What on earth are we doing spending so much time in Sealy, Texas?!?!? Well, we have family in Sealy. Terry’s sister, Debbie and Ralph live there and offered us a parking space between their house and corral with power, water, sewer, outside lights, a loaner car, access to DISH and someone to talk to besides each other!!!! We are set. We may never leave!
The "family" relaxing watching TV.
Every morning we woke up to the sound of four galloping horses. It was very strange the first time we heard them. After the first morning, it brought a smile to our faces to hear them coming and going.
Our campsite with one of the four horses coming to be fed.
RV MAINTENANCE
e have traveled about 18,000 miles since we left June 1st. When we are some place for an extended period of time with access to tools and resources we take the opportunity to do needed repairs. Like owning a home, a RV is no different. This time we have done the following:
-Changed oil, oil filter, air filter, lubed
-Replaced the broken overflow valve
-Installed new smoke/CO detectors that have a 10-year battery life
-Got the wheels aligned and tires rotated
-Defrosted the refrigerator (remember doing that?)
-Washed all the bedding (blankets, bedspread, etc.)
-Received a care package from California (thank you Barb!)
-Received a HUGE mail shipment with Christmas cards (thank you John!)
Top row: Replacing the broken water tank valve (blue) with a new one (red).
Bottom left: Waiting at the Peterbilt service center to see if they'd re-align our tires
Right middle: Working on our AC. It was not cooling down the RV.Right bottom: Frost build up in the freezer before we defrosted it the old fashion way.
Getting work done on the RV is difficult because we require the RV back at the end of the day to sleep in it. Many RV service centers are used to keeping an RV for weeks. Nothing gets returned the same day. We have had to make special arrangements in order to insure that they return our RV at the end of the day. Because of this, Terry prefers to do the work himself if he can.
It was very difficult to find a place to get a wheel alignment. The few RV service centers around here have a horrible reputation so we avoided them. The tire centers can’t handle an RV due to our height and weight. That left us only one place, Rush Truck Center, a Peterbilt 18-wheeler service center. They did a fantastic job at a reasonable price! We lucked out.
MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Today was my (Peggy's) lucky day! Ralph needs to take their 2009 Honda Goldwing motorcycle out to “run it” and I get to go for part of it! It’s a large cruising motorcycle with a radio, cup holders, comfortable seats, heaters, cargo compartments, phone in the helmet along with communication between the driver and the passenger in their helmets! Debbie and Ralph enjoy going out for a day along country roads but always get back in time to feed all their animals. This particular day, Ralph drove out to Cat Springs where we’ll be going on Friday night for All-You-Can-Eat catfish. Nice ride!
Top: The head bandana actually has a purpose - to absorb perspiration when wearing a hot helmet. I thought it was to look cool. Bottom: Getting ready to roll!
VISITING JIM AND BEVERLY, Hockley, Texas
We spent an afternoon visiting with Terry’s old Tymshare boss, Jim and his wife Beverly in Hockley, Texas. They have very interesting and diverse second careers as bail bonds people and ranchers! They own a bail bonds company in Bellville, TX and told us about their business. Wow, it’s a life we knew nothing about and hope it stays that way!
We toured their beautiful home, had an awesome lunch at Gringo’s Mexican Restaurant then went to their ranch where I got to drive a BIG tractor! It’s so big it’s got air conditioning, a radio, lots of gears and knobs and attachments! Jim rode standing up beside me to tell me what to do. I'm ready to move some hay now!
Top: Friends in Hockley.
Left bottom: Getting tractor lessons!
Right bottom: If you need a bail bond in Austin County, this is the place to go!
NANCY COMING TO VISIT
Our long-time friend Nancy drove out twice to see us, once to visit and once to have catfish! It’s always nice to see her. We pick up where we left off, no matter how long it’s been. She and Terry rode our electric bikes around the neighborhood then we all went out for Hinze’s BBQ in Sealy. Yum!
Having fun with a dear friend.
FRIDAY NIGHT ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT-CATFISH in Cat Spring, TX
At the intersection of Farm to Market Road (FM) 949 and FM 1094 in Cat Spring, Texas is a little hole in the wall called Cross Road Tavern, also known as Cat Springs Country Club. Every Friday night people come from near and far for their $10 all-you-can-eat fried catfish dinners. It’s served buffet style, on paper plates where you sit down at long tables with friends and strangers. If you want a beer, you get it at the bar, on your way in. Well worth a visit! Oh, and they serve Shiner beer, a Texas brand.
Friday Night All-You-Can-Eat Catfish Dinner at Cross Road Tavern in Cat Springs, Texas.
FAMILY BBQ in New Braunfels, Texas
Terry and his 4 siblings (Terry, Debbie, Keith, Kevin and Joe) gathered at Joe, Lynda and Colorado’s for a BBQ along with their spouses and other family members. We drove from Sealy to New Braunfels with Debbie and Ralph. Kevin was in from Colorado for a short time before he starts his new job. Keith, Paula, Jill, Tabatha and Mason came from San Antonio. We all had a great time visiting and catching up. It's been a long time since we’ve all been together...maybe as long ago as Mo Ranch in Hunt, Texas! We hope even more family members will be able to make it next time we all get together.
Siblings and family
BBQ at Joe and Lynda's.
VISITING WITH JIM
Jim was a college roommate of Terry’s when I met Terry. We’ve been friends since college. The two of them had many “adventures” both during and after college - canoeing, skiing (water and snow), camping and flying/crashing radio control airplanes. We met Jim at a Tex-Mex restaurant in Sugar Land, about halfway between Sealy and Clear Lake, Texas. It’s always neat to catch up with him.
College roommates and long time friends.
VISITING WITH JOHN AND NANCY
We met John and his wife Nancy for dinner in Katy (between Sealy and Houston) one evening. In the early years of their careers Terry and John worked for the same company. John and Terry had many “adventures” canoeing on the Guadalupe River, some good and some scary. John is responsible for introducing us to snow skiing a few years after we were married.
Colleagues and wives
SIGHTSEEING IN LA GRANGE, TX
Debbie and Ralph took us on a tour of La Grange Texas. First stop was lunch at Prause’s Meat Market. A family owned and operated market since the 1890’s! When you order your meat for lunch, you are charged by the weight of the meat. They have awesome brisket, pork and sausage! In Texas, BBQ is served with a slice of white bread with no butter. I just don’t get it. What do you do with it? Terry says, EAT IT, OF COURSE!
Like many small towns in Texas, La Grange has the court house in the center of town. Across the street from it is the Prause Meat Market, family owned and operated since the 1890's. They add up your bill by hand on the back of a paper plate. The BBQ is delicious!
Second stop was Weikel’s Bakery, a family-owned Czech bakery known for their kolaches and other Czech pastries. Yum!
What can we say? It's all delicious!
Third stop was Monument Hill/Kreische Brewery Historic Site up on a hill overlooking the area. This site contains the remains of men who lost their lives fighting for Texas Independence on two different occasions. It also contains the remains of the Kreische Brewery and home of a German immigrant, Heinrich Kreische, a master stonemason and brewmaster. The ruins are well preserved and are an example of the stone used throughout the Texas Hill Country, a beautiful, cream-colored limestone.
Top right: Monument and tomb of Texans killed in the 1848 Dawson Massacre and the 1843 Black Bean Death Lottery.
Bottom left: Kreische house, he was a German stonemason.Bottom right: Remains of the Kreische Brewery
Last stop was a Classic Car Showroom on the way back from La Grange. In college, Terry bought a car, a yellow and white Nash Metropolitan convertible for $5. Never mind that it didn’t have a battery, that the convertible top was permanently down, that the frame was broken so the doors were jammed closed. It ran, if you push started it. What’s not to like? When it rained, it was no big deal – the water ran out of the rusted out floorboards. This place had several models of Nash Metropolitans, in addition to many Ford Thunderbirds and various other restored classic cars. It also had lots of old items we remembered growing up. Many famous people buy old restored cars from this owner.
Top left: A Nash Metropolitan hardtop, not exactly the car he had but close!
Bottom left: Serving a drive-in restaurant order
Middle right: Remember these? A drive-in movie speaker. I think I drove off with one still attached to my window one time!
Scattered throughout the showroom were political "statements"...such as President George W. Bush asking if we miss him yet? Also, Pelosi, Obama and Hillary Clinton in the back of a classic old police car number 54...Remember "Car 54 Where Are You?"?
Camping: Debbie and Ralph’s, Sealy, TX
Electricity, water, sewer, showers (very nice!!!), DISH TV, laundry, help with repairs, guide, someone other than each other to talk to, biscuits and gravy for breakfast!