Triple Digits in April

On Tuesday, April 29th, the mercury soared to 105 degrees in San Angelo. That's pretty hot for the end of April. I certainly hope that does not mean we are going to have a really hot summer.

Earlier on Tuesday, we ventured down the street to our Sam's Wholesale Club for their early morning senior time. From 7 to 9 on Tuesdays and Thursdays, geezers can shop with other geezers. This was the first time we had been in a store since March 24th, and I have to admit we felt a bit wicked. But it was a pleasant experience. There weren't that many people in the store and, since the aisles are rather wide, we never felt compromised in any way. To top it off, we found just about everything we wanted or needed. We're already planning our next trip.

Up to this point, we've not been able to find any facial masks, so we've been wearing homemade items. First, we made a couple of masks from some of the bandanas we've used over the years when we hike. We found online sites instructing how to fashion them into workable masks. Then a fellow RCW resident gave us a couple of masks that she and her group of volunteers had made. These are much better than what we made. Thanks, Geneva!

Today (Wednesday), we made an even bigger score. Another neighbor called to say that the city has come into a good supply and is giving them to residents, so we drove down to the give away zone in the parking lot of the local football field, and we picked up 2 masks. Thanks, Dick and Connie, for the tip! On the way home, we stopped by the office of RCW and picked up 2 more that the Rio Concho community is providing to residents. So, we now have a good supply.

We don't wear masks often because we don't actually get out much. Most of our shopping has been curbside, so we only put our masks on then when one of the employees approaches us for some reason. But now that we are starting to go into Sam's and possibly other stores, we'll be using them more.

Over the years, I've read a number of books on hiking the Appalachian Trail (See "The Big 3 Hiking Trails of the Continental U.S.A."). Many of the authors comment on one of the side affects of hiking that 2,100+ mile trail. It seems that when you spend 5 months -- more or less -- on the trail walking roughly at a speed of 2 miles an hour or so, you become a bit overwhelmed when you return to "normal" life off the trail. Suddenly thrust back into a world of speeding cars, these former hikers -- used to the seclusion and quiet of trail life -- suddenly feel out of their element.

For the past month or more, Donna and I have not ventured out much. Most of our curbside grocery shopping has been at the H.E.B. that is less than a mile from the gate to our community. We last filled the car with gas on March 24. Since that time, we've used less than a quarter tank.

When we got out earlier today to pick up the masks, we had to travel a bit farther than normal. Like hikers coming off the trail, we were a bit overwhelmed at how many people were on the streets and how fast they were zipping around.

I need to find a good trail to live on, I think.

Stay safe out there!

Things Are a Bit Better Here

Our area is currently showing some positive reports regarding COVID-19. We've only had 1 new positive report in the last 8 days or so, and technically, that one really shouldn't count. As I understand it, a woman in her 40s from the area was tested positive while in another location. It isn't clear to me whether she had recently been in Angelo where she might have contracted the disease or if she picked it up in her current location. Still, our numbers look good for right now.

Both the state and local area are beginning to ease restrictions a bit. I know we need to get our economy percolating again. My heart aches for those people who unable to work for whatever reason. I know they have bills to pay and they need to put food on the table. I just hope people realize we still have to be very careful. Just think, in just about 3 months, we have lost more people to this virus than we normally lose in an entire year with the regular flu. And we've lost that number while practicing social distancing and other measures. What would that number (currently more than 53,000) be if we had not taken the measures we have taken?

We still pass our days doing normal things. Donna has been on a cleaning frenzy lately. She reorganized our food pantry and both refrigerators. We now have a better idea of what food we have. We do not have a dedicated freezer, but we do have 2 fridges, so we have quite a bit of freezer space.

This beautiful red rose is just about perfect in shape and color, don't you think? My old lady can grow some lovely roses.

I needed a haircut, so we pulled out our old hair cutting kit. Donna used to cut my hair quite a bit, especially when we lived in the Middle East. It has been quite a while since the last time she cut my hair, though. I probably picked a bad time to ask her to cut my hair. We were running low on liquor at the time. We only had a dozen or so quarts of hard liquor, and Donna was beginning to worry a bit about this apparent shortage.

Still, I needed a haircut, so one afternoon, she got busy and whacked away my flowing locks.

Immediately after the haircut, we went down to our local liquor store and stocked up on supplies for Donna. Once she was in a better mood, she touched up my hair and I look a little better. There's only so much you can do with my ugly mug in the first place.

It's dry here now. There is a pretty big wildfire along the Crockett County and Val Verde county line. We lived in Crockett County for 8 years, so we have been keeping up with this fire. Best I can tell, it is probably in the area of the tiny Pandale community, probably to the east of there. It is being called the Holcombe Road Fire, and thousands of acres have been burned so far.

Rio Concho West has not turned on our sprinkler systems yet, so our yards are beginning to brown a bit. It has been more than 2 weeks since our last rain, and the temps are edging up. I expect we will push 100 degrees at least twice in the coming week.

I hope all of you are doing well. Stay safe out there.

Up and Down Weather

You know the old saying: "If you don't like the weather in Texas, just wait a few minutes and it'll change."

That seems to be what is happening in our neck of the woods. One day it's sunny and pushing 90, the next it's overcast and 50. I had gotten used to walking about 6:30 each morning with the temp about 60, then woke one morning to the mid-30s. Good excuse to crawl back into bed.

The wind has really been a mess. We've had some really high gusts, in the 50 to 60 mph area. And we've had some days when the wind held steady at 25 and 30 mpg. It just isn't pleasant to get out on those days. We had some rain forecast over the weekend, but it never came. This week, the temps are back to the mid to upper 80s -- or higher -- and there really isn't a good chance of rain.

Miss Donna's plants took a pretty good beating during the hail storm about 10 days ago. The pepper plants really were battered; I don't know that they will recover, but we'll try to save them. The tomato plants suffered some damage as well, but they seem to be a bit hardier. In fact, one plant has a little tomato the size of a nickel trying to survive. All of the other plants seem to be doing well.

I just love the vibrant red of this rose.

I've snapped several shots of Donna's yellow roses, but they all seem to be a bit washed out. I've used 2 different cameras with the same results. Still, their shape is gorgeous!

The pink roses are lovely as well.

We continue to isolate, but things are looking up around here. We've had no new cases of COVID-19 reported in almost a week. Now, I realize that an outbreak can occur at any moment, but still, it's nice that things have leveled off, at least for the time being.

We continue to count our blessings. I know this entire scenario has been so difficult, not only for those who have suffered with the virus itself, but for those who are out of work and live paycheck to paycheck. I can't even begin to imagine how young people are coping with the situation. If I was 17 and stuck at home with my parents for a long time, I'd probably go stir crazy.

You folks stay safe out there.

We'er Hanging in There

After the violent weather this past weekend, a cold front pushed through lowering nightly lows into the 30s and daily highs to the mid 50s or so. Wednesday morning, in particular, was cold, with the low hovering just above freezing. I understand the Panhandle even had some snow. Things should warm up by the weekend, though.

The hail and winds did some damage to Donna's tomato and pepper plants, and to some of her other plants. I'm hoping when the sunshine returns that it might perk them up some; we'll just have to wait and see.

While at the kitchen sink a couple of days ago, I saw a woodpecker hugging the trunk of our front bur oak. I slipped into the garage and peered out, hoping to catch some photos. I snapped a couple before he flew to our neighbor's tree, then I snapped one while he visited them.

Woodpecker on the bur oak in our yard. He blends in nicely, doesn't he?

Here he is on our neighbor's tree.

We don't get out much these days, and we avoid as much contact as possible. For groceries, we currently are doing only curbside pickup. For medicine, we do drive-thru. I can't remember the last time we were in a store. And those are just about the only places we go when we venture out. It's rather ironic that with the lowest gas prices in years, we are unable to travel.

Now whenever we go out, I feel sort of like a criminal. We try to be as inconspicuous as possible, pick up our things, then get back to Rio Concho West as quickly as possible. I'm wondering how long it will take for me to mentally return to normal once this is all over. When will I feel comfortable walking into a grocery store? When will I feel safe sauntering into a restaurant? When will I not feel in danger when I'm around crowds of people?

I'm thankful we live where we do. I'm especially thankful we are not currently full-timing in an RV. State parks in many states are closed, national parks are closed, and many public lands have closed. It's a bit challenging to find a place to park an RV these days. And if you are not one of the fortunate few with a washer/dryer setup in your RV, you have to venture out every so often to do laundry in a place that you might not feel safe in.

Yep, I feel pretty fortunate right now.

Keep safe out there.

Stormy Weather

About 5:45 yesterday (Saturday) evening, a storm blew in and almost immediately we lost power. Strong winds were blowing from the north. We looked across the street and watched our neighbor's flag pole bending dangerously low. I was afraid it would snap; it has before, about a year or two ago. Rain began pelting us, and then small hail began falling. The hail was no larger than a dime in our area, though reports around town indicated quarter-sized hail. Winds gusted at 60 mph.

As quickly as it started, it stopped. We had about a quarter inch in the rain gauge. The power remained off until about 7:15, and it drizzled periodically during this time. Then the power returned, and so did the storm. I was afraid the power would go out again, but thankfully it stayed on. This time the wind blew just as savagely from the south. We had more rain and hail as well.

Finally, the worst of the storms subsided, but throughout the night we would continue to get pelted periodically by strong winds, sheets of rain, and small hail. Lightning and thunder kept us company through the night. Altogether, we received almost 2 inches of rain, which is quite a bit for us.

Spring is here!

Even though the current pandemic has been dominating the news lately, Mother Nature let us know that some things are still normal.

Below are some pictures I snapped during the storms.

One of our downspouts pouring out water and hail. Notice the little pellets of hail scattered in the grass.

This is the downspout at the other end of our patio. Pretty good pile of hail washed out of the gutter.

This is from the second part of the storm, when the wind had shifted out of the south. Notice how the trees across the street are leaning north. It's hard to tell in the picture, but sheets of rain were blowing.

The rain is so thick that the clubhouse is not visible at all.

A few moments later, I snapped this photo looking southeast. Although the house just to the left of the hummingbird feeder is visible, it is nearly impossible to discern any detail.

Trying to Keep Things Normal

It's hard to remain normal in these abnormal times, isn't it? But we do what we have to do. And since most folks agree I'm rather abnormal, I'm going with the flow quite well.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Tom Green County has grown to 24. I'd say right now we have generally the same number of cases as other West Texas towns of our size (Abilene, Midland, and Odessa). Lubbock has over 100 cases.

Once we saw cases starting to appear in West Texas, Donna and I began self isolating. In the past two or more weeks, we have only left the house to pick up groceries using the curbside service at H.E.B. and Market Street (United). When we see the delivery folks approach our car, I pop the hatch on our SUV and they load the groceries in and we take off for home. Once home, we sterilize everything, wash thoroughly, and isolate until our next order. Yeah, self isolating ain't too difficult for anti-social folks like me and the old woman.

Other than self isolating, we try to remain normal. I still walk several days a week. However, I avoid contact with anyone, even to the point that I cross the street if other walkers are approaching. We sit out on our patio as much as we can. Unfortunately, a cold front blew through early Friday and stayed until Sunday, so we spent most of this past weekend inside.

On a recent walk, I saw this lovely yucca in bloom. 

This tom turkey was showing off his plumage one morning.

I looked out on our patio Saturday morning. It was pretty chilly out there. The temp was hovering around the mid 40s, and there was a mist in the air. I noticed something on the top wire of the cage on one of Donna's patio tomato plants. Upon closer inspection, I saw that it was a hummingbird. He was all hunched up as if he was cold. The little fellow stayed on our patio much of the morning, going from that spot on the cage to one of the feeders.

Our new tenant.

His second home.

Donna found a couple of shows on the Animal Planet channel for us to watch. The first one she found is The Zoo. Most of the show is set at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, but there are a few scenes filmed at other zoos. Of course, both Donna and I love animals, so we enjoy watching the show just to see them, but I'm amazed at what is done behind the scenes to keep a zoo running. Basically, the same can be said for The Aquarium, which is set at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. If you get a chance, tune in to these great shows.

One of the positive side affects of this situation we are currently in is some folks may be rediscovering some simple pleasures. I've noticed people walking in our neighborhood who I have never seen walk before. Now, admittedly, some of these folks may be new to Rio Concho West. We do have a steady turnover out here. But some folks I recognize; they just haven't walked before. I guess they're getting a case of cabin fever and are looking for something to do. That's good. And I've read that gardening is being rediscovered. I wouldn't mind a good plot of land myself to do some serious gardening. I do miss it. It was therapy for me during my work years.

I hope all of you are staying safe out there. Best wishes to all.

It's an Interesting Time

We live in a time of uncertainty. The COVID-19 virus has clearly brought that home for most of us. But we've been living in such times for quite a while now. For example, 9/11 was a terrible time, as was the great recession of 2008. And don't forget all of the hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and wildfires. Many of us may not have been impacted by these natural disasters, but those who suffered through them undoubtedly put them on a par with 9/11, the recession, and COVID-19.

But we are still very, very fortunate. So many other countries of the world live in tumultuous times on a regular basis. Consider the ongoing civil war in Syria, for example. Those poor folks have lost everything -- loved ones, homes, possessions, and just about everything else. And there is no end in sight to the fighting there. And consider so many of the African countries who live with disease and hunger on a daily basis. Again, there is no end in sight for many of them. At least we believe that this current epidemic will run its course and come to an end. We will then probably develop a vaccine to protect us from future outbreaks. Life will pretty much return to normal for most of us.

What interests me about such difficult and trying times is how people react to them. Right now, we have so many people rising to the occasion to make things better not only for themselves but for others. There's a great deal of innovation going on out there right now as well, with people converting distilleries into temporary factories for making hand sanitizer for example. And what about those folks that are producing make-shift face masks. And people from all walks of life are really doing some innovative things with technology, from teachers to entertainers to news personalities, among others. We have folks helping others wherever you look. That is really great.

But trying times also bring out the worst in some people. The worst people, in my opinion, are those who try to profit from disasters. I'm talking about people who price gouge, or who sell worthless products to gullible folks. Then there are the scammers who devise criminal schemes for personal profit. All of these people should -- when caught -- automatically be given the stiffest sentence such crimes allow, with no hope of parole. And then there are the folks who do nothing but complain about regulations put in place and even openly defy these regulations. They aren't much better than the criminals among us.

Every cloud has a silver lining, and we are seeing so many of these. The worst is still to come, I have no doubt of that. Some of us will undoubtedly lose loved ones. When this thing is over, will we be changed? Will we live our lives differently? Has this event taught us what is truly important in life? Or will we simply return to life as it was a few months ago?

Hopefully, we will learn. I encourage everyone to live prudently in the upcoming months. Strive to put enough money in savings so that should such a disaster occur again, you can weather the storm. Financial experts encourage all people to have savings to enable them to live at least 6 months should they lose their jobs, fall ill, or encounter some other disaster.

I wish all of you good health and good fortune.