The Weather Is Lovely

It's really nice out here these days. The weather has been just about perfect for my tastes. Each night, the lows can range anywhere from the upper 30s to the low 60s, and the days usually reach at least the upper 50s, sometimes the lower 80s. We've gotten some pretty good moisture as well, and there is a good chance we'll get more this week.

Construction on the new medical facility at the entrance to our subdivision is rolling along. I'm hoping this whole project will turn out well, but I hate seeing something like this come into our neighborhood.

Construction area just inside the entrance to our subdivision.

Right now, they are simply hauling in dirt and leveling the building site.

Building the foundation.

Donna and I have been busy so far this week. Early Monday, we visited our tax accountant and had our 2019 taxes done. It's always nice to get that behind us.

That afternoon, Donna went over to the clubhouse to play cards with her gang. I headed out to the state park and renewed our annual park passes. We've maintained annual passes with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for a long, long time. I think it is one of the best deals around. I buy one pass for $70, then we add a second pass for Donna at $25. So, for a total of $95 we have unlimited access to ALL of the parks in the Texas state park system. In addition, anyone riding in our car also receives free access to the park. Now, if you don't have a pass, then you have to pay each time you enter a park, and that fee applies to each person in the automobile. Fees vary from park to park, but I think $5 for person is pretty standard at most parks these days. At our local park (San Angelo State Park), the entrance fee is $4 per person. So, if Donna and I visited our local park just once, it would cost us $8. Since we go out there quite a lot to walk and hike, we get our money's worth with these annual passes.

After purchasing the passes yesterday, I parked the car and went for a quick 3 mile walk which led me through 2 of the camping areas. It is Spring Break week out here, and the campgrounds were almost full. I always enjoy looking at the various RVs out there. I miss the RV lifestyle we once led, and I really think about doing it again when spring rolls around each year. But then reality returns, and I realize all the negatives associated with full-timing. But you never know what the old woman and I might do.

Scary sight! That is a big, heavy trailer, and that is an old, small truck it is hitched to. Just because a vehicle CAN pull a trailer doesn't mean that it should. 

I rose early Tuesday morning and took the car to our dealership to have it inspected. I like our Toyota dealership. They are efficient, fast, and service oriented. I've never had a bad experience there. After returning home, I completed the registration process online. We're legal for another year to roam the streets of our nation!

Donna returned to the clubhouse on Tuesday afternoon. No doubt, she and her gang are plotting something devious over there. As a good citizen, I should probably alert the authorities.

Trees are coming back to life.

Another beautifully shaped tree returning to life.

This little redbud is right on our main street, so we see each each time we leave or return.

I stayed close to home on Wednesday because Bug Express was scheduled to visit. One of the perks of living at Rio Concho West is they arrange for the exterminator to visit quarterly. Of course, our HOA fees pay for this amenity, but it's nice when someone else makes all the arrangements. All we have to do is be at home to grant them access. If we happen to be traveling when a visit is scheduled, we just contact the RCW office and they will let the folks in.

Donna had an early appointment with her eye doctor Thursday. I decided to stay home and go for a walk around the neighborhood. It is now warm enough most mornings that I can walk early with only a light jacket, and I can take it off after a mile or so. Nice weather. Thursday night, Donna went to the clubhouse for dinner, but since I didn't care for anything on the menu that day, I decided to stay home.

Friday was a bit cool, or it seemed that way. Actually, the temp stayed in the 60s throughout the day, but there was some moisture in the air and the wind blew rather steady all day. After lunch, we drove to the state park and made the rounds in the south section. It looked as if the lake (O. C. Fisher) had more water, but upon checking the data, it seems to be holding at just under 10% capacity. There weren't as many campers as earlier in the week, so I guess folks are already heading home from Spring Break.

Lake OC Fisher as seen from Pulliam Ridge at San Angelo State Park

View of the Playground Trail as it skirts up Armadillo Ridge at San Angelo State Park. I need to take a good hike!

So, how are you faring with the COVID-19? I hate to see the markets tumbling, especially at our age. It will take a while for them to recover these losses, but I'm sure they eventually will. Angelo State University (ASU) and San Angelo ISD (SAISD) have both extended their Spring Breaks another week. I'm not sure what this accomplishes except a bit more "social distancing". And social distancing requires good decisions on the part of individuals; it's pretty difficult to mandate common sense.

We went to H.E.B. early yesterday morning, and we were surprised at the number of folks there. Usually at that time, we pretty much have the place to ourselves. But it was pretty much a beehive of activity yesterday. People were stocking up. They weren't really panicking, as they were more or less taking their time. There was no pushing or rudeness or anything. But most of the folks had their carts full. We noticed lots of picked over shelves, especially things like toilet paper. Donna and I normally keep a well-stocked pantry. We watch the sales and buy items with long shelf life in bulk when we can to save money, so on any given day we usually have plenty of things in our pantry. I'm afraid the situation out there will get a bit worse before it gets better.

And to end, I'll leave you with a Rio Concho sunrise. I snapped this shot earlier in the week as I was on my walk.

West Texas sunrise.