We drug ourselves out of bed this morning around 8am and slowly took our time drinking our cups of coffee. We had a brunch date at Judy & Herb's at 11am so we weren't in a big hurry. Herb had to go into work for a short time and then returned to their house to join us. Judy prepared a delicious breakfast casserole and blueberries and cream for dessert.
After brunch Herb went back to work and I left to get the tire repaired on the Saturn. It's been loosing air and was down again this morning. Since my grandson Ryan works at Discount Tire, I thought I'd give them my business. That was when I found out that they repaired flats free of charge whether you bought the tire there or not. Now that is service you don't see much in the business world anymore. Thanks guys.
Gerry & Judy went shopping and I could feel the bank balance dropping by the minute. Gerry loves to shop and I hate to shop so it was nice she had someone to ooh and aaw over all the nice clothes. Judy lives to shop, so they had a successful trip. $$$ flew out of the account, but Gerry has some nice new clothes to wear now. Since this morning she had on a robe from the Ivory Coast that was over 30 years old, I figured she deserved the new stuff.
I came back to the motorhome and looked up more dead relatives. Ancestry.com is a very helpful source to find information on ancestors and the findagrave.com website is great, also. I was deep into some some 3rd cousins out in Utah when Herb called and said he was on the way over to visit. I was ready for a break by then and shut down the computer.
A new neighbor moved in next to us and they had a nice shiny Tiffin Phaeton motorhome. I visited with them until Herb arrived and we all sat outside and chatted. They left Sierra Vista, AZ a few days ago and arrived here in time for a Kenny Chesney concert on Saturday night. They will leave on Monday to return out west without a set schedule, but it looks like they will reverse the route we took from Tucson.
By this time the girls returned and chatted with us for a while and Judy left to prepare a nice dinner. I think they will be happy to see us leave so she doesn't have to cook so much. Once again it was a tasty meal and we all enjoyed the food and company.
Back to the motorhome and work on this short blog and then to bed.
Goodnight.
Sabillasville, Maryland farm
Clark Travels
Our Geocaches ---
http://www.travbuddy.com/maps/6730401
I have been getting more and more spam from bloggers since I let anyone respond to the blog. One way to stop the spam is to cut off anonymous comments. It is very easy and painless to get a Gmail email account and use it to post on blogs. You don't have to actually use the account, but it gives you a portal into my blog.
NOTE: Double click photos to enlarge them and links will also be shown in red.
http://www.travbuddy.com/maps/6730401
I have been getting more and more spam from bloggers since I let anyone respond to the blog. One way to stop the spam is to cut off anonymous comments. It is very easy and painless to get a Gmail email account and use it to post on blogs. You don't have to actually use the account, but it gives you a portal into my blog.
NOTE: Double click photos to enlarge them and links will also be shown in red.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Thursday, May 9, 2013
BooBoo & Danny's
When we were chatting with Judy & Herb yesterday I mentioned that I liked family restaurants over national chains. That is when Judy suggested we go to BooBoos here in Arlington, TX. It is a family owned restaurant that has been in business for 33 years. They have limited hours and mainly are open for lunch only. That was fine with us and we went there today.
They have a limited but nice menu with two soups available. We had a soup and a sandwich and one half. The sandwiches were fine and I enjoyed the Cheese Broccoli soup very much. Judy & Herb met us there and then went back to their house, while we returned to the motorhome. It rained all the time we were going there and when we returned to the MH. Judy & Herb came by later and visited for a while and then went home.
We called Gerry's nephew Jerry K and made arrangements to meet him, wife Rose and daughters Kayleen and Kaitlyn for dinner. We had planned on eating pizza outside on the picnic table, but the non stop rain put an end to that idea. We met them at Danny's Chicago pizza restaurant down the road from us. They arrived a few minutes before us and got a nice table for the six of us.
I had called in an order for a Chicago deep dish pizza since it took 45 minutes to cook it. They ordered a large pepperoni pizza that could have fed all of us, however I don't like pepperoni pizza. We couldn't even finish 1/2 of the deep dish pizza and brought the leftovers back to the motorhome.
Each slice was about 8 inches long and filled us up very fast. It looks like lunch for the next few days is taken care of.
Jerry and family stopped by the MH and we had a nice visit. Jerry likes sports and keeps up with his teams and we chatted non stop about sports. It was nice to get a sports fix. The girls chatted like magpies and caught up on what has been going on in their lives since we last saw them 1 1/2 years ago. We enjoyed the visit and since they had a long drive, they left around 9pm. Great seeing you guys.
We have a slow leak in our rear tire on the car and I had to put some air in it this evening after they left. It cost $1.00 for air at a service (oops, no service there) station and the pump was lousy. I never filled the tire completely and hope I can drive to a repair shop in the morning to get it repaired. If not, I will have to put the spare on and drive to the shop. I'm not optimistic about the tire holding up all night. We shall see.
That was our day, how was yours?
They have a limited but nice menu with two soups available. We had a soup and a sandwich and one half. The sandwiches were fine and I enjoyed the Cheese Broccoli soup very much. Judy & Herb met us there and then went back to their house, while we returned to the motorhome. It rained all the time we were going there and when we returned to the MH. Judy & Herb came by later and visited for a while and then went home.
We called Gerry's nephew Jerry K and made arrangements to meet him, wife Rose and daughters Kayleen and Kaitlyn for dinner. We had planned on eating pizza outside on the picnic table, but the non stop rain put an end to that idea. We met them at Danny's Chicago pizza restaurant down the road from us. They arrived a few minutes before us and got a nice table for the six of us.
I had called in an order for a Chicago deep dish pizza since it took 45 minutes to cook it. They ordered a large pepperoni pizza that could have fed all of us, however I don't like pepperoni pizza. We couldn't even finish 1/2 of the deep dish pizza and brought the leftovers back to the motorhome.
Each slice was about 8 inches long and filled us up very fast. It looks like lunch for the next few days is taken care of.
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| Chicago Deep Dish pizza slice - 8 inches of cheese |
Jerry and family stopped by the MH and we had a nice visit. Jerry likes sports and keeps up with his teams and we chatted non stop about sports. It was nice to get a sports fix. The girls chatted like magpies and caught up on what has been going on in their lives since we last saw them 1 1/2 years ago. We enjoyed the visit and since they had a long drive, they left around 9pm. Great seeing you guys.
We have a slow leak in our rear tire on the car and I had to put some air in it this evening after they left. It cost $1.00 for air at a service (oops, no service there) station and the pump was lousy. I never filled the tire completely and hope I can drive to a repair shop in the morning to get it repaired. If not, I will have to put the spare on and drive to the shop. I'm not optimistic about the tire holding up all night. We shall see.
That was our day, how was yours?
Bath TIme & Trees
We landed in Arlington, TX and will be staying at the Treetops Carefree RV Village until Sunday morning. We have stayed here many times before and like the park since it is so close to our friends Judy & Herb's house. They live about 5 minutes from here and it's convenient to them and there are a lot of restaurants in the area.
The last bath the motor home had was in late October and after driving through dust storms and light rain it was filthy dirty. The car was even dirtier and looked terrible. The park allows washing of vehicles and we took advantage of that to wash both. They look as good as new now that they are sparkling clean. Just as I was finishing up with the motorhome, a fellow camper came over and told me a man comes in the park and washes MHs for $100. So, I saved that amount by doing it with Gerry's help.
No, that little cowboy in the statue is not doing what you think he's doing. He's actually holding two pistols in his holsters with water coming out of them. It's a cute statue located at the beginning of the next site.
The campground has a number of large oak trees and nice shaded campsites. They actually have level pads and that is rare out here in the southwest. The pool isn't that large, but is most welcome on those warm summer days.
We went to Judy & Herb's for dinner and a visit this afternoon. Judy prepared some enchiladas and rice for dinner and they were delicious. We chatted all evening without a break and had a very enjoyable time visiting with them.
They stayed with us last October and joined us in attending the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. We go back to 1983 with them as friends when we all lived in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Judy & Gerry worked at USAID as contract secretaries and I was an Information Management Officer in the US Foreign Service with AID. Herb worked for an oil company and we all left the country in 1986 and have remained friends all these years.
That was our day, how was yours?
The last bath the motor home had was in late October and after driving through dust storms and light rain it was filthy dirty. The car was even dirtier and looked terrible. The park allows washing of vehicles and we took advantage of that to wash both. They look as good as new now that they are sparkling clean. Just as I was finishing up with the motorhome, a fellow camper came over and told me a man comes in the park and washes MHs for $100. So, I saved that amount by doing it with Gerry's help.
No, that little cowboy in the statue is not doing what you think he's doing. He's actually holding two pistols in his holsters with water coming out of them. It's a cute statue located at the beginning of the next site.
The campground has a number of large oak trees and nice shaded campsites. They actually have level pads and that is rare out here in the southwest. The pool isn't that large, but is most welcome on those warm summer days.
We went to Judy & Herb's for dinner and a visit this afternoon. Judy prepared some enchiladas and rice for dinner and they were delicious. We chatted all evening without a break and had a very enjoyable time visiting with them.
They stayed with us last October and joined us in attending the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. We go back to 1983 with them as friends when we all lived in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Judy & Gerry worked at USAID as contract secretaries and I was an Information Management Officer in the US Foreign Service with AID. Herb worked for an oil company and we all left the country in 1986 and have remained friends all these years.
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| Herb & Judy, Abidjan Ivory Coast, Thanksgiving 1983 |
That was our day, how was yours?
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
On the road again.
Today was departure day from the Bottomless Lakes State Park. We took a detour up to Lubbock to see what was there and then continued on down to Abilene.
Not much to see other than large irrigation wheels, oil wells and wind turbines. One wind turbine field near Sweetwater, TX had hundreds of turbines spinning as we drove by. I can't imagine how much electricity they were generating.
We drove 325 miles and for about half of those miles a light rain fell. They need a much heavier rain for a week or so to break the drought out here. The drought is entering it's 3rd year and is taking it's toll out in southern New Mexico and west Texas.
We did drive through Caprock and Gerry missed it since she turned her head away at the critical time when we passed the one house and a small business. I wonder how places like that actually are named as towns and placed on maps.
That was it for us, what did you do?
Not much to see other than large irrigation wheels, oil wells and wind turbines. One wind turbine field near Sweetwater, TX had hundreds of turbines spinning as we drove by. I can't imagine how much electricity they were generating.
We drove 325 miles and for about half of those miles a light rain fell. They need a much heavier rain for a week or so to break the drought out here. The drought is entering it's 3rd year and is taking it's toll out in southern New Mexico and west Texas.
We did drive through Caprock and Gerry missed it since she turned her head away at the critical time when we passed the one house and a small business. I wonder how places like that actually are named as towns and placed on maps.
That was it for us, what did you do?
Monday, May 6, 2013
Bottomless Lakes State Park, NM
Bottomless Lakes State Park is in New Mexico, United States, located along the Pecos River, about 15 miles southeast of Roswell. Established in 1933, it was the first state park in New Mexico. It takes its name from nine small, deep lakes located along the eastern escarpment of the Pecos River valley. The escarpment is an ancient limestone reef, similar to the limestone mountains around Carlsbad Caverns, 80 miles to the south. Caves formed within the limestone, and as the Pecos River eroded the escarpment, the caves eventually collapsed, leaving behind several deep, almost circular lakes known as cenotes.
Lakes
Most of the nine lakes are almost completely surrounded by cliffs, with the notable exceptions being Lea Lake and Lazy Lagoon. Lea Lake has a large, sandy shoreline on the western side and tall cliffs on the eastern side. The cliffs around Lazy Lagoon have been completely eroded away by the Pecos River, and the lake sits in a former channel of the river.Lazy Lagoon is the largest of the lakes, with a surface area of approximately 26 acres. Although it is a single lake, it is made up of three separate sink holes. The surface of the Lazy Lagoon is nearly level with the surrounding salt flats, which makes it look very shallow. Despite the name, the deepest of its three sink holes is 90 feet.
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| Lazy Lake Lagoon sink hole |
Lea Lake is the only lake in which swimming is allowed, and it has a beach and concession area which is popular in the summer.
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| Lea Lake |
Devil's Inkwell is the smallest of the lakes, with a surface area of 0.36 acres. It gets its name from the dark color of the water which is caused by the steep sides of the cenote and algae growth within the lake.
Mirror Lake is two lakes right next to each other. One is saline and the other is pure water.
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| Mirror Lake |
In pure geologic terms, Figure Eight Lake is two lakes separated by a thin strip of land. When the water is very high the strip of land is covered, and the two nearly circular lakes join and take the shape of a figure eight. Irrigation in the Pecos Valley has lowered the water table, so the two lakes of Figure Eight Lake rarely join to form a single lake anymore.
Pasture Lake is the shallowest of the lakes, at 18 feet deep with a surface area of 0.76 acres.
| Lake | Depth | Surface area | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lea Lake | 90 feet | — | Only lake allowing swimming |
| Lazy Lagoon | 90 feet | 26 acres | Largest by area |
| Devil's Inkwell | 32 feet | 0.36 acres | Smallest, dark algae color |
| Figure Eight Lake | 37 feet | 2.2 acres | |
| Pasture Lake | 18 feet | 0.76 acres | Shallowest |
| Lost Lake | — | — | |
| Cottonwood Lake | 30 feet | 0.52 acres | |
| Mirror Lake | 50 feet | 0.763.44 acres | |
| Dimmitt Lake | — | — | Private lake |
The lakes are not fed by streams, and the evaporation rate of the lakes in the hot desert climate exceeds the rate at which rainwater refills them. The lakes are fed by underground water percolating through the rocks and into the lakes. The high evaporation rate produces brackish water in the lakes.
Our campsite was at the Lea Lake campground where we had a view of the lake, but were about 150ft from it. They have tent sites on the lake edge where we were and a large picnic area with shelters across from that area.
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| Our MH is the dark one on the right. (Lea Lake CG) |
We managed to get in a few hours of geocaching and picked up 27 caches. There were 6 of them in the state park and a series of them along a country road. The series caches were interesting for the most part, but fairly easy. One cache was out in the open in the middle of a field. Could you have found this one?
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| Is this a turtle? |
The Pecos River runs fairly close to the park and many people have heard about this river. There is a big difference between a river in the southwest and the midwest or east coast. In the latter two areas, you can't walk across a river, while out here you can walk or in many places you can drive. The Pecos River is a good example of the latter.
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| Pecos River |
That was our day, how was yours?
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