South Texas

We have been comfortably settled in South Texas for a few days, seeing my brother John and his wife Anna and continuing to get Pancho in shape-or at least trying to.  BD has installed some very handy shelves, taking advantage of wasted and poorly allocated space.  What we thought was a gray tank blockage turned out to be a factory mistake, switching the gray and black output.  When you thought you were emptying the gray tank, you were actually emptying the black.  A replacement part is "on its way" and then the challenge will be finding someone to do the warranty installation.  We are finding that we are at the end of the line for warranty work since the coach wasn't bought from these dealers.  Some places are two months out.  A friend, sympathizing with my previous whiny blog, sent this as a lower tech alternative to Pancho.

South Texas is an interesting area.  It is the most southerly location in the U.S. with the exception of South Florida, and is latitude wise like Loreto, BC.  The weather is typically warm and nice in the winter, attracting migratory senior midwesterners and Canadians as well as birds.  The demographics are pretty interesting.  The permanent residents are largely Hispanic and it is not unusual to be the only Anglo in a shop or restaurant.  It would be a great place to learn and practice Spanish.  The seasonal people tend to live in Over 55 parks, some RV, some mobile homes and some stick built homes.  There are hundreds of these parks, each with different features and characteristics. We are renting an RV space in John's park but most of the homes are mobile homes.  John and Anna's home has been extensively expanded and is super comfortable.  The area is a major citrus growing center, known for fabulous grapefruit and smells heavily of citrus blossom.  I have a quart of grapefruit juice awaiting a bit of vodka for the cocktail hour.  The juice is surprisingly sweet.  Several pounds of grapefruit will feed us as we travel down the road.

John and Anna outside Pancho

I had seen an advertisement for a nearby park that has interesting plans for small homes with a patio and "RV Port."  We went to look at it and were impressed with the concept.  It provides great sun/weather protection for the rig while not traveling.

One evening we went to a nearby park for a "Patsy Cline" concert.  The clubhouse was packed with people from Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska and even Saskatchewan.  They clearly enjoyed the show based on the applause, but exhibited the well known midwestern reserve during the songs, reminiscent of my childhood with parents from Iowa and Minnesota.  Anna and I couldn't help but move a bit with the music.

The singer sounded exactly like Patsy Cline

Here are a couple of links to one of my all time favorite songs, the first by Patsy and then the classic version by Gogi Grant.  I prefer the latter and consider it one of my travel theme songs.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzsxlbqZ-RA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SaeWh3h8Fg

While we haven't seen my niece Christina, her husband Chris and their two kids, Maddie and Nori since October, I am periodically updated as to their doings.  A milestone is being reached, almost, as Nori learns to use a spoon.

Somehow the concept got lost

  So much better this way.  I did ask permission to use the picture, concerned that such a record on the internet might nix entry to Harvard some day but Christina did not share my worry.

John and Anna have an exuberant, black lab mix ( I think that might be redundant).  Katie, who is about 10 months old,  was dropped off in their park as a puppy and Anna heard her crying outside her porch.  Being dog lovers, they gave Katie a home, concerned that the adoption record at the local shelter was not that good.  Without a yard, it is hard for her to get exercise so John and I have been taking her and Max to the fabulous, square block dog park.  About 1/4th is for small dogs, the rest for large dogs.  Katie got frightened when she went to the large dog park and Anna got slammed by some big mastiffs, so we use the small dog park.  Katie is over the weight limit but the other small dog owners are always gracious about allowing her in.  Katie is overcoming her fear and getting great exercise.  We go early to avoid crowds.

The huge McAllen Texas dog park

John, Katie and Max

Today we head out for a few days in Port Isabel, close to Brownsville and South Padre Island.  We are staying at an ownership park, renting a spot on a lake.  With Spring break underway we are lucky to get such a choice spot.  We are staying in the general area pending our appointment near Houston on April 7 for the necessary warranty work.  A 2 1/2 week wait was the best we could do.

On the Road Again with Pancho and Lefty Toad

With my travel bug travel stalled for nearly a year and a half, I realized that my unrequieted passion was not unique after reading Steinbeck's Travels with Charley,

"...when the virus of restlessness begins to take possession of a wayword man, and the road away from Here seems broad and straight and sweet, the victim must first find himself a good and sufficient reason for going.  This to the practical bum is not difficult."

When Steinbeck was preparing for his 3 month trip he saw in others "something I was to see over and over in every part of the nation-a burning desire to go, to move, to get underway, any place, away from Here."

Since the last significant travel, the road from Here has loomed larger and larger.  Finally, after 3 house sales, two surgeries and more Seal Beach house maintenance than expected, we are on the road again.  This time Mr. Lefty Toad has a new pal, Pancho Palazzo.  Pancho is a nearly 35' diesel pusher, only three weeks old.  Their traveling song is perfect for our current stay in Texas.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvdmxszsDM8

While Pancho sounds like a tough cowboy with his big diesel engine, air brakes etc., he is in touch with his feminine side, equipped with an 18' fridge, washer and dryer, nice galley and plenty of storage, a/c capacity.  Oh, did I mention a nice furnace?  We are now in the lovely town of Fredericksburg in the Hill Country of Texas where we hunkered down during the recent midwest blizzard.  This area,  normally populated with snowbirds in the winter, suffered several days of freezing weather.  We were toasty warm except when we needed to brave the cold and 19mph winds to take the boys out.  Speaking of boys, Raggie is 17 1/2 and slow but still trucking.  Max is 4 and getting easier all the time.  He will probably always be a challenge because of his early experiences, 8 prior placements and shelters and perhaps, a reactive temperament to boot.  He is very affectionate, curious and obedient, that is when he is not distracted.

We took delivery of Pancho in AZ and spent a few days in the funky town of Quartzsite.  Moving from Bella to Pancho required putting everything in boxes and then there was the fun chore of figuring out how to stow things in the new configuration.  Himself (he now calls himself Big Dog, hereafter BD) cleverly began to figure how to retrofit some of the ill conceived cupboards with additional shelves to make convenient space.  We plan to spend months traveling, so the handier it is the better.  The weather was comfortable in Quartzsite which is a funky town frequented by snowbirds, rockhounds and many members of the fringe culture.  The poster child for the town is the owner of the bookstore.

Quartzsite Bookstore Owner with Vashon Patron (just kidding)

We spent a few days in Tucson with our dear friends Larry and Sherril.  Their hospitality, and help 
figuring out Pancho, was very much appreciated.  We also enjoyed seeing Suzanne, a transplant from SoCal, who hosted a lovely potluck in her relatively newly purchased home.  They all live in the community of Civano, which is a wonderful planned community, featuring many environmentally friendly design elements and attractively laid out, smaller homes

Civano

Just a few comments on buying a new motorhome.  First they are enormously complicated.  Second, the dealers, at least ours, are so quick to sell the coach and get you out the door that they overlook careful prep and do not provide adequate orientation. Third, manufacturers build the interiors for "curb appeal," forgetting that these things are lurching down the road.   Visit a few boat builders and figure out how to make drawers that don't crash open already!  While in Tucson we made several trips to Camping World for things that needed fixing or, in many instances, explaining.  We ended up hiring an off duty tech to come to Civano and spend 2 1/2 hours walking up through the systems and features of the coach.  I took 5 full pages of notes and the following morning, diagramed the electrical system.  This is not simple as sources consist of shore power, battery power (two different battery systems) solar and generator.  It is important for trouble shooting and for operation to understand how they work, what their capacity is, what works on 120 vs 12 volt.....NEVER did I think I would be troubling my little head with these pesky issues, but...  Freightliner, the chassis manufacturer (whatever is a chassis?), runs a two day course for RV'ers who own rigs with their chassis.  I have decided I will suck it up and attend along with BD, if we can find a schedule that works for us.  SC in July won't do it!  Next will be learning to drive Pancho, who assures me he is "easy."  I see many female drivers in the truck stops where we fuel so, why not me?

The next stop should be South Texas to see my brother John.