Tuesday, October 3, 2006

2006 Blogs

September & October 2006 Fall is in the Air

On October 3, 2006 our motorhome turned three years old. What fun we have had. Also the warranty runs out at midnight. Newmar and Ron Hoover RV & Marine looked at our dinette table which broke where it attaches to the wall for traveling and Shari showed them our carpet which seemed to be turning white in some large places. Photos were taken and in a few days our dealer called to inform us that we should pick out a carpet from their web site and schedule the table installation and carpet replacement. I was a bit surprised since our warranty had less than two weeks left on it, but should not have been because Newmar and Ron Hoover have always treated us like they are concerned about our coach and how much we like it. This last 3 years has been a real treat to be included in the list of customers of these two fine companies.

It has been a mild summer here on the beach. Not so much the weather being mild but hurricane wise, mild would be overstating this season. Shari and I have been hard at work in our retirement helping our family and friends and putting a few extra beans in our pockets as an added bonus. Neither of us ever considered going back to work however the time I am spending at the ranch and the days Shari is spending at "Mrs. Martha's" flower shop in Winnie (Forever & Always Florist), is proving to be a rewarding experience. It is a good feeling to really make a difference and even when the work is hard and dirty and we come home tired, there is a satisfaction that we met a need of someone we love and admire. There are many ways to offer a helping hand in this little world and to have a nice life of your own while sharing part of someone else's is a gift from God that nobody can take back once given.

Our advice at this place in our lives would be that "life is about choices". We think that means to live with what you have, make choices with thought and purpose and not to worry about what might happen or what could happen. I heard it put this week that we should "not worry about the mule going blind". Live life with a purpose and don't be afraid to change courses in mid journey.

Well it is almost November, and we are planning a quick trip to Kerrville, Plantersville and are working on our long trip in May and June to NM, AZ, UT, WY, NV and some other places in between.


July and August, 2006 Home Bound Summer
During July and August we have not traveled in the motorhome. We have been working at the Lazy A Ranch repairing equipment, cutting and bailing hay and doing general ranching tasks with Raymond and Jo (Sister and Brother-In-Law). This has been a new experience for me but Shari has had some early life experience in the farm and ranch field being the animal lover that she is. We hit the road for a bit soon and will document the event as we have in the past.

June 20, 2006 - Lake Charles and then The "Lazy A" Ranch
For Shari's birthday we went to Lake Charles for some old fashioned casino action. We spent three days at the Hidden Ponds RV Park, Sulphur, Louisiana. It was nice, clean and very close to the casinos in the area. From there we traveled to LaBelle, TX near Beaumont and the Lazy A Ranch where we left the motorhome for an extended visit. Our projects were varied and included cutting hay, tedding the hay and bailing....a chore for a young man not to mention us. While there we did some sheetrock damage repair from hurricane Rita and a few other chores. We stay there a few days then home for a short visit to "catch up" here. Today I got a Sprint data card for the laptop...we are tired of no connectivity and Sprint has great signal on the ranch. Tomorrow we plant the new field with new hay seed and start the process all over again. The rest of the weekend and holiday will be spent relaxing and visiting with family between feeding, cleaning and general fence repair work. Well, the rain did not hold off for us to plant the field. We did some hay tossing from the trailers to the storage loft which is an activity designed to make men out of boys and mush out of men. One night we awoke to about 1/3 of the herd trampling thru the campsite taking out the satellite dish, floor mat and making for a good hour "herding cattle in the dark". This adds a new level of ranching skills to my portfolio. The dish and tripod survived however the young man who left the gate unlocked may not...only kidding Hunter.

We got the toad fixed, it only took three days to change two power steering hoses...I am so glad I made an appointment. At any rate, it is fixed, so we took the MH back home for a good cleaning and pampering after being attacked by a herd of cattle. We made it back home on July 7 for a few days..

May 5, 2006 - Branson Mini-Rally
Gabby and Okie plus Terbie and Skip hosted a great "not so mini' rally in Branson MO this month. We met Skip and Terbie in Atlanta, TX state park for a day or two, did some fishing and then headed North to Branson. There were about 22 of us there and it was a great outing in a scenic and entertaining location. It was a relaxed event and lots of good old chatter's fun. We solo camped (no friends this time) at Atlanta State Park on the way home and enjoyed the stay once again.

February 15, 2006 - The "Lazy A Ranch"
After a long dry spell during which time we cleaned our property from the storm, assisted Shari's sister and my sisters with their recovery efforts, we traveled to LaBelle, TX and Raymond and Jo's (my sister) ranch property to help with some "ranch stuff". This time consisted of about four trips some of which were mixed with side jaunts to Lake Charles and Vinton for some casino action. All in all the ranch work was more productive. Also during this time we played host to a few chat room friends who took advantage of the "Last-Re-Sort" driveway CG at our home. Maineiac, Tom-NC, Penny-TX, Ken & Char, Kerrville and Skip & Terbie-Ingram. It has been a productive 2006 at the "Last-Re-Sort"..

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