Faces for Supper

Today we had dinner with Rollie and Gina and although we cooked and cleaned it on our patio it was all their baby. They took us down to the dock and we bought a bunch (like 40 lbs) of shrimp and a dozen blue crabs for the main course.

We picked up some veggies, yep back to the HEB, and then headed home to DEface all the food. Regular readers know that Brenda doesn't like to eat anything with a face on it. So Gina, Rollie and I removed all the faces in preparation for the dinner.

Rollie was actually the chief cook for this operation and he brought his big pot and burner over.

We cooked those dozen crabs for a kind of appetizer, now they are scrumptious but I really do think you use more calories getting into them than they actually provide in nourishment. Hey, maybe that could be a new diet, All You Can Eat Crab, Losing while you Eat!

For those from the West Coast these Blue Crabs appear to be a little smaller than the Dungeness but just as tasty. Gina definitely can get into them pretty fast, I'm not sure if she does it as fast as my brother Brent does the Dungeness but she is definitely pretty quick.

Now the veggies were the highlight. Rollie boiled potatoes, corn, and whole onions in the pot with some crab boil and boy I am not sure I can ever eat the old regular kind again. These had kick to them.

I just thought I better mention we didn't eat all forty pounds of shrimp. We have frozen 30 for Brenda to try and haul across the border. Wait for the shrimp story to take the place of the butter banditry next year. What a great meal with great company though. I have even been learning a little Louisanaese over the last couple of days so now I know I like my tomato sandwiches with MYannaise as opposed to that boring old Canadian Mayonaise.

USS Lexington

We spent today touring the USS Lexington just off Corpus Christi beach. It is a WWII carrier that served until decommissioned in 1991. For more information go here. We were fortunate to be able to tour the carrier with our friends Rollie and Gina, Rollie is a retired US Navy sailor (Senior Chief) and although he served mostly on destroyers he was able to give us a lot of information that we would have missed if we had not had him along. Here is a picture of Brenda and I at the entrance to the ship. And here is one of the planes (F-14) that the Navy used to fly.

Now any of you that know Gina know she collects rocks on her travels and she is now trying to figure out how to get Rollie to get one of these off the breakwater for her.

A ship coming under the bridge coming from Corpus Christi.

And here is a shot of our hosts on this tour Rollie and Gina. The plane behind them is the same type John McCain was flying when he was shot down over Hanoi and captured to start 5 1/2 years as a POW.

After we left the Lexington we ran into Corpus Christi to once again have dinner at the Olive Garden and then do a little shopping at the HEB Plus in there. We got to watch Gina select just the right watermelon and picked up a few things we needed. We always seem to need something from HEB. We're going to miss those HEB stores when we leave Texas. And the day wouldn't be complete without a little more eating so we all had a generous helping of still warm brownies and CHOCOLATE ice cream to hold us through the night......lol.

Big Boys Back in Town

Now that is a tow vehicle. Our friends Rollie and Gina came down from Houston to spend the weekend in Rockport with us. As you can see Rollie likes to make sure he has an adequate tow vehicle to get around in. And you know what, it seems to handle that fifth wheel just like it wasn't even there. They have moved into site 103 right next door to us. Brenda put together another of her great meals for us, and I even got to participate a little. Managed to blacken the ribs more than requested so it is probably another year or two of banishment from the kitchen for me. Oh well, the eating part is what I am best at so as they say "Do What you Do Best, and let someone else do the rest."

It is another nice day here in Rockport and we are going to head off and visit the Lexington a retired US Navy Aircraft Carrier and who better to tour us around than a Retired Sailor. Hopefully I will be able to get some pictures to share with you from that adventure.

And "THEIR OFF!"

One day this week Dennis, Denice and us took a drive down to the old shopping district in Rockport so the ladies could fondle all the things in the store. Brenda controlled herself pretty well and didn't buy to much, but I am not sure about Denice. I know Dennis and I had to run down to the bank to get some more cash, probably not a good sign. Dennis and I just wandered along poking in and out of any shops that looked interesting and for the most part just chewing the fat and killing time waiting for the women to suppress their shopping urges. After we made sure they had adequate funds to finish up the entire street we went off to the harbour and watched the boats coming and going there. Not knowing anything much about fishing I can only hazard a guess that this is a shrimper coming in from a day out fishing.

Yesterday we ran into Corpus Christi and tried to buy a screen for Matt and Michelle and the girls to watch movies on at the farm but it appears that it can only be ordered online and to do that you need a US credit card and a US address even though we just wanted it delivered to the store for pickup. Strange rules but I guess a bed sheet will have to do until Target and Walmart recognize that Visa does have cards from other places than the United States of America. Sorry kids. While in there we managed to stop at Olive Garden for the Soup and Salad special, reasonable price and good for you too. But enough of that good for you stuff for the Lang's farewell dinner we went back to the China "A" Buffet and had the all you can eat seafood and Chinese food. Yep and some of those 8 flavours of ice cream too.

When they were ready to leave this morning they had a gift for Brenda and she was tickled pink. This sign had apparently caught her eye on her earlier shopping trip with Denice so Denice must have gone back and got it for her. We don't actually drink much wine but I am sure we use a little for cooking now and then. The rest just evaporates.

And those who have been following our blog for a while will recognize the vase on the left but in her package this morning was a bowl with a lid that we watched Dennis craft out of a piece of firewood here at the campground. They sure are beautiful works of art and will be a cherished part of our memories of the great times we spent with Langs this winter.

And here they are all hooked up and ready to break trail back into that Northern Homeland of ours. We will be following along in a few days so Dennis let us know where the drifts get high. Safe travels.

This a shot of the canal that services all the houses in the neighbourhood we walk through each day on our morning stroll. Some beautiful places but I always wonder how they fare when the hurricanes come through. I think I would like a house on a hill along way from the sea.

As a bit of a postscript I thought since I was unable to get the 6 lanes of traffic stopped on I-35 so Denice could hop out and get a picture of these fellows yesterday I should include a picture of one individual.

Thai Hot!

Since I last posted we have been enjoying the Texas weather. In a day or two you get to see a lot of different weather types down here. About all we have not had was snow. And the only rain we had was one of those Arizona 6 inch rains, you know where the rain drops are only about 6 inches apart. Too bad because they could really use the moisture down here. Oh well, we will be on road on the 13th and then they can get all the rain they need. We have already begun the weather watch so we can figure out which way will be best for us to head home. There are three possibilities, one that leads us back to Arizona and Nevada and then up I-15 to Alberta, that one is about 350 miles longer than the others but less likelihood of snow on the majority of the route. The other two are across Texas, one to the Oklahoma Panhandle and then into Colorado and up I-25 to Billings, Montana where we would strike off for Great Falls and the Alberta border, this is the shortest of the three. But the route we really want to travel is straight north from Rockport up through Fort Worth and then onto Wichita, Kansas and into Nebraska before we run for Wyoming, Montana and the Medicine Line crossing into Alberta. Although a little longer than the direct route home this one takes us through Kansas and Nebraska both states we have never been to and are unlikely to cross in our travels in the future. Not that they don't have wonderful places to visit but us Canadians only have a limited amount of good weather time to tour around the mid-western states and these two are not on the road to anywhere, irregardless of the fact that Kansas is where Dorothy began her journey to Oz from and Nebraska is where the Jensen's began their trip to Tilley, Alberta from. Is it just a coincidence or what that the only two examples I could think of were people leaving for other places.

Yesterday we joined Dennis and Denice for dinner in their Motorhome. Denice had concocted an oriental style soup that was very good and had made a shrimp curry dish that sure hit the spot. The others at the table were a little concerned that it was pretty hot but I like mine spicy and this was just about perfect. And it probably didn't hurt them to drink a little milk to cool off their tongues, everybody can use a little calcium in their diet. Thanks Denice!

Today we woke up to a cooler weather system than we are used to, nothing like home but cooler for here. We delayed our walk till later in the day to give the cool breeze a chance to calm down, and headed over to Wally World to stock up on groceries and some other things we needed. The pollen is falling around here like snow so our Jeep was a light yellow until I got the bucket and brush out and gave it a wash. The pollen is so thick that the Bee's are hauling it around in trailers, probably where the term B-train came from.

So one of our readers asks "What is a B-Train?" Although common on Canadian Highways they are less common down in the States. To date we have only seen a few down here either Fed-Ex or UPS trucks. Here is a description from another website that has some pictures. "A B-Train has a special lead trailer with a rear-mounted fifth wheel. The B-Train is favored by Canadian regulations because of its increased dynamic stability and higher payloads for the same overall length. The second trailer is coupled to the fifth wheel at the rear of the first trailer. B-Trains have more yaw stability and roll coupling (stability) than others. B-Trains are allowed higher loads in Canada. B-Trains are usually special-purpose machines that remain together as a pair."

Still in Rockport

We are still in the Rockport area and other than walking a couple of miles each morning and a few spins around the campground through the day we are not doing a lot of exciting things. There is a lot of snooping around small local shops going on but no purchases of significance. The only meal that is noteworthy is a trip we made to the China A (eh!) Buffett. It was one of the best buffett's I have every been to and was a lot more seafood than Chinese. And it is hard to say anything harsh about any place that has 12 flavours of ice cream for dessert.

The other reason for writing is I think all of those folks who have ever been frustrated loading software into their computer should read my friend Joe's, tale of installing an Air Card and router into his rig. It is two parts first the air card , and then the router, so click on each to enjoy a trip into the hilarious. And for those in my family who are amongst the computer elite it will be an entertaining read and you will certainly acquire a taste of what the rest of us go through to do those things you think are as easy as falling of a log. I will warn you if you are in need of a bathroom break or drinking something while reading these you will be in imminent danger of embarassing yourself

Fulton Mansion and Other Things

Monday we just chilled at the campground except for that brief flurry of activity at the Laundromat in the morning. Monday evening we had a appetizers only meal with Dennis and Denice next door. The fact that there were only four of us didn't seem to restrict the quantity or certainly the quality of the appy's. We had veggie's and dip, mini hamburgers, jalapeno poppers, and a fruit plate for that final touch. The chance of a famine setting in around here is very slim, unlike the author.

Tuesday we were out to see the Fulton Mansion. It was completed in 1877 and has been restored to it's former glory by the Texas government. It was a beautiful home when it was built and through a litte bit of good fortune and a lot of hard work by the volunteers it is once again a beautiful house furnished with a lot of the original furniture and many other period pieces that are similar if not identical to the original furnishings. Below is a shot of the Master Bedroom.

And this is a photo of the Den or Office that Mr. Fulton used to conduct his business.

The other photo's are a little dark as they are trying to reduce the impact of flash photography on the colours but I took this shot before we were given our instructions for the tour.

This is a shot of Brenda at the back stairs to the Mansion.

And here is a look at the front of the Fulton Mansion. For a lot better description on this home please click here.

Today we ran out to the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge for a look around. This is the winter home of those most famous "Winter Texans" the Whooping Crane. I just have to add that like some other famous Canadians these fellows come down from Alberta to miss out on our Canadian winters. Their summer nesting area is on the border of Alberta and the NWT in our Wood Buffalo National Park. For a look at their Northern homeland click here. Below is a photograph of one of these rare creatures, yep that tiny white spot in the centre of the shot is a Whooping Crane and not just a discarded grocery bag stuck on a mop handle. Lot's of better shots on the links above and no Whoopers were disturbed to get them.

I've included the picture below as it explains a little bit about how these rare birds and Conoco Phillips are coexisting here in the Wildlife Refuge. The Cranes only use it for part of the year and Conoco is able to do their exploration and development work in the period while the birds have gone off to their summer home in Canada.