Midwest Gypsy

If we make it through December, everything’s gonna be alright, I know; it’s the coldest time of winter and I shiver when I see the falling snow. – Merle Haggard

Hello again~Happy Holidays & Merry Christmas wishes from South Padre Island, Texas! May peace, love, and happiness be yours this Christmas, as well as warmth, uninterrupted electricity, water pipes that don’t freeze up, and safe journeys wherever you may go.

We remained in the Ozarks longer than anticipated and didn’t head south until earlier this month. Since our winter reservations didn’t start until January 1st, we had almost four weeks to meander. I use the All Stays app to plan our trips, and I found something that looked appealing 750 miles away in Edna, Texas (southwest of Houston): Brackenridge Recreation Complex. It was near a lake and had several bike trails. What a find, and a real blessing to secure a 2-week stay, considering reservations weren’t made until the week after Thanksgiving!

Our campsite was one of the most spacious ones here, both in length (at least 70′) and lots of grass on either side, which the pups loved. Most of the other sites were 45’ long. One of the bike trails ran right behind our site, and then Lake Texana was just beyond that. The campground is a wildlife preserve, and deer are everywhere. The campground is gated, and there is 24-hour security. Also there are 2-bedroom, lakeside cabins that may be rented, as well as The Main Event Center, where rodeos, festivals, fairs and auctions are held. The town of Edna is about 5 miles away, where there’s a nice, pedestrian-friendly town square and a few stores, including an older HEB. Victoria is about 30 miles away, and has everything, including Aldi (my most favorite grocery store) and lots of shops and restaurants.

From there we drove another 250 miles south to the Valley (Lower Rio Grande Valley) for a couple of days and visited some friends we’ve known since we first went to Bandera five years ago. Priscilla and I were walking buddies there, but I haven’t seen her for a couple of years. We’ve never explored that part of Texas, so we had no expectations and everything was new to us.

The first thing to catch my attention as we drove along the highway was palm trees, and lots of them.

Seeing that part of the country was very eye-opening. I have never seen that many RV and mobile home parks concentrated in a relatively small area, many with hundreds of sites. Obviously, many, many winter Texans flock to the Rio Grande Valley, and it gave us something to consider for next year.

While we were there, our friends took us to Mexico by way of the U.S. border crossing at Progresso, less than 10 miles way. We were that far south. I didn’t take any photos since I didn’t have time to research how to use my iPhone camera in Mexico without incurring any weird charges. Next time I’ll be prepared.

What an experience! After parking the car in an enormous parking lot, we walked across the international border, and each paid $1 to immediately face a barrage of vendors peddling everything from dental services, pharmacias and chiropractic care to shoes, leather goods, jewelry and lots more. It was overwhelming to say the least.

Shopping at the pharmacia was a pleasant experience, though, and I was able to pick up some over the counter drugs that I’ve heard are in short supplies in some places (Mucinex, etc.). Dave thought he might be able to pick up a bottled or two of his favorite liquor cheap, so we went hunting for that, but apparently tequila is the only thing there that’s really a bargain. And there’s a lot of that! Still, the experience was really fun! Actually, we weren’t hassled at all while we shopped inside the stores; it was when we were outside that we were hawked by both vendors and young children peddling trinkets and Chicklets.

Outside, stalls were lined up one after another, every vendor vying for attention. I really didn’t need a thing, which was good because I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed being pressured to buy, and I can’t haggle. It’s nice to be in a place in life where I’m satisfied with what I have. I have enough. Actually, after seeing what I saw today, I’m convinced I have more than enough.

After eating lunch at one of the restaurants there, already bustling with lots of business and tourists dancing to the live music at noon, we continued perusing a little while longer before heading back across the walkway. I was really grateful our friends took us there—since they’d been over several times and knew the drill—and for the experience itself. It’s been a highlight of our trip so far.

That brings us to yesterday, when we drove just 60 miles east to South Padre Island. Thank God. The wind was blowing steadily at 30 mph the entire time, including when we crossed the 2.5 mile long Queen Isabella Memorial Bridge–which was a terrifying experience for me, especially at the bridge’s highest point, where two lanes merged into one because of construction. The motorhome was just one, big sail and feeling the wind’s effects was nerve-wrecking. I was glad to get that part of the trip behind usl

This is another place we’ve never been, so we’re looking forward to the wind dying down and the temps warming up in a couple of days so that we can get out and explore. I’m sure there’s more to this month that’ll be worth writing about. Until then, we are hunkered down!

October had tremendous possibility. The summer’s oppressive heat was a distant memory, and the golden leaves promised a world full of adventures. They made me believe in miracles. ~ Sarah Guillory, Reclaimed

Hello again! I hope that this finds you and yours doing well and enjoying a colorful autumn. Despite not having much rain this summer, the fall foliage here in northwest Arkansas was better than expected and we’ve been seeing some beautiful changes along the bluffs that tower above the lake. Most of the other owners have already left or, like us, will be leaving soon. Things are winding down.

I almost skipped writing an update this month, basically because we’re living a fairly mundane existence and also because I’m writing daily musings on another website I play around with, www.gratitude365.us. But I found I couldn’t not do it, especially as the month dwindled down to these last couple of days. So, I thought the simplest thing to do is attach the gratitude365-link to this month’s out-of-the ordinary happenings if you’d like to read more. There were a few this month: Kate and the kids visited during fall break, Dave and I celebrated our 44th wedding anniversary, and I celebrated 11 years of sobriety. October was a banner month in comparison to most.

We’ve been really enjoying the e-bikes we got a few weeks ago, thanks in large part to a really nice 6-mile-round-trip bike path at Dogwood Canyon Nature Park, not too far from here. It’s another local Johnnie Morris (Bass Pro Shop) development–the others being Big Cedar, Top of the Rock–where opulence somehow tastefully melds with nature. Our goal is to go at least three times a week. The exercise has done Dave’s knee a world of good, and we’ll be taking the bikes with us when we head south next month. We have no firm departure date set, thinking that we’ll play the weather and leave when it gets too cold. Meanwhile, we’ve already cleaned and stored away most everything on the patio that needed to be put away for the winter and could be ready to go anytime.

Our Biscuit-pup (14) gave us a bit of a scare earlier this month. Here it was October, and her incision was still draining from a procedure that had been done in early August. A follow-up was done last month and an x-ray had been taken, but nothing was detected. So Dave took her BACK to the vet earlier this month again and this time the head vet examined at her. He discovered the drain tube was still lodged inside her, but it couldn’t be seen on the x-ray for some reason. Not only that; the tube was the size that would be used on a cow! Poor Biscuit! She’s doing much better now that it’s been removed! Meanwhile, Victor (17) is doing well, though the vet thinks he might be showing signs of doggie dementia. Such is life.

That’s about all from here for now. Christmas in Branson kicks off November 1, and I’m glad we’ll be here to see some of the festivities. The Gratitude365 website is where I hope to post daily essays on finding gratitude in everyday moments and challenges.Until then, peace, love, and long hugs. Take care💞 Maria

Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.– Sam Keen

I’ve always loved August.

August is still summer, but things have slowed down considerably. I like that. The temperatures, though continued warm, are not unbearably steamy like they were in July, and I definitely like that. While retailers are already wishing fall and winter were here, I’m going to wear WHITE up to and including Labor Day. I wouldn’t mind if August lasted longer.

A birthday earlier this month got me thinking of forks in the road of Life, and mine in particular. You know, when you think of what might have happened if you did this, or if you hadn’t done that. All moot, of course, since it is what it is, and the only thing that really matters is now. But turning 68 made me reflect nevertheless.

By now, I thought Dave and I would be settled in a house somewhere, like most people. But it doesn’t look like that will happen anytime soon. We spent the whole summer on our RV-lot in northwest Arkansas and have grown to really like it, both the RV-community and country living. If it weren’t for winter, we’d probably stay here year round. Snow keeps us on the move, and it snows here.

There are just a handful of us that call Ozarks RV Resort ‘home.’ Most of the 164 lots are owned by absentee owners whose RVs are here, but they themselves are not—at least, not very often. So, it’s a very tranquil existence. It’s nice. It’s very quiet. It’s safe.

It takes at least half an hour to drive to the nearest grocery store, and the closest restaurant is the Oasis, more than 10 miles away, so we eat at home for the most part. When we bought the lot, it came with a Blackstone grill, so Dave’s been loving that. Me, too! 😋 We also tried a little bit of gardening, now that we have ‘our own place,’ and planted tomatoes, peppers, green onions and strawberries in containers, having success with everything except the berries. We didn’t have a bumper crop, but enough of a yield that we’ll try again!

Where we’re located on Table Rock Lake is a stone’s throw to Missouri; I kayak past the imaginary MO/AR state line most mornings.

I like to be out on the water around sunrise while the lake is flat and not yet disturbed by boaters…and before it gets too hot. Early morning is also the best chance to get a glimpse of the mountain goat who, as it turns out, is so popular that he’s got his own Facebook page. “Crisco, the Table Rock Lake Goat,” has almost 4,000+ followers. He’s a celebrity!

Both of our pups had surgery this month to remove a bump and a lump—a bump on the base of Victor’s tail and a lump on Biscuit’s side—and their convalescence kept us even closer to home than we normally are. We only needed to make sure we had enough groceries to get us through several days at a stretch, and otherwise just kept a low profile here. Considering both pups are seniors, they are doing pretty well. Twice every day, we take them for a ride in the golf cart up to the dog park, and they love it!

The need to stay close to home was the perfect time to do a lot of routine maintenance projects on Felix and a couple of big chores that we’ve been procrastinating: pressure washing the concrete lot and unclogging the patio drains. We worked as a team on the former and got the job done in about 10 hours over two days. I was so intent on erasing all the filth that had accumulated on the lot since before we bought it, that I didn’t think to take pictures. But trust me, it looks beautiful! When it came to dealing with the clogged drains, Dave was on his own. I saw potential for a real mess, and I really hate to get dirty.* Dave got really dirty. Unexpectedly. 😂

And so, this very low-key month ends. While it’s been very unusual not to have workamped this summer as we have the past three, the time spent here was productive just the same. We’re already thinking in terms of heading south (and all that needs to get done before we do), which we supposed would be in December but will ultimately be decided by Mother Nature and weather.

After five winters in Bandera, Texas, we’re going to try somewhere different this year: Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi—on the Gulf coast, about an hour east of New Orleans. We lived there once very, very briefly; we bought the house in May 2004 and Hurricane Katrina wiped it out in August 2005. Devastating as that event was, it taught an important lesson about stuff and what really matters and what does not—and that helps with this lifestyle, for sure. In any event, we’re looking forward to going back and seeing how things changed.

So, with that, I’ll close for now, and I hope to get your reply. Until next time, I wish you good health, love and peace. Take care. ♥️Maria

*A long-ago, past relationship ended because of motocross. Shallow on my end? Perhaps. But I really don’t like to get dirty.😖

“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” – Loren Eiseley, American philosopher, educator, anthropologist, ecologist.

July 11, 2022. Monday.

The oppressive days of 100+ degrees and extremely high humidity have finally given way for the time being to the more bearable 90s, and all in all, life is good here in the Ozarks. I haven’t seen anymore copperheads on my kayak, so that’s a plus.

I love kayaking, and it’s a blessing to be able to kayak whenever the mood strikes, which is around 5:30 a.m. these days. For weeks I’ve had a routine that I liked—an hour-long paddle, mainly along the shore—but which was becoming boring. So, on Saturday, I decided to go beyond my comfort zone and paddle over to the rocky islands directly across from the resort, not quite two hundred yards, with a maximum lake depth of 60 feet in between. Not “far” in the sense of distance, but if I got stuck over there somehow, I would be SOL…unless I swam back.

The water is magical in that it teems with life. Great blue heron are a very common sight here, but they are so intriguing to watch, I could never tire of seeing them. I see at least three or four individually every time I go out, stealthily stalking the water’s edge or patiently perched on the tip of a submerged branch, barely reaching above the water’s surface. But on Saturday it was as though herons were everywhere, on the shore and flying across the sky, often in pairs, which was thrilling enough, but at one point I saw three standing together!

All in all, I probably saw at least twenty great blue herons Saturday morning. I was a very happy camper and could have been satisfied with what I’d already seen, but I kept paddling. I’m glad I did, because the most unexpected discovery was yet to be made.

Once day breaks, the sun rises fast and soon the shade of craggy, limestone bluffs became very inviting. I paddled alongside them, just relishing the peace and quiet, when my eyes spotted something I initially thought was a color variation in the limestone. But as I got nearer, I saw they were the legs of an animal, and a good-sized one at that. And soon he came into view.

A mountain goat was the last thing I expected to see here on Table Rock Lake, and I think it’s funny that I’ve experienced the WILD at a resort, of all places. But as I think back to other times I’ve gone beyond my comfort zone—like living on a boat, or taking scuba diving lessons (as a non-swimmer) , or learning to drive an 18-wheeler and later, our motorhome—the outcomes were far more rewarding than I could have ever imagined. If I don’t take chances, I might miss out on something, and I don’t want to do that!

Until next time, take care and keep smiling! Much love and long, tight hugs…Maria

I am surprised you didn’t whack your head on an overhanging branch back there. I have never seen anyone leap straight up off the ground the way you did when you saw that snake! It would make a good move for our next dance. Do you think you could teach the others? The snake jump? – Jennifer Frick-Ruppert, ‘Spirit Quest (The Legend of Skyco #1)’

July 6th, 2022. Wednesday.

Just when it was beginning to look like nothing exciting ever happens here, I got the fright of my life this morning. The day had begun like most: Very early. O’dark:30. I love the peace and quiet then, and while I waited for the coffee to brew, I opened my book of devotionals and prayed. This has been my routine for more than four decades: Getting up early and connecting with God. By the time I’m finished, the nighttime dark is beginning to give way to a new day, and sunrise is fast approaching.

I’ve been kayaking most days for a couple of months now, and because of the unusually hot temperatures we’ve had, I’m getting out earlier and earlier in the day. Normally I’m loading the kayak in the golf cart around 6 a.m., but this morning I was running early and ready to go at 5:30. With today’s high predicted to be 102 degrees, I considered the earlier-than-usual time a blessing. Besides, Dave’s not at home (he drove Maeby back home to Kentucky yesterday) and Biscuit and Victor were still fast asleep in our bed.

My kayak is a sit-in, inflatable kayak. One of the reasons I bought it three years ago was that it weighed just 20 pounds or so and I could manage it by myself. When it’s not on the water, it’s stored upside down on the concrete pad on the port side of the motorhome, where it’s out of the sun. To transport it, I prop it on its side and then hoist it up on my shoulder for balance while I walk it over to the golf cart about 25 feet away. Once there, I wedge the kayak, stern first, in the golf cart and bungee each side in. Lastly, I grab the orange bowline and secure that to the golf cart. It was while I was in the midst of grabbing hold of the bowline that I glimpsed something from the corner of my eye. It’s coiled up frame told me exactly what it was.

SNAKE!!!

I was instantaneously overwhelmed with fear, and I dropped the bowline and jumped back and away from the kayak, now hanging off the golf cart, bow down. I didn’t scream, but I was freaking out. My heart was pounding and I couldn’t stop thinking about how close my face had been to the snake, which was now obviously very much awake since having its sleep rudely interrupted. Dave wasn’t due to come until later on today, so I just stood back and watched the snake slither on the kayak. Thinking back, I may have been in shock. It was just 5:30 and I didn’t notice any neighbors up and about. I didn’t know what to do.

Just then, lights from a golf cart peeked over the top of the hill, and it slowly descended down the street, eventually making its way to our lot. It was Jerry, the security guy, doing rounds. I thanked God out loud for his impeccable sense of timing as I waved down Jerry. He probably thought I was just an early bird wanting to say “Good morning,” but when he saw the snake, he knew things were about to get interesting, especially when I told him Dave was in Kentucky.

Shining his flashlight straight into the snake’s eyes, he identified it as a copperhead, and I nearly fainted. By now the snake was inching closer and closer to the cockpit, someplace I did not want it to go. God only knows how we’d get it out then! Jerry rummaged past the extra light bulbs and what not that laid on top of his utility box and dug down until he found an aluminum bat, which he then used to prod the snake out of the kayak and onto the concrete driveway. From then it was game on, and Jerry’s game at that. He eventually bludgeoned the snake, and when it stopped convulsing, it measured 27.5 inches.

When all was said and done, it wasn’t even 6 o’clock. There was no way I was going kayaking just yet. I was still somewhat shaken from the prospect of what could have been and besides, I had to unravel the garden hose and hose down the driveway before the heat of the sun baked what bloody remains were left. As for the snake itself, I scooped it up and have it saved for Dave to see when he gets home.

I doubt I’ll ever forget this incident as long as I live. In retrospect, I regret the snake was brutally killed, but seriously, what’s one supposed to do with venomous snakes found in an RV resort filled with summertime vacationers? I welcome reasonable suggestions. (In other words, don’t suggest catching it and driving it to some remote place to release.) I would hope I don’t freak out like I did this morning, but I make no promises.

Sometimes I forget that we’re still living out in nature, in spite of occasional email notices and notices in the newsletter to watch out for snakes. I’m sure I’ll remember that from now on. Also, I’ll start scanning both the outside and the inside of the kayak with a flashlight before carrying it anywhere. Fear can be a terrific incentive!

With that, I’ll close for now. That enough for one day! Have a fun, healthy and safe rest of the summer making lots of memories❣️Until next time, much love and long, tight hugs—Maria