Passing the Time

Donna and I are pretty good at entertaining ourselves. That's good, because during these challenging times, you have to find things to do or go stir crazy.

As the week began, we were still getting out a bit, though we were keeping our distance and following the CDC suggestions of washing hands, wiping down surfaces, and so forth. We even took advantage of a senior time at Walmart on Tuesday morning. The store opened its doors to senior citizens an hour before regular start time. Donna and I arrived promptly at 6:00 AM to find a fairly long line. We decided we would brave the line, which really moved rather quickly. Employees were allowing 4 in at a time. This gave them time to wipe down carts and have them ready as all of us old geezers entered.

Most items were in good supply, although selections of bread, cereal, meat, and dairy products were not what they usually are. Paper towels disappeared while we were there, and there was no toilet paper to begin with. But we got mostly what we came for.

One day we drove through a chicken place and got some tender meals. We took our food out to Spring Creek Park and had a pleasant picnic overlooking Spring Creek. It was nice to eat on the creek bank and watch the ducks and other birds. The breeze was light and the temperature perfect.

We've been walking, of course, and doing quite a bit of work in the yard. The mowers came on Wednesday, and I always have to clean up after they cut the grass. I usually get the trimmer out, for the mowers are more interested in quantity rather than quality. So, there is always some touching up to do, often quite a bit. And since they don't bag, there is always grass to blow off the patios and sidewalks.

Donna has tomato and pepper plants scattered around the beds, and all of her patio plants are roaring to life. With the beautiful warm weather this past week and good recent rains, everything is greening up.

Tomato and pepper plants along our north wall.

Earlier in the week, Donna set out here 3 hummingbird feeders. Let the wars begin! Those rascals surely are stingy with those feeders, but they are a delight to watch.

Feeders in a row across our back patio. The little birds dart from feeder to feeder, running off any who dare tresspass on their domain.

We now have 3 cases of COVID-19 in Tom Green County, so Donna and I have decided to isolate ourselves even more. We are now using curbside services to pick up groceries from H.E.B., and we are eating all of our meals at home -- no more take out. The next few weeks should be interesting for us. Will the number of positive cases rise locally (I'm sure they will), and how bad will it get here?

And let me leave you with a humorous story which I like to call, "The Saga of Donna and the Chicken".

I was sitting in my recliner the other day, minding my own business, when Donna looked out the windows overlooking our back patio.

"There's a chicken in our yard," she exclaimed.

Well, I've been here before. Donna sees lots of things; after all, she drinks a lot, you know. For example, Donna has seen ostriches on hikes (turned out to be turkeys), and she is great at seeing things in the clouds, even when there are no clouds.

Well, I moseyed on over to the window and peeked out.

When I peeked out, this is what I saw through the slats.

"Donna," I said. "That's a buzzard."

We stepped out on the patio and were able to snap a few more pics before he flew off.

Donna's chicken.

Technically, I believe that is a turkey vulture. We get quite a few buzzards that circle Rio Concho West. We think it is because of all of us old geezers. They seem to be waiting for us to die. Perhaps we'll just drop dead while we are walking or while we are getting our mail or morning paper. And some of them fly really low through the neighborhood. As we sit on our back patio looking towards our street, many will actually fly level with our eyes since the street is a few feet lower than our patio. So, when you hear of our death, just know we are being taken care of by nature's caretakers.

Take care of yourselves out there, and be smart!

Are We Having Fun Yet?

Well, this virus is not much fun, is it?

As this week comes to a close, lots of places are shutting down. There is no longer any indoor dining at local restaurants, but drive thrus are still open as well as take out, curbside service, and deliveries. To date, San Angelo has not had a case of the virus. In a news report Friday, statistics were provided that indicated 68 people in town had been tested, and the results of 11 tests were negative. 57 tests are still being processed. On Saturday, the number grew to 108 tested, 22 negative results, and 86 pending. The only reports of the virus in the larger area are 1 each in the towns of Lubbock, Brownwood, Midland, and Crane. I've no doubt that we will see the virus here in time, so I expect things to get worse before they get better.

All activities at our RCW clubhouse have been suspended for the duration. Fortunately, all of the employees are still on site. Local grocery stores are still open, though most have altered their hours. Walmart will have a "senior hour" this coming week, so I guess we'll venture out to pick up some goodies.

We are trying to be good team players and do as the authorities are requesting/ordering. I hate that there are those out there that post rants on local media complaining about restrictions. Now is not the time to pitch a childish fit; now is the time to work together. But some folks can only think of themselves. It doesn't matter which side of the political aisle you prefer, in times like these you work with those in authority to make the situation better.

Donna and I have enjoyed the good weather and have spent some time working in the yard. On Saturday, we were surprised with a rainy afternoon that netted us about half an inch. We've had a pretty wet 2020 so far. The ground has remained moist for the most part and things have greened up nicely. But with Saturday's rain came a cool front, dropping daytime temps to the mid 40s. It began warming again yesterday (Sunday), and this week will see temps in the 70s and 80s. Nice.

Below are some pictures of Donna's handiwork in the beds. I don't have any handiwork to show -- I just pull weeds.

We have 2 rosemary plants, and both are healthy. I love the rich green color. We've tried to grow rosemary in pots over the years, but have never had much luck. Plant them in the ground, though, and they do great!

Mint is much like rosemary; in a pot, it just doesn't flourish as well as in the ground. Yes, it spreads quickly, but we put in dividers to restrict its spread. Don't you just love iced tea with fresh mint on a summer day?

Donna created a little herb condo here, with sage, dill, and other goodies. 

Last fall, Donna really cut back her roses, and they are now putting on new growth. I expect them to do well this year.

This is the bur oak tree in our front yard that we trimmed way back in the fall. It has some nice new growth, and I think it is really going to do well this year.

Here is that same bur oak in a picture taken almost a year ago, but from a different angle. You can see how the lower limbs needed pruning back. 

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.

Paradise Lost

I'll start with the bad news.

For the almost 4 years we've lived at Rio Concho West (RCW) on the outskirts of San Angelo, it has always been a pleasure to enter the gates to our little subdivision. Once we passed through those gates, we entered an area of calm and peace, away from the hustle and bustle of the encroaching city.

Those days are gone, and our little paradise has lost a little of what has made it so pleasant.

Unfortunately, there are several acres at the entrance to our community that RCW does not own. Instead, Shannon Hospital owns that property. We have 2 major hospitals in town, with Shannon being the larger by far. Shannon is now developing that property. We've known about this for at least half a year, and we have been dreading the day when construction would start. That day was yesterday.

I've forgotten the specifics of the building going in, but it is some sort of long-term physical rehabilitation care center. It will not be that large, and in the long term it may even prove to be a good thing for our little community. We do have folks who fall or take tumbles from time to time, and these folks need some sort of physical rehabilitation to return to their regular activities. For them, this will be quite convenient.

Now, Donna and I like Shannon. Sure, they aren't perfect, but for the most part Shannon is a pretty efficient medical organization. Overall, we have been pleased with the care we receive there, and this care has been one of the reasons we have remained in San Angelo for essentially all of our retirement. Shannon even ranks rather high nation wide in several categories.

But I'm still not looking forward to the construction phase of this new facility.

We returned from a shopping trip yesterday morning to discover half a dozen or so trucks of various sorts near the entrance starting work on the property. I went out a little later and there were even more trucks. It's a bit congested near the entrance trying to drive past that work area, and I certainly don't walk to go walking around there.

I'm not looking forward to the next year or so, but I'll hope for the best.

On to other things . . .

The weather lately has really been nice. By 10 or so most days, we've been able to get out without jackets, or very light jackets at best. I've even seen buds on one of our trees, and the little red bud tree near the entrance to our neighborhood is already in color. I don't think spring is that far away.

Tuesday night about 8:00 or so, a storm moved into the area and lingered until late Wednesday afternoon. There was a little thunder and lightning, but not much. We tallied about 2.5 inches of rain overall at our house, while other areas nearby got as much as 3 or more inches. That is really nice for us, and it should go a long way in refilling area lakes. I hope it was beneficial for our farmers.

Because of the corona virus that is in the news, we probably won't be making any trips for a while. We're not so worried about becoming ill as we are at getting quarantined or something. So, we'll probably stick pretty close to home until this all passes over. Anyway, I just received a jury summons yesterday, so I have to be available for jury duty for the entire month of April.

I hope that something good will come of this virus. One thing I'm concerned about is hygiene. I'm always amazed at the number of people I see in restrooms that simply walk out when they finish their business and never wash their hands. You would think in this day and age that we would be more enlightened than that, but that is obviously not the case. All the experts emphasize again and again the importance of washing your hands, but there are a large number of people out there that ignore this simple task. In many aspects, we seem to be regressing as a culture, and personal hygiene is one such area.

On Thursday, Donna and I watched The Call of the Wild at our nearby theater. It was entertaining enough, I suppose, but if you are hoping for a movie that is faithful to the original Jack London book, you'll be greatly disappointed. The book is vastly superior. Books are almost always better than the movie versions, don't you think?

Some Casino Action for the Old Folks

Well, we finally did something a bit different. You know how Donna is; she needs her casino fix from time to time. We received some nice offers from Inn of the Mountain Gods in Mescalero, New Mexico (near Ruidoso), and we just couldn't pass them up.

We played a little at this casino back in August one day, then hit it both going and coming on our November trip to Laughlin, NV. That's not a great deal of play, so we were pleasantly surprised when each of us received an offer for 3 free nights as well as some generous food credits. so on this past Monday, we headed over for a 3 night stay.

It's a long trip for us, almost 400 miles one way. But it is closer than Shreveport, and the drive is much less stressful. There are no big cities to pass through, and no heavy traffic areas. The worst part of the trip is the 90 mile or so stretch from the Texas/New Mexico state line to Roswell on US 380. Along that stretch two-lane, there is only 1 town, tiny Tatum with fewer than 1,000 folks. There are  absolutely no passing lanes on that long stretch, and the speed limit is 65. The road surface itself is good, with a good shoulders, but it is a long, monotonous stretch.

We got our first glimpse of Sierra Blanca about 20 miles or so east of Roswell. That means we were seeing this beautiful mountain from a distance of about 100 miles. At 11,981 feet, Sierra Blanca is the 8th tallest mountain in New Mexico, and the highest in the Sacramento range. 3 of the 4 tallest peaks in New Mexico are all located in the Taos range north of Santa Fe, including Wheeler Peak, the highest peak at 13,167 feet.

I snapped this photo just west of Roswell. If you click to enlarge the photo, you'll see snow-capped Sierra Blanca straight ahead down the highway. To the right is Capitan Peak at just over 10,000 feet. No snow on it.

Our favorite part of the drive is the approach to Ruidoso along US 380/70 from where the highway first enters the foothills around the tiny community of Riverside. From that point west, the roadway dips and weaves its way toward Ruidoso following the Rio Hondo and, later, the Rio Ruidoso. It's truly beautiful country.

We stopped in Ruidoso for a late lunch at Garcia's Cafe, a nondescript eatery on Sudderth Drive. Donna enjoyed a plate of bean chalupas while I dove into a plate of cheese enchiladas with red sauce. Everything was fresh and tasty, and the salsa had a nice bite that got you in the back of the throat. Good food and good service at a good price. We'll definitely return.

From there, we headed to the casino and checked into our room. The room was large and comfortable, with a balcony overlooking a lake. In the background, partially hid by another mountain in the foreground, loomed snow-covered Sierra Blanca, about 10 miles away as the crow flies. I took several pictures of the scene at different times of the day. In big sky country, I love the way scenery changes appearances based on light and time of day.

View of Sierra Blanca from our balcony.

I zoomed in for this shot of Sierra Blanca.

Looking in a different direction from our balcony.

Sierra Blanca near the end of the day.

We played a while on Monday, but I was rather tired from the drive. Since I was not doing well, I quit early. "Forever Young" Donna continued mercilessly pounding the machines for a while, though. I prefer to play early in the morning, so on Tuesday I rose early, got a nice cup of coffee and sat at my favorite game and had a good play. I was able to win a little money during that session, then moved to another machine and had another good session, hitting a $150 jackpot. Donna was not having any luck on that day, though.

We used some of our food credits for a nice lunch at the buffet. I'm not big on buffets, but I enjoyed this one. It had a nice variety of entrees, and everything was tasty and well prepared. I'll certainly eat there again.

Hotel lobby. Because of lighting, you cannot see anything out of the large picture window.

Here is the view from the hotel lobby. I could sit here all day!

After lunch, we retired to our room and watched the weather change from sunny and bright to cold and snowy. It did not snow a great deal, but we lost our view of Sierra Blanca for quite awhile. And then, just as suddenly as the snow had moved in, it moved out and the sun returned.

A light snow moves in. Where did Sierra Blanca go?

The snow got a bit heavier!

Wednesday dawned at a low of 9 degrees. Brrrr! We had planned to go into town that day, but decided we would just stay put in our warm casino. And the good folks at the Inn of the Mountain Gods do keep the casino warm. It is pleasant to play there. Today would be Donna's day at the machines. She hit quad deuces on the deuces wild video poker machine she was playing for a total of $250. For lunch on Wednesday, we dined at the Broken Arrow Tap Room. Donna had a turkey sandwich and I enjoyed some really tasty brisket tacos.

The next day, beautiful weather returned. We didn't get much snow, but you can see a light cover on the ground.

After 3 days, we left the casino about 7:00 AM (local time) to head home. We had a good time during our stay, and we definitely plan to return. Alcohol is not served on the main casino floor. There is one designated bar in the casino area, and neither Donna nor I played there. I liked that. The place is pretty smokey, though, and I definitely do not like that. We were very happy with our room and the eateries we tried. Self-serve drink stations are located in the casino area, and we found the coffee there to be quite good.

I snapped this photo as we were leaving Thursday morning. You can see the top of Sierra Blanca greeting the morning sun. Casino is on the left while hotel and restaurants are more towards the right.

Entrance to casino. The picture just above this one was taken up the slope in the background.

We played quite a bit, so we are hopeful we will get some more offers in the mail. We would like to return in the summer so we can sit out on the balcony and enjoy that beautiful scenery.

Just Waiting for Some Warm Weather

We've had quite a bit of cold the past couple of weeks. In my previous post, I mentioned the light cold and freezing temps we have had. We did manage a couple of nice days last weekend, but this week we have had some more cold and about three-quarters inch of rain. Add to that some really cold northerly winds, and we just haven't had any desire to get out.

We did manage to get out and watch a movie this week, though. We saw 1917, a World War I story about two young British soldiers and their efforts to warn a couple of brigades about a planned offensive about to be launched. The scenery and landscape in the movie actually becomes a major character. I really enjoyed the movie, though Donna was affected by much of the gore.

I'm still adjusting to my new phone. When I purchased the phone from Target (they are affiliated with my provider, Consumer Cellular), the young lady there swapped the SIM card from my old phone into my new phone. Well, that caused quite a bit of trouble. I was able to use my phone in my home when connected to my network, but away from home, I had nothing. I made a call to the Consumer Cellular help desk and a patient young lady named Sonia worked me through my problems. Everything now seems to be working well. I continue to be pleased with the customer service provided by Consumer Cellular; I wish I had switched to them years ago.

Spring will be here in another month. I look forward to warmer weather. I'm ready to get out and do some walking and hiking. I always feel better when I can get outside.

A Little Snow and a Cancelled Trip

Yeah, as noted, we've been a bit boring lately. We had plans to rectify that situation, but things did not go as planned.

We had made reservations to take a cruise with Vanishing Texas River Cruises over on Lake Buchanan near Burnet, Texas. In fact, we had already purchased tickets for the Scenic Wilderness Cruise. But the weather did not cooperate. A winter storm blew through the area on the date we had scheduled the cruise, so we wisely cancelled a couple days ahead of time. San Angelo was on the low side of the storm, and we only received a trace of snow. But daughter Courtney and the band of assassins she is training to the north of us received a great deal more snow. Because the public schools closed due to the weather, Courtney was able to provide some special snow training for her young assassins.

As you can see, most of the snow we received stayed on the rooftops, though a patch or two of light snow did settle on the ground.

Looking out our front door, snow is mostly on the roof and the top of our brick wall.

 It did get quite cold here. The low one night touched 20, and the high did not get above 35 or so on Tuesday. I'm glad those cold spells do not linger long.

Well, my phone has died on me. Guess I'll have to replace it. I hate that I have become so dependent on that thing. Now, I don't use it while driving, or while I'm walking, or any time like that. To be honest, I rarely use the phone feature; anyone who knows me knows I hate talking on the phone. But I do like the convenience of picking it up while watching a travel show and researching a destination being discussed. And Donna and I both rely greatly on the calendars on our phones. And when we are large grocery stores, at casinos, or otherwise apart, the text feature is a handy way for the old woman and me to keep tabs on one another. Donna has a bad habit of wandering off and making me look for her. She often won't even respond to my texts. Guess she just wants to get away from me sometimes.

So, I'm in the process of securing a new phone. I believe I've found one through my provider that I like, so hopefully I'll be up and running soon.

Another note on the weather. It is raining here today (Monday). We haven't had much rain, less than a quarter inch, but we should get more today and tomorrow. We've had a decent amount of moisture so far this year.