Where Am I? It's an App

Where Am I? A useful app for constant travelers

If you travel all the time you may have no idea what county you’re in, in case of a weather alert, or what the area code is for local phone numbers. Now you’ll know! All you need to do is tap the icon for an App called “Where Am I?” and all that useful information will be displayed. 

A Bun-derful Sandwich Idea

A Bun-derful Sandwich Idea

Janet Groene’s
Corned Beef and Cabbage Sandwiches
 
   This is a cold and crunchy sandwich to pull out of your pantry any time. Canned corned beef is an emergency provision that keeps for months on a back shelf, then pops to life as the key ingredient in a casserole, sloppy joe, corned beef, and cabbage stew,  chili and many more hot and cold dishes. Well chilled, it can be sliced to lay on a sandwich or cut in squares to toss with a salad.
    This filling makes tasty bunwiches or sliders to serve any time in the campground or at a tailgate party. 

1 ½ to 2 cups  creamy coleslaw from the deli
1/4 cup pickle relish
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons spicy mustard
12-ounce can corned beef
Mayonnaise to taste

    In a bowl mix coleslaw, relish, ketchup, and mustard. Scrape any visible fat off corned beef. Add corned beef to the bowl, shredding and breaking it up. Add mayonnaise if desired to moisten.  Spread on buttered bread or buns to make 8 to 10 sandwiches.

Food for Thought (Border Wall)

https://www.rvtravel.com/western-views-make-the-border-wall-an-asset-not-a-liability/

Time has slowed down

Butch and Dave went to a Flea Market that Butch had not been to yet. Bruce had warned Butch he would need his Spanish and he was right. However, Butch managed quite well and purchased a compressor and a RIGHT-handed Skill Saw for a whopping $70.

An insect taking a leaf ride on my water bucket

Butch had Liz trim his hair this morning and she gave him a new "do".

Doctor visit plus

My final visit to the sinus doctor was yesterday and all is well. They wanted me to come back in 14 days but I said no because we will be gone. So then they made one for October. It is still a question mark in my mind whether I will keep it. We will wait and see.

Keri asked me to get her a certain dressing that is only available in H-E-B in Texas. There are H-E-B stores all over the Rio Grande Valley as well as the State of Texas so I started searching for a store that carried it and found out it was only available at one and that was close to where I was at the doctor's so we stopped by the store at 10th and Trenton in McAllen. And sure enough, they had it! I have never in my life been at a grocery store as large as that one! It was not a superstore. It was just a very large and very well stocked grocery store. It is like a tourist attraction and would be worth going to look around. The variety is mindboggling!

I asked Keri how she plans to use the dressing and she tells me it is a wonderful marinade for steak. I can hardly wait!


I looked out the window the other day and spotted a bird that was unfamiliar to me. After some investigation, I found out it was a Killdeer. I had heard them but had not spotted it. When we lived at Lake Panorama I became very familiar with the Killdeers sound as they nested near the mailbox and tried to scare me off every time I fetched the mail. This is a south Texas Killdeer.

Tuesday Trivia

We still had 4 teams for trivia with the same level of enthusiasm. I did not at all expect that many people to show up on this 95 + degree day. I had worked on the questions to make them a bit more palatable after the tough ones of last week. Team Newbies won first place and Team BooBees kept their spot at 2nd place. Team Newbies were HOT and I heard them discussing afterward that all of the members had contributed. They were pleased about that.
A volunteer has stepped forward to learn how to put the questions together so they can continue through the summer. I will be working with Dayle so they can continue. Maybe we can trade off next season and I can be a player once in a while! I would like that a lot.

Mexico Experience

It is a boondoggle and very staged performance. What a crock and for not one good reason. But I digress.
We headed down about 9:00 AM and smoothly crossed the border after paying our $1 per person in the turnstile. We walked in but then we always do. We parted company with Dave and Liz because they were headed for teeth cleaning at the dentist followed by a pedicure. Butch and I slowly made our way down to visit with our favorite pharmacist, Hector. I had emailed him with the main things we wanted. If I had only known I could and will in the future email him my entire list and he will have it ready for me. After getting the meds we slowly made our way back up the busy street to El Disco where we planned to meet back up with Dave and Liz and we did, then we backed up and ate lunch at the Red Snapper. It was quite tasty and will do that again...maybe. After that, we went to Jessica's for a drink and some dancing.

 

When we came over the bridge at 9:00 AM we had noticed there were cars lined up completely through town as far as the eye could see. We were told some people have had to wait sometimes as long as 12 hours to get back to the US. This is completely ridiculous!
Now when we walked over the bridge, foot traffic was light and almost non-existent compared to car traffic but when we returned they were stopping ALL return traffic because of a "Drill". They told us there would be loud noises and smoke but all of it was completely harmless to us and it was part of training. I did not know how long it held us up but it was obvious it was all a staged production. And holding up people in 95-degree heat for this was beyond stupid.
Much more of this will slow tourist traffic to a trickle. In fact, it already has. There were not many Winter Texans among the people in Nuevo Progresso on this beautiful Spring day.
Butch and I have always walked a block west to go down to Hectors because it gets us away from heavy foot traffic on the main street. We have always been greeted warmly by the locals. That is done. When we would say hello to people we met it was not returned. They looked grim and would not look at us. We were snubbed and the way 'we' (our unruly ruler) has been treating our neighbors to the south I cannot blame them. Respect is earned, not given and we as a nation and a people have lost respect. It may never be regained.
I hope things are much improved when we return and we can once again have a happy experience with our neighbors to the south.

Off to Mexico!

Feeling fine! And we are off to Mexico this morning with Dave and Liz. Not many people left in the park come mid-April. We will be stocking up on meds and vanilla and Liz plans to get her teeth cleaned and her nails manicured. We will follow that with Margaritas and Nachos at Jessica's.

It feels very different to feel excited and pleased to take part in an out-of-park activity.

And then this evening is another Trivia night. I am ready for that too. I talked to long-time friend Mickey yesterday and she told me that two different people had asked her if I was going to do trivia at the Elks in Jefferson this summer. I plan to if there are enough people wanting to participate.

The weather and my outlook are both sunny and warm!

Day before Yesterday's Photo's

A young Golden-fronted Woodpecker

Another one

Party at Dave and Liz's- Mostly pool players

Liz gives Sally a trim

 Whistling Duck

Day 10 of Recovery and other stuff

And all is well. I will not be seeing Dr. Honrubia until Wednesday but I am having no problems and expect a good report.

Yesterday I looked at the calendar and discovered we are only two weeks away from leaving south Texas. Yikes!

Last night we ate out with Dave and Liz at the Longhorn Steakhouse. Not quite as good an experience as the last time but still good. We followed it up with fried ice cream at Martha's. One order is enough to serve 4 people for sure. I should have taken pictures.

I am feeling so good I am almost giddy.

Our itinerary for the return to Iowa is:
Leaving April 21st
Staying overnight at Hofbrau RV Park at Round Mountain Texas
April 22
Staying overnight at Thackerville OK at the Casino
April 23rd
Staying overnight at Big Cabin Diesel in their RV park and having the Moho serviced
April 24th
Staying in Peculiar at the RV park we always stay at and most likely heading back to Iowa on the 25th. The 25th is also Jason's birthday!
There are some items in Jefferson that Butch needs to do the wiring job up right for the Teeter family so we will come back down by car and do those later.

Day 9 0f Recovery

All is good. It is much like any surgery one might have- you know you're okay but the area where the work was done still seems a bit tender. I do not notice the tenderness unless I bring my attention to it.😁

Is this the year to get handy?

Butch could have written this article however writing isn't his thing. But I thought of him and our son Jason many times as I was reading it. I found it in the RVTravel newsletter which we read on a regular basis. Jason took apart an electric toothbrush and resurrected it when he was about 9.

https://www.rvtravel.com/891-04-60/

Is this the year to get handy?
April 5, 20191

By Greg Illes
When I was nine years old, I took apart my uncle’s vacuum cleaner. He didn’t like that much – so I put it back together. He was astonished that it still worked … better.

Later, I became an engineer, hobbyist, tinkerer, and fix-it man. “Opa can fix anything,” say my grandkids. So please, take it with a grain of salt when I say that there is never any better time for RVers to get handy – or maybe just handy-er. Yes, I’m biased, but let me make my case…


COST
It’s almost too obvious: Doing it yourself (DIY) incurs no hourly wage. A few band-aids and some Neosporin are typically my only expenses besides parts and the occasional new tool. (Well, okay, maybe a little more than occasional.) Hourly shop rates across the country range from $100–$150, so even if we DIY-types take twice as long to get a job done, we’re still making pretty good money.

CONVENIENCE
Being able to fix your own rig, on the spot, is extraordinarily relaxing – especially by comparison to making a service appointment and arranging for where to stay while the service is taking place. In addition, you’ll typically spend far less time living with the problem (whatever it is) when you deal with it as soon as it’s noticed.

QUALITY
We have to face facts: Even with those high shop rates, there is still a lot of poor services to be had. A stranger in a strange land is throwing darts when picking an RV shop. Some are good, some aren’t. Is DIY work always great? Of course not. But the cost of a redo is low, and you can bet it’ll be right the next time.

AVAILABILITY
With the astronomical rise in RVs in recent years, not only the campgrounds are booked full. Service shops sometimes are swamped, months in advance. It’s no secret that many shops are deluged simply with the work needed to make brand-new rigs work right. In short, you simply may not be able to find any help at any price.

EXTRAS
Reduced angst. Satisfaction. Being a hero to your traveling partner(s). Learning new skills, maybe even helping others. Perhaps most importantly: When you are working on your rig, you are likely to see (and take care of) odd little quirks or glitches that an “employee” might skip over. A better, more reliable rig will result.

BUT … HOW?
Some folks are born with it, some have to learn it. There’s nobody out there that can’t figure out how to hold a screwdriver. A human teacher/mentor is invaluable, but forums, websites like this one, and YouTube can provide an immense amount of information.


If you’re new at “handy-ing”, take baby steps and don’t get yourself in trouble. Err on the side of caution, but don’t be afraid to make small mistakes. Buy tools you need, and understand how to use them; avoid the poor-quality “kits” and buy decent tools. When you’re first learning, size your jobs appropriately – replacing a fridge cooling unit is probably too grand a goal, but swapping out light fixtures for LED units might be well within your grasp.

“IT’S JUST NOT FOR ME”
There are those among us who just don’t want to embrace this part of life. I understand and sympathize. For me, it’s plants and dirt and watering that send me running. NOT for me. So if getting handy just ain’t gonna be your thing, that’s still cool. You have probably learned by now (or will soon) where the reliable service shops are, or who are the folks in the campground who’ll trade chores with you.

KEEP IT RIGHT
Regardless of who fixes it or when, be sure to exercise the diligence to always keep your rig in good shape and proper operating condition. It’ll be safer that way, and you and your brood will be happy campers.

Greg Illes is a retired systems engineer who loves thinking up RV upgrades and modifications. When he’s not working on his motorhome, he’s traveling in it. You can follow his excellent blog at www.divver-city.com/blog

##RVT891

Day 8 of Recovery

It sure has made coming up with a title for my posts easier. I will stop come Monday and go back to being more creative.
I am feeling fine. Normal. That is good. Yesterday afternoon we were invited to a gathering at Liz and Dave's old lot where their trailer used to be for a goodbye celebration. There was very little shade so the party moved to another lot and unfortunately the pest control people were working next door so I cut out and came back home. I was told to avoid cleaning supply smells so I imagined pest control smells might be even worse and I am not taking any chances with my new found relief.

The weather this morning is foggy. It is early(7:25) though so hopefully it will burn off.

Butch has a bad case of Hitch Itch. He is ready to move on up the road and has visions of lawn mowing in his head. Patience has never been one of his long suits.

Liz and Dave watching Kristi approach

Not ready yet

L to R, Karen, Bruce, Butch, Chuck, Connie, Kristi, Dave and Liz

Day 7 of Recovery

In case you are wondering, it takes 10 days to recover according to the sinus institute people. There were 4 surgeries done on the same day as mine and I was the first of the day.

The only hold up on my procedure was getting clearance from the heart doctor and at times I wondered if I should be having it because of heart issues I was having. Little twinges and sometimes minor chest pain lasting long enough to make me nervous. But post-op conditions now assure me that all those heart issues were caused by stress, pain and, possible infection. If those heart issues return in the future, my best option should be taking inventory on what could be causing it besides my heart. Throughout my life, the first choice when I  told them I was having "twinges" was loads of testing of all sorts on my heart. So far those tests have always come out with positive results.

I woke this morning feeling very normal. I think I am 95 percent healed. I am following directions to the letter. Sunday is day 10 and next Wednesday is my last appointment with Dr. Honrubia.

On to other stuff: I used to use Evernote for note-taking and lists but wandered off of it because it was more complicated than I really wanted for list making. And then I found ToDo and it was an app that allowed making simple lists and I counted on it. For some reason, after the last Google business of doing away with some of their features, my ToDo and my lists went away! I was irked! I had a checklist on it for things to do before leaving Iowa and another for when we leave Texas and yet another for things to buy in Mexico before we leave. That last one was the one I was looking for when I discovered the whole darn app was gone. So out of curiosity I checked into Evernote and found some jokes I had saved. And that is why you are seeing this:

Random Thoughts of an Ordinary Mature Person


1.    Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.


2.    Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.


3.    I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.


4.    There is a great need for a sarcasm font.


5.    How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?


6.    Was learning cursive really necessary?


7.    MapQuest really needs to start their directions on # 5. I'm pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.


8.    Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.


9.    I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind-of tired.


10.   Bad decisions make good stories.


11.   You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren't going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.


12.   Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blu-ray? I don't want to have to restart my collection...again.


13.   I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page technical report that I swear I did not make any changes to.


14.   I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.


15.   I think the freezer deserves a light as well.


16.   I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Light than Kay.


17.   I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.


18.   I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.


19.   How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear or understand a word they said?


20.   I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers and sisters!


21. Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.


22.   Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I'd bet everyone can find and push the snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time.


23.   The first testicular guard, the "Cup," was used in Hockey in 1874 and the first "helmet" was used in 1974.” That means it only took 100 years for men to realize that their brain is also important.

Day 6 of Recovery

These are lyrics from the song Big Yellow Taxi by Counting Crows and they seem appropriate. 
" Don't it always seem to go 
That you don't know what you've got til it's gone" 
These lyrics are what I thought of this morning as I contemplated where I am now and where I have been for most of this winter season. My vision, hearing, and sense of smell have all intensified in the last 6 days and I did not know they were gone! I have a renewed sense of overall well-being that I hope to hang on to forever! And the one biggy thing is being pain-free.

Butch and I walked up to the hall for trivia last night and it felt really good to be doing that in all ways. It was warm, the air was clean and all was right in my world.

Still being trivial on Tuesday night at 6:30 PM in the Sunrise Room. Last night was a tough one and I will try to lighten up the questions for next week. It can be a challenge to balance out the questions for easy, medium and difficult. I have played and hosted trivia competitions in several locations and there always seems to be one team that consistently carries the victory banner and in Trophy Gardens that team is Team SmartyPants and they came in first once again. Team BooBees was a close second. I am proud of all the teams in the trivia family and appreciate their efforts wherever they end up in the lineup.

So today is Wednesday and I am looking forward to it despite the fact that it is cloudy. The high for today will be in the 80s and that is also the forecast for the next 10 days.

Yesterday Butch went to play golf with the Magnolia golfers only to discover they had canceled but did not inform him. After that sour note, he came back home and we went to Costco for gas and groceries and a bank withdrawal. We had lunch at Raising Canes. It has become one of our favorite lunch places. We love their chicken fingers and their lemonade tastes like Mom's did when we were kids. It is made with real lemons, not from concentrate and the difference is remarkable. Butch and I share a 4 piece combo and it is plenty for both of us.

Enough for now and on with our day. We hope yours is a good one too.

Day 5 of Recovery

I am feeling pretty doggone perky all things considered. I have spent too long on the computer and was ready to get away from it when I remembered that I had not updated the blog. So what have I done you might ask?
I have done all the chores connected with my recovery. Sinus rinse 3 x a day. Two to go. Antibiotics taken once per day. Nasal misting every hour while awake. Keeps me busy.

I changed our address in preparation for leaving the RGV.

I prepared the trivia questions for this week (tonight) and next week.

Emailed a couple of people I had not heard from in a while.

Yesterday I made reservations for our stay places on the way home.

Did the jigzone puzzle Butch and I compete with every day www.jigzone.com  He won today.
Click on the link and check it out.

 I also have a pork loin in the crockpot for supper.
Till next time!

Day 4 of recovery

Butch and I went out for breakfast at El Dorado in Weslaco for our usual breakfast tacos. Followed by a trip to our favorite H.E.B. also in Weslaco on Westgate. The rain is lighter than yesterday but still wet and drizzly and cold! And before you go all Wah! Wah! on me visualize a day in July where the temperature does not get above 49 degrees and it is all day a drizzling rain. Yup, that is what it is like.
I was feeling all cocky about how well I was feeling until I spent too much time in the cold and my old familiar headache spot showed up and immediately slowed me down. No, it is not as severe as before but just the fact that it is there at all is enough to bum me out. We are back home now and I have taken some helpful steps toward getting rid of it, Tylenol, warmer temps in the house and some sinus rinses ordered by the sinus people. So day 4 is not the fully healed day I was dreaming of but hopefully, we are one day closer to that day.

To back up a minute, Netflix is working for us again now that a good chunk of people has left the valley. So yesterday we watched "The Highway Men" and it is a good one. It is "The untold story of Bonnie and Clyde". Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson are the main stars. I know we would not mind watching it again.
Tune in tomorrow...

Day 3 of recovery

I am better. It is a gradual process even more so now that I have some age on me.  I asked Butch if he was ready to be done with being Dobby, the house elf and he said no because it means we are a team and he likes that idea and quite frankly so do I.😍

It is raining here today and it is much heavier than we usually see. We even have lightning! We had planned to go out for our traditional Sunday breakfast but with the heavy rain, we decided to postpone those plans.

I have been sleeping in the recliner. The sinus people want me to elevate my head at least 45 degrees. But last night I tried sleeping in the bed for a little while but I discovered after a couple hours that I was better off in the recliner. I was getting clogged up and dried out so the recliner it will be until I am declared well. I slept better last night than I have for what seems like a very long time.

The park model that Dave and Liz lived in when we first came to TrophyGardens was a short way down the block from us. But then they sold it and moved to what they call the North 40 into a Mobile home. And yesterday their former park model left the park so that meant lots of Looky-Lou's on our street. It is a fascinating process to watch.

And here is one of the reasons we do not have a pet.

Post Nasal News

It went off without a hitch on my end because I slept through it. I am feeling a bit more like myself this morning. My restrictions are that I can not bend over or lift anything heavy. No problem as long as Butch is willing to be a house elf. Harry Potter fans will get the reference.

I was in the door of the South Texas Sinus Institute at 7:30 AM and back out again at 10:30 or so. Butch watched the procedure on a monitor in the surgical waiting room. Dr. Honrubia asked him if he had been watching and he said yes. He said, "So you saw the removal of those 3 pockets of infection." Butch said he had. That was what had been making my life miserable almost all winter.

I am supposed to breathe through my mouth for the next 9 days. That is and will be the hardest part because it dries out my mouth and feels like I have a cold. You know-the stuffy nose feeling? For the most part, it is not too bad a thing to go through and I do believe if a person did not have the infection going into it, it would be simpler still. I did not come home with packing in my nostrils. They only do that if there are bleeding issues and apparently, I did not have any although they had warned me it was possible.
It is really strange that I would be the one to have this procedure done because it has been Butch with long term sinus issues. He plans to look into it next fall. I am looking forward to enjoying life on a whole new level.😊

Celebration of Life-Don Louks

Michelle Louks, a granddaughter of Don Louks, hosted the celebration in the pool hall at Magnolia Park. The pool hall was the most perfect place for that celebration as playing pool was what Don was most known for in the Rio Grande Valley.

I am going to make this a little more personal than I usually do because Don made such a big difference in Butch's life. Butch learned so much from him. Don was always the one everyone wanted to beat and now his student is the one to beat.

Many of Don's friends were in attendance. He would have enjoyed the gathering.

Michelle Louks

Butch Brooker