To Texas - and Beyond!! (shades of Buzz Lightyear)

November 29 - December 7, 2010
Before beginning, I will apologize for a very long post.

The end of the month of November found us with our camping time accounted for. Of course, we started the festivities with the Thanksgiving holiday, one of our very favorite times of year. On most occasions we are camping for the Thanksgiving weekend, the last few years being spent at our perennial favorite campground, Flying Flags in Buellton, CA. This year however, we decided to stay home for the holiday. My daughter Katie lives in Memphis, TN. and wanted to come out to spend Thanksgiving with us. We don't get to see Katie as much as we would like and very much looked forward to being able to spend this wonderful family time with her. Here's some pics of Katie and some of the rest of us:

We had turkey and ham, green beans, stuffing, etc. All the traditional fixings for a big thanksgiving meal. Four of our eight kids were present for this huge feast. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of our meal and everyone that was crowded into our somewhat small house. However, we all had a great time!

On the following Monday, Sandy and I loaded up Boldlygo and headed for San Antonio, TX. Seems like a strange time to take a vacation, doesn't it? Well, we had a purpose for going at this time. Sandy's youngest daughter, Becky, had spent the last 8 weeks in Air Force basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. It was time for her to graduate and we were traveling to Texas for this purpose.

Now, let me say that Sandy and I love to travel. We often spend hours together, rolling along America's highways and byways, enjoying the scenery and savoring each other's company. We talk a lot, the bible often being our choice of subject. We listen to music (a LOT of George Strait :-), stop whenever we'd like and keep rolling when we want. So, although some of our friends think we're crazy, we headed out with Boldlygo for the beautiful state of Texas.

The first leg of the trip started on the Monday morning after Thanksgiving. While Chris drove Katie to the airport for her trip home, we hitched up Boldlygo and headed out interstate 10. I-10 is the same freeway that goes right through San Antonio, so there wasn't much chance of us getting lost along the way. We had planned the first leg of our trip so that we would stay in Benson, Arizona. At 520 miles distance, we felt this was a good first leg. We arrived somewhat after supper time and pulled into the Super Walmart in Benson. Walmarts are well known for their hospitality to travelers. This is, no doubt, a leftover from when Sam Walton was still around. Good old southern hospitality - except where prohibited by law. We pulled into the parking lot, popped out the slide and prepared our abode for the night. Then, as an exspression of our gratitude, we went into the Walmart and purchased a few items, including something to pop into the oven for supper.

Bright and early the next morning (well, it was early, but it wasn't bright yet), we headed out on the road again. This time our destination for the evening would be well into the state of Texas. First however, we needed to stop by the greatest little breakfast diner in all of Arizona. We discovered Reb's cafe on our very first trip to Tombstone. It so happens that Reb's is situated kitty corner from the Walmart where we spent the night. Never ones to pass up a good breakfast, we moved our rig over to Reb's for some bacon and eggs, biscuits and gravy. We were certainly not disappointed! Our planned travel distance for the day was 515 miles, to the town of Fort Stockton. Another Walmart awaited us at the end of this leg. Of note along the way was the town of El Paso. El Paso is a border town and joins up with the Mexican town of Juarez. Although I have not looked at the vital statistics, I have been told that Juarez is actually a larger town than El Paso. Be that as it may, we didn't have time to stop in either town on our journey through Texas, although we did stop briefly in El Paso on the way home. I wasn't particularly impressed. Sorry to all you folks that just LOVE Texas. I didn't think it was all THAT great . . . Arizona is better, not to mention Wyoming :-) The close of Tuesday found us 1050 miles or so from home and safely tucked away, cozy in moveable home, eagerly anticipating our arrival in San Antonio on the morrow.

Up early again on Wednesday and on the road again, on to our final destination 313 miles distant. Honestly, there is nothing much to write about concerning the trip itself. It was truly uneventful for which we are grateful. The truck ran perfectly, the tires held air and there were no mishaps along the way. We did get flipped off by an old guy in a little dinky car somewhere in Texas though. I thought maybe I upset him somehow or another, but my brother assured us via Facebook that it was just the Texan's way of saying 'hello'. I though about trying it out, you know, return the greeting, try to fit in. After all, "when in Rome" . . . Nah, I think I'll just stick to the California greeting which is basically ignoring everybody around you.

We arrived at the Admiralty RV park in San Antonio Wednesday afternoon, about 1:30. We had read mixed reviews of this RV park and, although it was pretty much just a parking lot, it was never-the-less charming and the staff was friendly. Above and beyond their friendliness, they left us alone, not bothering even once. In my book, that goes a long ways towards engendering good will. Once we set up camp, don't bother us :-)

That afternoon, it was off to Lackland Air Force Base in order to pick up our passes. Festivities started first thing Thursday morning with what is called the 'Airmen's Run'. This is the final PT for the trainees before they become airmen. They start at their dorms, run across a foot bridge, down the street behind the BMT Reception Center, past a thousand or so cheering parents and family, then back around and across the bridge to their dorm - a 2 1/2 mile circuit. This is very much a 'show and tell' for the parents, the airmen showing the stamina that they have gained during their 8 1/2 weeks of Basic Military Training.
Following the Airmen's Run, the spectators assemble in stands around a courtyard and await the Airmen. The Airmen then march in, each to their own group or 'Flight' and stand at attention for what is known as the coin ceremony. The coin ceremony is where the TI (technical instructor, the Air Force's version of a DI) hands an Airmen's Coin to the trainees. It is during this ceremony that these young men and women leave behind the name of 'trainee' and take on the status of Airmen. About 600 young men and women became Airmen on this particular day.At the end of this ceremony, retreat is sounded, the flag is lowered and the parents are allowed to go greet their airmen for the first time in almost 3 months. The airmen must remain at attention until addressed by their family members, at which point they are on base leave for the rest of the day, until 20:30 hours (8:30 pm). This was an incredibly emotional time for parents and airmen alike. There was a mixture of pride, elation, relief . . . many emotions during this very special time.

We spent the afternoon banging around the mini mall (a small market, shops and food court), over to the BX (base exchange) which is really just a department store or larger version of the mini mall and then went to see a movie. I don't remember the name of the movie, but it was a chick flick. Although I usually put the brakes on chick flicks, I acquiesced in this case and actually found that I rather enjoyed it. Don't tell anyone though, okay? After all . . . I have a reputation to uphold. Here are the Airmen in front of the movie theater, looking nice in their dress blues.

Friday morning was to be the graduation parade and it did not start until 10:00, so we were able to sleep in and relax a little finally. After a nice breakfast, we moseyed on over to the base and boarding a bus at the reception center, headed over to the parade grounds. The parade grounds are about 20-30 acres or so and are completely surrounded by historical aircraft. As a matter of fact, the entire base is dotted with old aircraft, some dating back to WWII. They even have an SR 71 Blackbird on static display. The parade was quite impressive, with each flight of airmen presenting themselves to a couple of colonels and one general officer. This was their chance to 'strut their stuff' for the brass.

This B-29 Super Fortress is a sister ship to the planes that dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the close of the PTO in WWII. Can anyone name them for me? Yep, the Anola Gay and Bockscar.At all times while on base, civilian visitors are watched. Trainees are used for this boring duty. This trainee knew that we were taking her picture. Basically, we were watching her watching us. Or she was watching us watching her watching us.Another shot of the parade grounds:

On Saturday, all of the graduates had town leave for the day. We picked up our airman at about 10:00 and headed to Starbucks. Yep, after 3 months sequestered from the rest of society, Becky was ready for a donut and some Starbucks coffee. Although there is a Starbucks on base, trainees are NOT allowed to partake of such things. After Starbucks, we headed over to PetSmart, where the airman proceeded to get cat hair all over her blues! Fortunately, we had stopped by Target for a lint roller. After assuring herself that there were no "unauthorized items" on her uniform, we loaded up our airman and headed to the Alamo.

Now, I have to say that the Alamo is no real big deal. I LOVE historic places and things, but there is only one original wall of the Alamo left and it has been repaired so many times that I doubt when one peers at it that they are seeing actual building materials from the mid 1800's. I actually found River Walk to be quite a bit more fascinating. River walk is a subterranean walkway along the San Antonio river. We stopped in for some Mexican food, against the advice of one of our dear friends. I'm here to tell you that we should have listened. For Mexican food, don't bother with River Walk. But do take the walk if you get the chance!

Sunday was off to chapel with the airmen. The chaplain was all wet and not worth listening to, but it was still quite a time. The building was full to capacity (and then some) with trainees and airmen, the trainees being at all different periods of BMT. Some were what are called "sneaker weekers", the first week or two of BMT. They call them this because for the first week or so, they do not wear boots, but rather they wear sneakers. To tell the truth, it looks a bit funny to see these guys in ABUs (Air Force Battle Uniforms) and white sneakers. What's even more strange is that these big strapping men, clean cut and so handsome even in their ABUs are - almost every one of them - sobbing as they link arms, swaying back and forth while they sing along with 'Letters from Home' by John Michael Montgomery. The first few weeks of BMT is terribly difficult on a new enlistee. It does get better though . . . at least that's what I'm told.

After chapel it was off again, back to the RV park to break down camp and get ready to leave. Our first night back on the road, we stayed at a Love's Travel Stop, about 100 miles east of El Paso. The next night, we stayed at Cabela's in Douglas, Arizona. This Cabela's is in the suburbs of Phoenix. Cabela's is another of those places that welcome overnighters while traveling through. I have stayed with my brother and some hunting buddies at the Cabela's in Lehigh, Utah. Of course, we always do our best to patronize the store, showing our thanks and trying to in a small way, pay back their kindness towards us.

Here we are stopped for a potty break on the way home.
We were able to add another state to our 'visited' map.
We saw a lot of wildlife driving through Texas, including Collared Peccary and a LOT of deer. Here's a shot of our deer whistle. I don't know for sure whether it works, but we have been to Wyoming and back and Texas and back and we haven't hit a deer . . . so I'm thinking it was pretty affective!
Before leaving, Sandy purchased a couple of flags, Old Glory and an "We Support Our Troops" flag. I bought a couple of flag holders and installed them on the front of our trailer. Here's a shot of the trailer with the flags.

We made it back home on Tuesday, December 7th - Pearl Harbor day. That somehow to me seems an appropriate day to return from this particular trip, doesn't it to you?

Buellton Again, con'd.

November 14, 2010 - 4:30 PM

Okay, so I have to start this blog with a classified advertisment. Wanted: official Boldlygo II blog photographer. Must be willing to travel. Must be willing to take pictures. Must be willing to use a camera instead of a cell phone. Salary comensurate with our budget (yep, you gotta do it for free). No takers? Well, that explains the crummy (crumby?) pictures below.

As we wrote before, Dani (our 7 year old grand daughter) went with us on this trip. This is Dani's second RV trip, which in my book makes her a veteran. Hmmm . . . I wonder if she knows how to use a digital camera? But I digress . . .

Saturday morning bright and early, we got up and fixed ourselves a nice big breakfast of bacon, eggs, biscuits and papi's famous gravy. Not exactly the healthiest thing that we could have eaten, but hey, we're on vacation, even if it is for only a couple of days. After breakfast, it was off to Solvang, that cute little overcrowded, overpriced, overhyped, over-everything town where simple tourists are stripped of their money faster than a locust run on a wheat field. It's a good thing that we are more sophisticated than that! So anyhow, after our money ran out, we decided to use our last 3 dollars to treat Dani to her first taste of aebleskivers. What are aebleskivers you ask? Aebleskivers are Danish pancakes that are cooked in a ball, slathered with raspberry sauce and powdered sugar. Mmmm . . . sugar, sugar, sugar! Just what an old diabetic (me) and a seven year old (Dani) need, right? And just to give you an idea of what this delectable treat looks like, here's a crummy (crumby?) cell phone picture:

Trust me . . . they taste a LOT better than that picture looks. Just take a look at Dani digging in and it will give you and idea of just how yummy they are! As an added bonus, the lady in the window in the background is where they sell these little gems.

Uh . . . I was joking about spending all of our money . . . sort of . . . but we did get a chance to eat some lunch in Solvang too. I don't remember the name of the little place, but as is the norm, it was wonderfully overpriced. On the plus side though, the food was absolutely mediocre and the service was only second rate. Trust me, it could have been worse.

While in Solvang, Gramma bought a puzzle for Dani to put together in order to keep her busy back at camp. The puzzle was completed in record time!! Of course, gramma is the one who put it together, but hey! Who's keeping score? Here's the end result:

Nice huh? That is a pretty picture of a downey chick. Speaking of chicks, on the way back to camp from Solvang, we stopped at the ostrich and emu ranch just outside of Buellton. For the trifling sum of 4 dollars (plus a buck for food), you can go in and feed the ostriches and the emu. Ostriches are very aggressive birds when it comes to food. If you are holding a bowl full of food, they will try to take the bowl away from you by pulling it out of your hands. You have to stand your ground and hang on to your bowl. Some genius at this farm had the bright idea of bolting a plastic bowl to a metal dustpan, the handle of the dustpan granting the holder a better purchase in order to prevent said big birds from yanking the bowl out of the feeder's hands. It's actually a pretty good idea, but don't tell bubba. He'll get the big head and next thing you know he'll be trying to fix the car or something really dangerous. Anyhow, Dani went through TWO bowls of ostrich food (that's 2 bucks folks, for those of you keeping score). Here's some pics:

And of course, Papi had to get into the act. If I had known gramma was gonna take my profile picture, I would have lost that extra ten pounds! Here's a couple of pics:

Okay, so then it was back to Boldlygo for a little relaxation. Sandy took a little nap on the handy couch. There is SO MUCH ROOM compared to what we are used to. We are still trying to acustom ourselves to such a cavernous feel. I actually had to GET UP and WALK across the room to get the TV remote! Hey, I though we were here to relax?!! So anyhow, Dani found that couch very comfortable too:

Then a little bit of campfire to top off the first half of the evening:
Afterwards, we barbecued a hamburger and watched The Karate Kid. Great movie, by the way. Then off to dreamland . . .


Sunday morning was getaway day. Back to the daily grind, but not before the challenge of trying to back a large trailer into a medium sized driveway. I must say that we did a lot better job this time. We got the trailer into the proper spot with minimal "back and forthing" (is that a word?) and we didn't get mad at each other even once!


Oh, here's a picture of the rig sitting outside McDonald's. McDonald's you ask? Of course. After all, we did have a seven year old with us!! Here's the rig. Mighty handsome if you ask me:

So, this is the end of our first adventure with our new trailer, heretofore referred to as Boldlygo II and hereafter as simply "Boldlygo".

Thanks for tuning in to the Adventures of Boldlygo!

Buellton Again

November 12, 2010


Okay, so we can't get enough of this place, okay? Actually, although it has gotten a bit expensive over the last few years, they have done a lot of upgrades to the place. Plus, there is so much to do here, so much to see, so many places to go - or to stay away from as may be one's preference. Regardless, it is one of our most favorite destinations. 3 1/2 hours from home, it offers easy access for a three day weekend. So we saddled up our trusty steed and headed to Buellton, home of Pea Soup Anderson's.


Since replacing Boldlygo with Boldlygo II, this is the first place we thought to head to. We packed up first thing this morning and headed out. On this trip, Dani decided to accompany us. I'll write more about that later, as tomorrow will be our really fun day. Today is a day for relaxation, sitting around watching tv, fixing a nice supper, maybe bake some brownies.


Set up was no more complicated that it was for Boldlygo, but it seems that it took me forever to complete the task. I do sort of realize that I was not nearly as organized as I had come to be in our old trailer. I'll get there with this one, it will just take some time. I think Sandy actually had more to do than I did, what with setting out the do-dads and the trinkets, you know the stuff that makes a house a home. Anyhow, she was finished long before I was.

And now, it's time to relax. I can hear a steak and baked potatoe calling me. Please enjoy these few pictures. We'll write some more soon!

Meet Boldlygo II

On Saturday, October 30, 2010, we got up early and went to breakfast at IHOP. Why the special treatment? Why, we were going to go get our new trailer, that's what! I had previously mentioned that we had purchased a new RV and had traded off Boldlygo. Now, that whole thing is a little bit bitter sweet. I remember the thrill that we had when we purchased Boldlygo, how we had named him, how we proudly brought him home to his spot on the driveway. I remember the first trip that we took with Boldlygo. It was to a KOA in Pomona, kind of a close by "shake down" trip to try everything out and get used to our new toy. I recall our trips to Arizona, a couple of trips to Tombstone and another to Prescott. I remember fondly our arrival in Fort Sumner, New Mexico where we encountered thunder storms on the night of our arrival. I was outside of Boldlygo trying to barbecue a couple of chicken breasts for supper while the wind blew and the huge drops of rain bombarded my bare pate. I recall our frequent trips to Buellton, one of our very favorite places to go. And then, there is the first time that Dani went camping with us, to a KOA in Chula Vista (San Diego). Aw, the sentimentality . . . when I saw the guys at the RV lot hauling Boldlygo away, leaving him sitting all by himself and knowing that we were going to drive away and leave him there, I nearly got a lump in my throat. I almost thought that I might shed a tear or two . . . almost . . . nearly . . . close, but no cigar. My sentimental thoughts were rudely interrupted by . . . . Boldlygo II!! Twenty seven feet of shear comfort. The swivel chairs from which to watch our flat screen tv. The queen size island bed, so that we don't have to crawl all over each other to get up. The oven, where I can bake the cakes and cookies that I am restricted by health from eating. The THREE burner stove!! The huge fresh water tank, so that when we're dry camping, I don't have to stink on the way home! Ah, the life! Sorry Boldlygo . . . meet Boldlygo II!

We have been talking (and talking and talking) about getting a larger trailer for quite a while. We had grown a little weary of the lack of space that we had, especially on some of our longer trips. So, we set off to the RV show at the LA County Fairgrounds to check out this year's offerings. In previous shows, we had pretty much narrowed down what we really wanted in a camping trailer. Of the various floor plan offerings, we always seemed to come back to a rear lounge design. Of course, that floor plan was in a length that was a little longer than we really wanted. In the end however, comfort won out over maneuverability and we purchased the rear lounge model. Now in going to the show, we really weren't decided that we would definitely make a deal while there, but we both harbored some hopes that we might walk away with a new trailer. I have to say that if anyone is thinking about purchasing a new RV, now is a great time! The dealers are willing to cut some real deals. So anyhow, back to the story.

Our pickup date was this last Saturday, the 30th of October. I won't bore you with the PDI (Pre Delievery Inspection) as it was pretty much uneventful and went smoothly. The drive home was pretty routine also. Backing this 1/3 larger trailer into our driveway was a bit of an adventure, but I'm sure that will get better, especially as Sandy and I learn to work better as a team. The old Boldlygo was short enough that I really didn't need much help most of the time. Now however, we'll have to work a bit harder. Thank goodness Sandy has patience with me!

So, here's some more pictures:

Although I don't have any pictures of it, Buck has been introduced to the new Boldlygo. From the way he was wagging his tail and then fell asleep, we're thinking that he approves of all the extra room that he will have while camping. That's good because, after all, we bought it for him (wink, wink. Don't say anything to him, he thinks it was all about him).

First trip? Where else? Buellton for a three day weekend!! Whoo hoo! We'll blog at 'cha later about that trip.

April 23-25, 2010

We haven't updated the blog in quite some time. Although I will not include pictures here, we felt that we needed to post some sort up update, so that anyone following the blog would know we were still here :-)

On April 23, we left for Big Pine, California for the opening day of trout season. We try to make this an annual trip, most of the time the only trip to the Sierra mountains that we make in any given year. That's really too bad because it is such a wild and beautiful area. So many places to go and so little time . . .

We arrived on the 23rd and the following day was the trout opener. We did a little fishing, catching enough for us to have a nice appetizer before supper on Saturday night. We met several of our friends up there as well as my brother and sister in law. We always enjoy sharing a campground with good friends and family!

Sunday, April 25, was my mother's birthday. I called her on the way home to wish her a happy birthday and to tell her that we would not see her until later in the week when we would get together to celebrate with her. Boy was I wrong . . . mom called us at home at about 8:00. She had come home from evening services at church to find my dad unresponsive, basically comotose. An ambulance rushed him to the hospital, where he was intubated. If you are not familiar with this term, it means that they put a tube down his throat and put him on a machine that breathed for him.

After a few days dad regained consciousness, although he was never quite the same. He had days of being very lucid, but for the most part, he was not 'himself'. Ten years earlier, dad had his right lung removed because of lung cancer. His left lung was not in the greatest shape and as time marched on, it continued to deteriorate. The doctors told us that dad's remaining lung was simply not capable of continuing to support his life. After about 3 weeks in the hospital, we brought dad home, where he was placed in hospice care. God bless my mother for the wonderful and capable way that she cared for dad during that time. On May 25th, a Sunday afternoon at 4:10 pm, dad went to be with the Lord.

Although we have camped since then, San Diego (with our grand daughter), Buellton and Carpinteria, we have not taken the time to write of these (very short) trips. Our big vacation this year was an antelope hunting trip to Wyoming that we took without Boldlygo.

On October 16th, we went to the RV show at the Pomona fairgrounds and purchased a brand spanking new trailer. It is a Dutchmen 277RLS which is the model with the rear living area, complete with dual swivel chairs (his and hers :-). We don't have a pickup date yet for "Boldlygo II" but we will be blogging of that experience as well as our first camping trip with the new Boldlygo. Talk to you then!!

San Diego 03/27/2010

Well, it's been quite a while since we blogged. Of course, it's been quite some time since we were able to hit the road. On February 12, late at night, we found out that Sandy's oldest son was in the hospital in Intensive Care. The following day started a nightmare that we are just now slowly awakening from. Long story short, we nearly lost Ricky to pneumonia. We are both convinced that without the prayers of our friends and family, Rick would not be with us today. Thank you all for that!

Now, life is finally starting to find some semblance of normalcy. So with the roughest of our current road behind us, we decided to seek the relaxation and solace offered by a road trip! We really didn't have a lot of time to spare so we thought about staying in a hotel for the one night that we would be on the road. However, we both prefer our "home away from home" and decided to pull Boldlygo behind us. The Chula Vista KOA was our destination and doing nothing was our purpose. Like I have already written, it was a very short trip, but here are a few pictures to augment our story:

I know that Sandy is going to ask why in the world that I included a picture of her car. However, if you look closely, you can see that it is FILTHY DIRTY! So is my truck :-) Both were casualties of our complicated life over the last 6 weeks. Here's a shot of the truck getting ready to grab Boldlygo to pull him to the RV park. This truck has made our trips so much more relaxing. Well worth the price!
Poor Buck. He could tell that we were getting ready to go camping. This trip however, he had to stay in jail. I rubbed his head though and told him that he could go next time. In April, we're planning to hit the opening day of trout season. Buck enjoys that trip. There's lots of water for him to play in and lots of places for him to roam!
Here's a picture of Sandy getting ready to "face" the day. As soon as she's finished, we can go get some breakfast and hit the road! Notice the interesting composition of this photo.
We headed out to IHOP for a quick breakfast (the 2 x 2 x 2 is only 690 calories :-) and then over to Von's to pick up a few things. We purchased some crab meat along with some sauce, some gouda cheese and crackers and a blackberry pie to bake. Seems like a lot for one night, doesn't it? Just so nobody thinks that we're a couple of gluttons, we only had the pie.

After arriving and setting up camp, we headed over to Belmont to walk along the boardwalk. While there, we came across and group of people who were roller dancing to some old 70's disco music. I'm not sure that 'roller dancing' is the right term, but that's what it looked like to me. For the most part, the folks that were doing this were old people like me. It looked like a lot of fun!

After soaking in a little sun, we headed over to Old Town San Diego for some Mexican food and home made tortillas! Stuffed and fully sated, we headed back to the RV park. Here's a picture of what we did for the rest of the evening.
Yes, it was a very short trip. It was also a very needful trip. Thank you Angel for taking me camping this weekend :-)