an Alligator .... no threat though.

For the night we picked another casino, this time the Ameristar one in Vicksburg, again about a 200 mile day and quite comfortable. This is a nice park with many pull thrus and about $30 a night. It's right on I-20 so the transition the next day was easy. Fuel for the last two days was about $2.49 a gallon and we've still averaged about 9mpg.

On the 13th then across the Mighty Mississippi where the water was at a pretty normal looking level and on through to Texas. Roads were very good and the weather perfect. We hadn't had a drop of rain since leaving Ontario and the temps were now rising to the 80's.

And finally, because we are having some engine problems and have been towed before, this was interesting. We have never seen a whole semi complete with trailer being towed down the road ... big tow truck!

We did spend the night in the Rusk KOA where we have been before. I is a really nice park in East Texas and home to a small gauge train that offers dinner trips. If you motor down from Shreveport and are headed to southern Texas this is not a bad place to rest for the night. Site #25 is 100 feet long and offers some spectacular sunsets from your porch.

We are now in Bryan Texas to visit with Bruce's Mom and Rich and Kerry and will be here till the 18th when we get finally up the Dallas area to see Leigh, Brooks, and grandson Ev.

 

Nashville

 

We left the KOA in Horse Cave and motored the easy trip down I-65 on the 8th and landed at the Nashville Shores RV park just to the east of town. While the picture below looks pretty good this combo amusement park is pretty uncared for and not really worth the $60 a nite fee.

 

The real reason we slowed a bit this time in Nashville was to meet Jim Schuster. Jim is the son of the late Dan Schuster who I flew with in Vietnam and was killed on 4 July 1968 when Jim was about 6 months old. Dan and I went through flight school and then we flew many intense missions together and that experience was chronicled in my book "Thundering Death."

 

Jim lives in Mt Juliet and came over to the park by himself as his wife Leslie as well as their son and daughter had other planned obligations. We talked a whole lot and then went over to the BBQ joint at the marina on the premises and then back to our site below. It was like I was talking to his dad from 50  years ago with the same mannerisms, intellect, humor, and drive that bonded us together at the time and made us a great military team. Absolutely super meeting and hopefully we will be able to meet again down the road.

 



 

All the time we were sitting on the patio next to the RV this heron maintained his or her post to keep and eye on the humans ... or maybe the fish/frog population as we weren't that important.

We hadn't planned on staying another night in the Nashville park but plans down the road and the fact that the next day was Sunday let us take a deep breath and pause for a day. We have been through the town many times but have never been off the highway and seen downtown so we decided to take advantage of the neat 70 degree day.

Below is the ATT tower which intentionally resembles a Wi-Fi router ... pretty neat architecture.

We walked by the Ryman Auditorium which saw the beginnings of bluegrass and eventually the entire genre we call country music today.

The core of Nashville is a very tourist oriented place and as we walked we spotted the Jimmy Buffet place on the corner of Broadway and 4th Avenue. Anytime is margarita time. We had some really great quesadillas and the guitarist was first class with some Buffet songs and Texas country stuff and the windows were open to the 70 degree air so our corner window seat was the best in the house.

In the center in the background of the picture below is the Ernest Tubbs guitar shop of country music history ... but these two ...

... I just don't know ...