Midland and Westward

Petroleum Museum

Friday 5-2 we hung out in Midland again, breakfast in, then off to the Midland Petroleum Museum.  We walked around there for about 2 hours, then drove around the outside exhibits.  After that we headed out to lunch at McAlister's for lunch....very good, and recommended by the gentlemen that worked at the museum.  We then headed out to Odessa looking for the (Bush Presidential library) turns out it is just a Presidential Archive Library that also has one of the Bush childhood  houses out back.  But it didn't really matter, with our luck, for some reason it is closed for the afternoon and no luck getting to see anything there. We then headed out to a Ranch Museum, but when we got there it looked soooo run down and in a not so nice part of town we didn't even pull in, what a day.  After that we gave up and headed home, it is about 4:30 and Rudy probably needs a break from his cage.  Shane came over soon after we got home and we tried to come up with something to go do, but everything closes at 5:00 or 6:00, so it was hang out at the park, Brad grilled chicken and we had it on a salad, a nice visit with a lot of talking and then Shane was off to the gym.  We walked Rudy one more time and then got ready to settle in for the night.  Not a bad day all in all, a nice visit with Shane, a little touring around, and a plan to hit the road in the morning. 

 

Saturday we actually got on the road by 10:00, planning a stop in Pecos for Fuel and then had lunch

Sampling the
Texas Wine.

at the Denny's in the truck stop.  We had originally hoped to have lunch with Shane at a Mexican restaurant in town, but he couldn't make it.  After lunch we decided to head through town to look for the 'West of the Pecos Museum' and in the process found the Rodeo Arena, where the first ever Rodeo was held on July 4 1883.   The museum consisted of an old saloon that had 3 rooms upstairs and the Orient Hotel that was originally added in 1904.  It was interesting in some parts, some of the modern day Pecos stuff, not so much, but it took us about 2 hours to tour the thing, which of course, makes it a late day again.  We are heading west on I20-I10 to a KOA in Van Horn, TX, traveling about 200 miles.  Not bad, we pull in about 5:00, get checked in, find our spot and are very pleased with the view.  It has been flat and barren most of the day, but out the window of the Moho, we have a view of the mountains in the distance the sites are positioned so you have the afternoon shade to sit and relax in.  There is a little restaurant right here in the CG, so we strolled up there for dinner, nothing fancy, but ok food and we didn't have to get the grill out, an added bonus.  Back to the site, get Rudy and couple of more walks with a little rest and relaxation in between and then off to bed about 10:00. 



Sunday Brad gets up with Rudy to take  him for his normal walk, but instead, calls in the window, if I

Monique at the
'Scenic View' Stop

hurry I can see the sun come up over the mountains, so out the door I go.  Now what the heck, we only have about 120 miles to go to get to El Paso and we are both up at the crack of dawn, but what a morning.  It was 47 when I got up and until we got ready to leave about 9:00 the temp was already up in the mid 70's.  Again we head west, this time to the  Fort Bliss Campground in El Paso, TX, planning to visit with Monique.  We get to the out skirts of El Paso about noon, and do the regular, stop for fuel, and again lunch at Denny's in the truck stop.  After that the trek through town, which was not as easy as it should have been.  We were looking for Route 375, which was  under construction and had no signs as to where the entrance was, so we missed it did a U-turn and got on from the other side using a fly over ramp(very high).  Next get off at Route 54 and head south, so you get off the exit and there are 3 turns to the left and none of them are marked, took a guess on turn number 2 and just happened to be correct.  After that the CG was fairly easy to find but getting here...whew.  We get checked in, find our site, pull in and the car is so crooked we almost didn't get it disconnected, but after about 15 min. we managed.  I texted Monique to let her

The Big Red Border "X"

know we were here and she laughed, she had just left after coming over to check it out.  On to our normal routines, Brad outside and me inside getting things organized and hooked up, when here comes Monique.  What a pleasant visit, we just hung out and talked for a while, then she wanted to show us around a bit, so off to 'Scenic Drive', up a mountain to about 4200 feet above sea level.  From here you can see all of Fort Bliss, El Paso, the 'X' that marks the border, Juarez, Mexico, and in the other direction, all the way to Carlsbad, NM.  It was a beautiful view and much cooler that down at the CG or in town.  After that she took us to her favorite restaurant 'Famous Dave's', where we all had plenty to eat and she even had left overs to take back.  Back home, a short talk, then we had to say goodnight, even though the clock said 8:00 PM our bodies said 9:00 since we crossed one more time zone.  With plans made to have dinner again tomorrow she headed out (training at 4:00 AM for her) and Brad and I headed inside to getting ready for bed. 

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Pictures of the 'Ford Home', Museum, the Scenery and Van Horn Campground and views.


Diane and Brad

 

 

 

Midland TX....Gas/Oil Country

Click to enlarge, many Wind Mills
in the back ground.

Wednesday we got up and hit the road by 10:00, taking the bypass around the 'Metroplex' of Dallas and Fort Worth.  Wow, what a trip.  The wind is howling and the road is full, 8 lane highway with 8 more lanes of local access, and it went on for about 40-50 miles.  Then when you get to the other side, the traffic just seemed to die out and the road was ours.  We did stop in the middle of that for fuel, it's nice the Pilot and/or Flying J truck stops have RV islands that away from the truck islands with the slow flow nozzle, making it much nicer for us RVer's to get fuel.  We hit the road again an about 3 hours into the ride it's time to change drivers, but I have a great idea.  How about a nice lunch in the RV and a couple of walks around the rest area, giving Brad a nice break and then he can continue to drive.  With this wind, I'm not sure we both would have survived if I were to drive.  So we only had about another 100 miles, and it was a much nicer compromise for us both.  We finished the rest of the trip with no real surprises, found the Abilene VFW that we were planning to park at and got settled in.  Instead of $20.00, it was $25.00 a night and no food, what a disappointment.  Oh well, we had a drink or two then back out to the RV to settle in for the night.  Next day off to Odessa/Midland area in hopes of seeing Shane while we are there. 

 

Shane's Control Panel

The next morning, up, moving and on the road by 9:00 about 5-6 miles down the road we stopped for gas and breakfast at Denny's and after all that we were back on the road a by 10:10.  We are only traveling about 150 miles today and it really is uneventful, although in that short of a ride, you can really see the landscape changing  We went from a Metroplex of cities around Dallas and Fort Worth, then through a few smaller towns and green grass on small mountains side, to still mostly green in Abilene and then the real changing started.  First you notice the lack of grass and just see cactus and brush trees, then the oil pumpers, and yea I forgot to mention the amount of very large wind mill farms scattered through out all of Texas.  After that the big rigs started to appear, 1 or 2 at first and then every direction you looked in there was another one.  Oops here we are at our CG, it's about 1:00, get situated, jacks down, slides out things put away, a stroll around the CG and here comes Shane.  We say our hello's, a little talking and then him and Brad head out to tour his rig (Brad is a lab tech.  for this tour, but no women allowed, so I head off to the grocery store to get burgers for dinner.  I did a detour and found a Starbucks, since I had to entertain myself, then a bank for money and the grocery store, then back home.  I was home maybe 20 min. when Brad and Shane pulled in.  We talked a little more, then burgers on the grill with a salad for dinner, after that Shane laid down on the sofa for a nap.....since he was up all night he needed a little one after a full belly and a little relaxing time.  We left took Rudy to the dog park where he met Matilda and played well, then we walked around every inch of this campground.  After about an hour, back in wake Shane up, then a little more chit chatting and off he headed.  We walked Rudy again, dishes done, blog being typed and we are just about ready for bed.  We will probably stay again tomorrow to see if we can see Shane again and then head out towards Fort Bliss, in El Paso, TX, hoping to see Monique. 

 

 

These are pictures of the Brad at the Rig where Shane works.

 

 

Enjoy,

Diane and Brad

Riding out the Storms

Nice Site

We finally got out of the RV about 11:30 and headed to our most dreaded place, Wal-Mart.  But first a detour and a little tour of the area, trying to find a grocery store so we can replenish our food supply.  No luck, but we did stop at a Sonic for lunch, first time we ever Sonic'ed and the food was actually pretty good.  After that we hit the store, hurried through, grabbed what we needed and then headed home.  We just hung out inside when we got home, since the rains were in the area and as the evening progressed, we just had cheese and cracker for dinner, I'm thinking it's just to hot to be hungry!!

 

High Wind Tie Down
Ha ha

Monday we just couldn't take it any more, got ready and headed out of the RV, off to see the Duck Dynasty Store/Warehouse.  We traveled about 30 miles and stopped at Willie's Restaurant first to sample the cuisine.  Brad had the Gumbo with Duck and Andouille sausage, I went for the sampler of Shrimp and Andouille sausage Gumbo, Red Beans and Rice and some Jambalaya.....I think I had the better of the meals, although they were both very good.  We were sitting there, finishing our iced tea, when a guy walked in the door and people went running.  We finally get our heads together and figure out that it is Willie from the Duck Dynasty show....wow.  It was fun watching the people and I think the one lady there was close to Hyper-ventilating, but in the fun of things, we did manage to get our photo-op as well.  After that we headed over to their Store/Warehouse, where we missed our second photo-op, there were people running around yelling, 'I got the picture', but who ever it was, they just got in their car and pulled out as we were driving by the parking lot, darn, just our luck.  Oh well, we headed inside, did some shopping and checking out all the stuff they had for sale, wow and there was a bunch, a couple of t-shirts bought and we headed back out.  Another scenic ride home, no highway and a geocache or two on the way, what an enjoyable day.  After that home, clean up some of the outside stuff, including the high wind tie down of the satellite dish (ha ha).  Then dinner was leftovers from lunch...no complaints here, and then off to bed as we have another travel day tomorrow.

 



Company while we pack!!

Tuesday we get up, slowly, finish packing and on the Road by 10:00.  We stopped at the Texas Welcome Center about noon, ate lunch, switched drivers and then 'on the road again'.  I drove about 80 miles, pulled into our selected truck stop, but what the heck, no RV island.  A quick park in the truck lot, walk Rudy, driver rotation and hit the road.  We only have about 80 miles to our CG and get there with an uneventful ride.  We find our CG, check in, park and then a walk to the dog park, around the CG and then a little stroll over by the lake, what a nice place.  After that off to find a real grocery store and a place to purchase wine, with a little help from the lady in the office we managed to find all that we needed.  Yea real food with a selection,  real wine and off course a bill of over $100.00, but what the heck, it was a find.  After that Brad turned the wrong way out of the parking lot, forgetting to tell me he was looking for next interstate exit and a gas station, no luck, just get on another road and head back to the CG......I'm tired of being in a vehicle.  Dinner on the grill, but a bit to windy to enjoy it outside.  We lasted out side until dinner was done, then watched NCIS and NCIS Los Angeles, one more dog walk and then off to bed.  Another travel day tomorrow.

Brad and Diane 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

Time for a rest

Thursday after we were parked and nestled for the night, the neighbor came home (Ed), nice guy, salesman attitude, but he was nice enough.  We talked for a while then he went into get ready for the night and wait for the people that were picking him up.  Just before he left for the night he stopped and gave us his card... then headed out,  we had a great evening, dinner in and early to bed. 

 

Friday 4-25 we got back on the road early....for us.  Leaving Georgia, we drove right through Alabama (no new state for our map), and ended up stopping in Marion, Mississippi for the night.  Not our first choice, but the other campgrounds were full, so we settle for our third choice.  We pull in, no credit card, again, back out to get a check, find our spot and settle in.  We are now in a gravel lot with concrete pads, no shade and 80 degrees, but the guy next to us is very chit chatty and nice, so while talking with him Brad gets the grill out as we are  planning on burgers for the night.  Wow, what a change, the tag axles start pulling in.  We had as Zephyr, 2 Prevosts', a Foretravel and a Monaco pull in and park all around us, now we feel like the little guy.  But as it ended up, the Prevost  beside us had the nicest people, (who we think we recognized them from somewhere), and the chit chatted with us all evening and even gave us some fresh deer sausage.  After that off to bed and up the next day to hit the road around 9:00.  

 

I think we'll stay for
a couple of days!!

 About 100 miles into the trip we stopped for gas and a bit to eat at Denny's.  A pretty  easy drive for the day, Brad at the wheel first, then Diane, then Brad again to pull us into the CG just out side of West Monroe.  We get here, the office is closed and an envelope is hanging on the door for us.  I take the car through the CG then back up to the office to get Brad and the RV.  They follow me down to the site....very nice. and we get settled in and then off I go to the local grocery store for a few supplies while Brad gets things hooked up. I finally get back, unload the groceries and notice that all is hooked up and the satellite dish is ready to program...again.  Settled in for the night, chicken and a veggie for dinner, and off to bed about 10:30.....I couldn't drag Brad away from the Clint Eastwood movies.      

 

Today is Sunday and we planned on doing some sight-seeing and touring..no luck every thing is closed, but it has been a beautiful morning, breakfast cooked on the grill and eaten outside at the picnic table.  It's now 11:00 AM and time to get showered and see if we can find anything open.

Diane and Brad 

New Roads Traveled.

Tuesday was a good day, on the road about 10:30, after having breakfast, shop talk and paying our bill.  We had a nice ride to Gaffney, 2 lane road, for the 1.5 hour drive.  We got there I checked us in while Brad disconnected the car.  Find our spot, the off to the office with Brad, they had more questions than I had answers.  A little relaxing then off to the Rite Aid and a stop of 'Joe Daddy's Beach House BBQ and Grill'.  Now considering that we are on the western side of SC, what an unusual place, but the food was good and it was a relaxing place to eat.  After that back to the Moho, watched the 2 NCIS shows then off to bed.  An early appointment in the AM. 

 

Wednesday we are up at 6:00, showered, and disconnected, ready for the service man, by 7:45.  They are pretty prompt and at 8:00, they are there to go over the service request and take the Moho into the shop.  We take Rudy and head off to Strawberry Hill for breakfast. strawberry covered pancake for Brad, then a stroll around the grounds, and of course the purchase of some fresh strawberries to take back with us.  We did a little drive around the orchards,  1,000 acres of peaches, 110 acres of strawberries, 34 acres of blackberries and much more.  After that we headed to the Cowpens Battle field for a little walk.  The walking tour was a little over a mile long, with historical markers along the way, explaining the battle and the important win against the British in the American Revolutionary War.  After that back to the Freightliner shop, but to no avail, the Moho is still inside.  We sat there for a while, then headed out for some ice cream.....we headed the wrong way, no ice cream shop in sight, so we settled for a nasty hot dog from a truck stop.  Back to the shop and wait, wait, wait.  Finally as they are closing up for the day, here it comes, oops there it goes, out for the final test drive.  They come back, crawl under the Moho (and I start to worry), then they take it back to our spot for one more night.  Brad goes to the window, talks with our service guy, all is well, as can be, pays the bill and heads out the to camping area.  In the mean time, Rudy escapes from the Moho and I run to get him, my leg/hip starts to hurt and I am scared to death he will get hit.  But, as I turn the corner, there he is sitting along the side of the drive way, and actually came back to me when I called him.  I wanted to beat his butt, but since he came back I just loved him a little and carried him back home.  After that we decided on Cheese, pretzels and strawberries for Brad for dinner and I had Yogurt and strawberries.  Neither of were very hungry and the strawberries were sooooo good they were gone by nights end.  Off to bed about 10:00 for all of us, these days of sitting at the shop are just long and stressful for us all. 

 

Today was a no alarm clock day, Brad up about 7:00, me not until 7:45, but the packing to move started right away.  A quick shower, finish the packing, hook up the car and we are on the road by 9:30.  We needed to stop for gas, so about noon we stopped at a Flying J, that had a RV island and a restaurant, but the restaurant was closed, so across the street  for lunch at the Iron Skillet.  The food was good, a little walk for Rudy and we got back on the road.  Heading down Route 85 towards Atlanta, stop at a rest area for a break, then I take over driving.  Not a bad trip, but then the road goes from a 4 lane highway to 6 lanes to 12 lanes, and there Brad is snoozing in the passenger seat and I going, why the 'HE--' did he make me drive now.  I found route 285 around Atlanta, still a 12-10 lane highway, and full of vehicles, then off of 285 to route 20, and we slowly went back to a 4 lane highway, but by then I had to use the bathroom.  Brad gets on the GPS, finds a place, gets me off the exit and tells me to turn the wrong way. Oh no, now what, overpass is under construction, narrow, no shoulder, or room as far as I was concerned.  What do I spy, a church with plenty of room for the Moho, and a big thank you from me.  I pull in, Brad walks Rudy I use the bathroom and then Brad crawls back into the passenger seat....I don't think so, we only have about 40 miles left, but he can have the wheel.  We stop to get gas about 10 miles from our campground, pull in, put the card in the slide at the pump....I can't pull it out.  I call Brad, still no luck, so into the tool box for the pliers and pull the card out of the slot.  OK, inside to pay, but my card is declined...try again, declined, OK I use my personnel credit card, but until I get back to the Moho, I get a text from Discover asking if I was actually approving my last usage.  Wow I was impressed with the service, yes or no texted back was all I needed to do to get my credit card back on line.  Any way got gas, 10 miles down the road, pull in, find our spot, got to pay.....no CC accepted.  Back to the Moho for the check book, but at $22.00 a night, I'm not going to complain.  Parked, a couple of nice walks through the park and now we are nestled in for the night....can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.

 

Diane and Brad

 

 

Getting Caught Up

Well here it is 4-21,  and we never did get on the road 4-16.  We found out that Tom's Indiantown Gap Ceremony was schedule for 4-18 so we stayed to go to that.  We managed to see more of the family, dinner with Norm and Pat, and dinner with Lynne, lunch and a shopping trip with Mel, and another visit or two with dad. 

 

In the mean time, we managed to get rid of the 4-wheeler and take care of a lot of other things that needed done.  We renewed all of our Camp Clubs and planned our trip to NC and the SC for our Moho appointments. 

 

We left Dillsburg 4-17 and headed to Penn National Race track with the Moho, parking in the truck lot and then we met dad, played a while, ate lunch then played some more.  Dad took us back to the Motor Home, we walked Rudy then decided to go back to the Casino for dinner.  We ended up having a very nice dinner while watching the live horse racing, then played a few more game and headed back to the moho.  We had parked, at the far end of the truck lot, hoping that we wouldn't get parked in, but no luck, we were surrounded by tractor trailer rigs and other campers, so tight that we could hardly get the car back home.  Oh well, off to bed with the gentle roar of tractor trailer engines and/or generators rumbling in the back ground.

 

We were up the next day and ready 2 hours early, so we did a lot of walking, checking out all the other rigs leaving and then headed out for a breakfast.  After that off to the Gap, pulling in right behind the Bev and group.  It ended up being a nice ceremony, (teary), then Brad and I stopped by mom's grave and fixed her flowers, then back to the restaurant where everyone had gathered,  we just had iced tea and then headed out.  We had a long drive planned.  We actually made our destination, Lee Hi Truck stop, about 250 miles and 5 hours later, but we made it.  After a couple of walks with Rudy, we decided we were even too tired to go to the truck stop for dinner, so tuna fish sandwiches and chips and an early night to bed again. 

 

Up the next day, breakfast at the diner, then we hit the road again.  Almost 300 miles, but we pull into Tom Johnson's between 4 and 5 got settled in for the night knowing we don't have to be on the road Easter day.  A call from dad, a couple of text to and from kids and a nice peaceful Easter Sunday.  Ham done on the grill, with all the fixin's, then off to bed,  we have to be at the shop at 8:00 AM. 

 

And here we are at today, Monday 4-21.  First off, the motor home goes to the shop to get the auxiliary brake system installed, then off to breakfast, Post Office and grocery store.  As we left the store, they call, they are done with the moho and they are ready for the car.  Over to the hitch shop, switch out vehicles and over to the repair shop with the moho, only to find out that our camp site is reserved and we have to move all the stuff we left there.  We moved our stuff to the new site, sat in the sun for about 5 min, then decided to move inside, out of the sun and into cooler temps.  That lasted about 30 min, then off to the shop across the road, we looked at the used RV's, the new RV's, the class C's and the 5th wheels, and they have lots to look at.  We took time to sit on the nice porch and then finally, we see the car appear and we don't have to walk back across the field and street to our site, yea.  We get the car, but they need both vehicle's to finish the training process, so back over to the repair shop.  No luck, but as we are leaving here comes the moho out of the shop, turn around, get the moho and take them back to the hitch shop.  Training done, parked, Rudy is happy, dinner on the grill and all is good. Our last walk of the night is done and now Brad showering and then is headed to bed and me....not that far behind.  Tomorrow we are off to Gaffney for another long day on Wednesday, for our yearly maintenance. 

 

Good night,

Diane and Brad

 

Never ending Winter

Ok, here we are, April 4 and still not getting the posting done as promised. Today is another cool rainy day and the low tomorrow night is to be right about freezing.  We are anxious for some spring weather to arrive and warm us up.

Life has been rather busy, with both good and bad.  Tom Ball's memorial services were on Saturday, March 29, 2014 and were very nice and touching as a lot of people got up to speak at the services.  The social gathering actually came together and also went off with out a hitch.  Since then we have been shopping, visiting, and trying to get things planned for our departure.

We are planning on leaving 4-16 and the calendar is filling up fast.  There just aren't enough hours in the day to get it all done, although we are giving it our best.  Every day we have been home, we have been out and about, and I don't think we'll have a lazy day again until after we leave and that's not bad, it's good to see the family.  Next week we want to get up to the farm to check that out, and more visits have already been planned. 

Things should be a little less hectic next week and we will try (really mean it this time) to keep the blog up to date.  We did manage to get to Camping World today.  Returned some things and picked up some new items. Now we are getting ready to go to the Pizza Grille for dinner.  Hope to blog again soon.

Diane and Brad