Sunday, October 12, 2008




Another Texas sunset. Isn't it beautiful?

These shots are from August 10th and as you can see the building has almost reached us. Can't wait for the garage near us to be finished..we plan on reserving one! Not much to talk about except the need to constantly clean up the blowing debris. Between plastic bags, cups, cans, bottles, and lightweight building stuff our patio seems to be decorated everyday. Have fun watching the birds fight over all the food scraps the workers toss around but will talk about that some other time.

(Not so) Funny experiences of RV living. When we 1st got here there was no electricity yet so we had to use our generator which works off our propane tank. Apparently there are 2 lines from the tank. One line feeds the generator and the other our stove and fridge. Had no problem for a few days then all of a sudden we could not light our stove. Assumed we had run out of propane. So we had to pack everything up and drive to get a refill. This is a real pain and the only thing I don't like about a motorhome versis a 5th wheel or trailer. There is no removable, easy to take and get refilled, tank. With the class a the whole unit has to go with the tank. Anyhow, it turned out that the tank was not empty and the guy at the station said we have a problem with the valve. Got back to our site and when Jim backed in he went a little too far and the RV went down over the pad built for it. Luckily there were a lot of heavy duty tractors around so we got a front end loader and the driver pulled us out with no trouble. Saw this happen to an RV in TN and it cost $500.00 for this service. Our guy wouldn't even take a Coke. It did however cost us $150.00 for another guy to come and fix our valve. Seems there is a built in safety valve and if the tank is not shut off while filling this valve closes. The repairman said the pressure jamed this safety valve shut tight.

Lesson learned. Since we will be stationary on jobs for long periods of time we are going to purchase an auxilary tank that can be removed as needed. Also watch the filling mechanic to make sure the valve is closed before pumping.

Monday, October 06, 2008






We'd been here at the construction site for 1 month when these pictures were taken. You can see that construction is moving closer to our RV site. We have had very little rain and building is ahead of schedule. We had to put boards down after it did rain because the clay built up on our shoes so bad we grew a few inches and they were hxxx to clean.

Jim built the picnic table thinking we would be able to sit in the shade under our awning. That was when we had an awning. Texas has terrible, out of nowhere, wind gusts. One of them came by and took our awning off. The anchor bars to the RV just yanked and twisted out. Fortunately the replacement was covered by insurance. Since we have to remain on property during our contract the hard part was finding a repairman to come here for the estimate and replacement. That took over a month but we do not put the awning up anymore. We tried a tarp staked to the ground...wind got that too. So we just sit and enjoy the Texas sun and sunsets.

On the job experience. When the site boss leaves for the day we lock the access gates and anyone working late on property has to come and get us to let them out. I drive around every 45-60 minutes to check. I always count vehicles when I drive around. One evening we were down to 1 truck left. I waited at the RV until it was getting really dark out, then drove to where the truck should have been, but it was gone. I checked every gate, we have 5, and they were all locked. I'm hysterical by now, how could I have lost a truck! I called Dan, the site boss, and he just started laughing. They took a gate off the hinges he said. We construction guys do it all the time! Jim still thinks they had a key but everyone I have talked to laughed and said the same thing. When I told our security boss he said I can tell you exactly what happened. They took the gate off the hinges. It is apparently standard proceedure. So I made up cards with a picture of a lock and key with our phone #'s and handed them out to anyone working late or coming in on the weekends when the gates are always locked. Since most workers are Spanish the picture sends the message. Hasn't happened again.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008




It's been 2 weeks since the last pictures were taken and you can see the progress. The roads around the complex have been blacktopped and buildings have started to be erected. These were taken with the zoom to show better detail. For a week we got to listen to BIG rollers packing down the gravel. The rollers would go by followed by the water truck to keep the dust down. Over and over again! Then an oil truck comes in and coats the compressed soil. When this has a chance to set the blacktop itself if poured on. Then, guess what, more rollers to pack the asphalt down and get any airpockets to pop. While this was being done we had to park our car outside the gates and walk in.
We laughed at what a tough job this security thing was. Just sit in your RV and look out over the property!

Black eyed susans grow all along the fence. Another TX wildflower in abundance. My patio itself is cruddy but my garden is beautiful. Better yet nature did the planting! Whenever I post I'll include a flower.

Lest everyone think this is all fun and games we have had a few problems along the way. Heading down to TN we hit some really, really, REALLY Rough road and one corner of the RV's underside storage area pulled loose. We got a welder to come and attach upright braces to the frame. What did we learn...eliminate excess weight and try to stow items so there is minimal shifting. Also learned that the area involved must have been sagging prior to purchase because after the brackets were welded on we had a very hard time getting a cooler out. That cooler had gone in with no problem and of course we didn't think to empty the area before lifting it permanently. Other confessions will follow but I can only handle one at a time. Ah the joys of homeownership!

Monday, September 15, 2008




Our wandering days are over (for awhile), and on June 16th we arrived at our new home site, place of employment for the next 8-10 months. Right now there are dirt roads, construction materials, and heavy traffic along I-35 which is our next door neighbor.

Nothing was ready for our arrival so the 1st night we were really grateful to have a self contained unit. Only bad part was no electricity to run the AC. It was a hot night with no breeze and the noise from the interstate did nothing to allow for a good nights sleep. They found a corner of the construction site that would be about the last area developed, took a pile of gravel, crushed it, and rolled it down for a place to park our rig on. The electricians set up a box for us to plug into and water pipes were run from a hydrant (with potable water - we checked with the city!). Ever since we entered TX I have been amazed by the wildflowers growing everywhere. I've posted 1 that is along the fenceline of what I call our patio. HaHa. It's going to be interesting to see these pictures change as this site will be transformed into a 13 building, 280 unit apartment complex, with pool and clubhouse.

Monday, September 01, 2008






Easily recognized buffalo, donkey, llahma, and I had to post a picture of the squirrel because we've seen so few of them here in Texas.



The Zebra weren't out on our 1st drive around so we went again and this time found them.




If anyone is looking for Bambi I can send you directions.




This spot is for the birds!








Here are various and sundry long horned animals. Can you imagine the damage one of them could do to your car?





As you hopefully can tell these are Giraffes, a camel, a lemur in the childrens zoo, and a couple of lazy rhinos.

TX Wildlife Safari, San Antonio was our last sightseeing before reporting to work. Entering these pictures brings me back to the reality of life. Therefore I have procrastinated! Truth be told these were taken on June 12th. It was a fun place to be. Most of the animals that roam around are range animals. We thought it was interesting how the animals were incouraged to "visit" with the guests.
We were 2nd in line when the gates opened. You pay admission and you can buy bags of feed pellets for a buck, I mean a dollar. They are to feed the bucks! You can drive around all day if you like. There is also a petting zoo and cafe.

Anyhow, just before opening they place flakes of hay along the roadside..this is sure to bring the animals out. A little later they dropped corn kernels along the road..more inticement to come out. Add people with bags of tasty pellets and you can see why the animals are so friendly. It's amazing that they all don't look like hippos!

The animals in cages are either dangerous or in the case of the Giraffes, are being bred for other locations. Hope everyone enjoys the pictures that follow this post. All are from TX Safari. This is where your shirt and book came from Lee!

I seem unable to get multiple photos on each line no matter how I try to position them so---I decided to publish groups of pictures 1st, then my comments last so that this post will be 1st. Got that!

I was wrong again! Apparently because I created this 1st and published last, it showed up here instead of before the pictures...blankety, Blankety, BLANK!!!

Monday, July 28, 2008






Canyon Lake, TX is about halfway between San Antonio and Austin. We still weren't
positive when our start date on the construction site would be so we set up at a COE park on Canyon Lake. Here the deer owned the grounds and tolerated humans.

This was the 3rd COE campgrounds we stayed at and again discovered how different each is. At Obey River the main wildlife was water birds and the area was primarily a sports fishing paradise. Cedar Breaks had next to no wildlife and signs were posted everywhere not to feed what there was. Georgetown Lake is almost entirely pleasure boating and we saw only a few waterfowl. Canyon Lake also is for pleasure boating, fish and fowl are few, but the deer are many. These shots were taken during our stay there June 8th-16th.