Gave My Wife Away . . .
Well, not so much as gave her away, but loaned her out for a couple of days.
Jan and I left the rig a little before 11 heading up to Webster to meet up with Brandi, Lowell, and Landon at Floyd’s Cajun Seafood for lunch. Then Jan was going back with them up to Katy to Landon-sit for a couple of days until I pick her up on Tuesday morning.
Then on Thursday night, Brandi, Lowell, and Landon, plus Sonja and Lindell, Lowell’s parents, and his sister, Sherry, will all be back down here to have our annual Christmas Eve family dinner at King Food, something we’ve done for over 30 years, with only a few misses.
The next day, Christmas, Jan and I will drive up to Brandi’s to spent Christmas Day with everyone all over again.
Our meal at Floyd’s was just as delicious as always. I started off with my usual Shrimp Gumbo,
just full of shrimp.
Jan, Lowell, and Brandi all got the Chicken Fried Chicken with Mashed Potatoes.
Part of the secret of how good this is is the gravy. Maybe the best we’ve ever tasted.
And yes, those are mashed potatoes, just artfully dished out. And delicious.
For me, I tried something a little different, at least for what I usually get here, the Blackened Chicken Breast with Grilled Green Beans.
The Green Beans are a new addition to the menu, and grilled with onions and bacon, I’ll certainly have them again.
Landon had a Salad with Fried Chicken Tenders, with Ranch Dressing.
The kid likes salad, who knew?
Thought For The Day:
There are some stories I just don’t want to know more about.
Illegal Winery Discovered at Alabama Sewage Plant
December 20, 2012
At least Mister didn’t eat him . . . Yet
Well, the cold front showed up about 3am this morning, and really made itself known.
When I went to bed a little before 2am, the temperature outside was still 72 degrees. But Jan and I were both awakened a little after 3 by wind, rain, and the sound of flapping awnings. In a little over an hour the temperature had dropped to 55 degrees, which was pretty much going to be the high for the day.
The rain didn’t last all that long, but the high winds continued well into the afternoon. About 11am Jan and I heard a loud bang, and looking out, saw our neighbor’s large dog kennel tumbling end over end. It was only stopped when it crashed into our bird feeder and smashed it to the ground.
Then a little later, I looked out to see one of our director chairs had almost blown into the bay. Luckily I was able to grab it in time.
Later in the afternoon Jan and I headed out for a couple of errands, and then dinner with some friends. But we didn’t get far, just barely out of the park.
As we were turning on to the road looping under the bridge, we saw a small dog running down the highway. There was a car going around the corner, but we didn’t know if the dog belonged to them or not.
Since the dog was running away from any houses, we stopped and picked him up. It took Jan a few minutes to coax him to her, but once he was in her arms, he was shivering, but pretty calm.
After driving around for a while looking for someone looking for the dog, we went back to the rig so I could make some posters.
The lady next door said she thought it looked like a dog that would sometimes chase her when she biked in the area where we found the dog.
While we were at the rig, Mister, our 27 pound cat, discovered the canine intruder and was not pleased at all, except maybe in a “dinner is served” sense.
Mister hates dogs and will attack any that get near him. Here he is going after a poodle that got too close.
Luckily for the poodle I put Mister inside at this point.
With people, kids, and even other cats, Mister is just a big cuddly pussy cat. But let a dog near him and he goes into full attack mode.
His ears go back, he lets out a loud yowl, his tail swishes back and forth, and then he charges. He’s gone after German Shepherds, Chows, and Great Danes. And so far, I’ve never seen a dog stand up to him. They all turn and run.
He’s got his claws and seems to know how to use them. He even used them on me once.
He was a stray who was living behind one of my client’s offices, and when I brought him home in 2006, I was holding him in my arms as I walked in the front door when our Border Collie/Chow mix ran over and started to jump up to greet me.
Mister’s head whirled around, and with fire in his eyes, his claws came out and he darn near took my nose off, before jumping out of my arms and going after the dog.
But then as soon as I got the dog outside, stopped the bleeding, and sat down, Mister was right back up in my lap, wanting to be petted. Apparently all was forgiven.
Anyway, before we put the posters up, we checked a couple of businesses in the area and no one recognized the dog. Bummer.
Hopefully someone will see the posters tomorrow and call. There is an no kill animal rescue place right down the road (unfortunately, they’re full) and tomorrow we’ll take him down there and see if he’s chipped. Hopefully so.
Now we just have to keep him away from Mister.
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Thought for the Day:
“A people unwilling to use extreme violent force to preserve or obtain their liberty deserves the tyrants that rule them.”
December 20, 2014
Planes, Cars, and a Chicken . . . Ranch
Finishing up yesterday’s road trip, about 3pm we headed out on the 2 hour trip down to Alvin, Texas to attend the Alvin Opry Christmas Show. But our first stop was at the Kelley’s Restaurant to meet our friend Maria for dinner. We always allow extra time there because they get really busy on Friday nights, and this time was no different. But finishing up dinner, we got to the Alvin Opry a little after 7pm, just in time for the 7:30 show.
It was really great catching up with all our old friends, and meeting new ones. But the show was even better. But besides all the great Christmas songs and music, the highlight of the show for us was John Mark Davis. Here’s what I wrote about him last year.
John Mark is the full-blooded son of a chief of the Adai Caddo Indians of Louisiana, and has performed all over the country. He has opened for Mark Chesnutt and Tracy Byrd, and was offered a slot opening for Dwight Yoakum, but due to a prior obligation was unable to accept.
He was also twice an award winner in the Nashville’s Music City Song Fest, and really knows how to work a crowd and keep you entertained. He’s also know for his hilarious versions of Kaw-Liga, Running Bear, and Please Mr. Custer.
You can go here and download for free, or listen to one of John Mark’s songs oh his website.
It’s hard not to like a guy who sings ‘Running Bear”, complete with pow wow dancing and war whoops from both him and audience. And in the background, the band is singing, “Um Chucka Lucka, Um Chucka Lucka, Um Chucka Lucka . . .”
Politically correct, John Mark is not.
After a great night, we finally got home about 12:15am after I made a stop for coffee since it had been a long day.
As far as today, after coffee this morning, I checked in with Randy next door to see how his battery situation was going. Found out that so far the power converter is still keeping the batteries topped off about 12.8 volts. Tomorrow when we’ll have more time, we’ll take the converter offline and see how the batteries handle some load from the coach.
But today, we wanted to do some tourist things, so about 1pm we made the 30 minute trip west to Schulenburg to visit the Stanzel Model Aircraft Museum. We visited, or rather, I visited here in March 2007 on our very first RV trip in our CruiseAmerica rental Class C.
Since it was a ‘toy’ museum, Jan wanted to stay out in the RV and finish packing things away for our 3 week trip out west. So she never saw it.
But they have added a new building since then and I knew that Jan would want to the see the restored 1800’s family home next door, we were back here again.
The Stanzel brother’s Victor and Joe, were pre-eminent in the model aircraft world from the late 1920’s until the early 2000’s when the last brother died.
The Stanzel Company started out making ‘ornamental’ (I.e. non-flying) aircraft models that were sold to nearby cadets and collectors. Stanzel models were known for their absolute attention to detail, and proved to be very popular.
Later in the early 30’s they started selling their planes as kits with 11 different models available. In fact they were selling so fast they had to expand their production and hire more people. . . . in the Depression.
A few years later they were building full-size aircraft and rocketship rides for fairs and carnivals.
Next up was a tour of a mockup of their factory.
The center display was another carnival ride that the company was working on when the last brother died.
This is an injection molding machine that was used to make the many small plastic parts used on the models.
At the peak of production, the factory employs over 170 people, and made every part of their many products, including printing and cutting the boxes for the products. Nothing outsourced to China here
Next up was Jan’s favorite part, the restored Stanzel family home right next door.
Originally built in the mid 1800’s, it has been restored and furnished as it was in the 1880’s.
Miss Lillian, our guide, has worked for the family for years, starting out in the factory.
The kitchen with the coal-burning stove and the dry sink.
The bedroom with the rope bed.
And of course the obligatory chamberpot.
This is a quilting frame for large quilts.
The baking and food preparation area.
And an old time washing machine and a bath tub. All near the kitchen since the water had to be heated on the stove.
The Stanzel Museum is a fun visit, especially if you owned some of their toys over the years as I did. And even better, unlike some private museums, it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to visit. Just $4.00 for adults, and $2.00 for seniors. Nice!
There are a lot of other museums around town, but for some reason Jan didn’t want to visit this one.
You’d think she didn’t like the accordion, or something.
Next up, we turned around and headed back up TX71 almost to La Grange. We had passed Timeless Texas Classics a number of times, but this was our chance to stop and visit.
As the sign says, they will sell you a restored auto, restore yours, or sell you parts from their own bone yard out back.
We were warmly greeted by Lance Herrington, the owner., and given the run of the place. As long as we didn’t touch anything.
The sign says that “Buttons and Buckles scratch. So please do not lay on these cars unless you are NAKED!”
Then in smaller letters underneath, it says, “And FEMALE!”
Sounds like he’s serious.
This is his personal T-Bird that he bought new over 40 years ago, and he still has it. But it can be yours for a price.
$300,000.00
Sounds like he really doesn’t want to part with it.
This is a rare 1963 Falcon Sprint Convertible. Not that many were made, and not that many survived.
And this Ford Fairlane Victoria can be yours for only $36,000.
Another rare beauty, this is a 1963 Thunderbird Sports Roadster. Only 455 were made, and it’s NOT for sale.
This is a 1946 Ford Deluxe Delivery Van, complete with the fabled Flathead V8.
As you can tell, Mr. Herrington is partial to Fords, especially Thunderbirds.
If you like cars, you’ll like this place. And even better, it’s free.
Our last visit of the day was to a Texas icon, one of the most famous places in Texas history. Storied in books, plays, movies, and songs, everyone in America knows exactly what you’re talking about.
And, no, it’s not the Alamo. And it’s not the Houston Astrodome.
This is the former location of the one and only . . .
Chicken Ranch, I.e. The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.
It’s not much to look at now. In fact, there’s nothing to look at now. In 1977, four years after the place closed, two Houston lawyers bought the place and moved the building and the furnishings to Dallas where it reopened as a restaurant with the former madam, Miss Edna, as the hostess. It closed the next year.
Seems like Miss Edna was better at running a whorehouse than a restaurant, because in its heyday in the 50’s, it was making over $3.5 million a year, with each of the 16 girls averaging over $2000 a week in today’s dollars.
You can read more about the history of the Chicken Ranch here. It’s an interesting read. I think my favorite part is the helicopter that the Army supplied to ferry soldiers to and from the place. Your tax dollars at work.
Tomorrow afternoon we’re driving in to meet Brandi, Lowell,and Landon. And of course,eat dinner at Little V’s Vietnamese Bistro. Can’t miss that.
Finally, I received confirmation the other day that Jan and I will be giving our seminar on gate guarding at the 54th Escapade in Tucson, starting March 8th. Called “Gate Guarding for Fun? And Profit”, it will cover everything from how to get started to how to survive on the gate, the do’s and don’s, and what to expect.
I don’t know the day and time yet, but I’ll let you know.
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Thought for the Day:
“There are no great men, just great challenges which ordinary men, out of necessity, are forced by circumstances to meet.” – Admiral William F. “Bull” Halsey
December 20, 2015
Back in Conroe . . .
Jan and I were up about 7:30 this morning. early for me since this in a travel day. But since we weren’t leaving until around 10am, we relaxed for a while, with Jan fixing us egg and cheese biscuits to have with our coffee, Really good.
I started up the rig about 9:40 and raised the levelers so I could get the pads out from under the rig. About this time Bonnie and Vance Clegg, our next door neighbors and new friends, came over to say goodbye. They’ll still be here when we come back in two weeks so we made plans to get together then.
We were hooked up and pulling out of the park by about 10:15. Getting out on I-10E we found it had become a very windy day, and stayed that way all the way to Conroe. Not windy enough to be a real problem, but enough that I had to stay on top of it.
We pulled into the Lake Conroe Thousand Trails a little after 1pm, and Kim, the head ranger got us checked in. She said that there were no 50amp open sites in the ‘E’ ring where we normally like to stay, but there were some in the newly-remodeled ‘G’ area. So after we got unhitched, we drove over through that area and quickly found a prime site.
So nice in fact, I kind of wondered why it was empty. But we quickly got backed in and parked. But when I went to get power, water, and sewer hooked up, it quickly became obvious why the site was empty. Probably 95% of 40ft Class A’s couldn’t hook up here.
When the rig is far enough toward the rear of the site so that you can park your toad out in front, the power pedestal is actually about a foot out in front of the rig. In fact I doubt anyone with a standard length power cord could hook up at all. The first owner of our American Eagle ordered it with the optional extra-long power cord, and a couple of times I’ve been able to connect to the power pedestal at the site next to ours during power problems.
But even with my long cord, I was just barely able to connect to power. In addition I had to use two sections of sewer hose because the sewer connection is also way forward. But since we can hook up here, and most rigs probably can’t, maybe this will be our spot from now on.
After goofing off for a while we headed about 3pm. First up was ‘linner’ at one of our new favorite places, Raisin’ Cane’s Chicken Fingers. We first ate at one on last year’s gate near Bryan/College Station, and a few more times since then.
And it’s always really good.
Then it was next door to the Home Depot to pick up a 5/8” countersink for my next project that I’ll talk about tomorrow. After that we made a stop at an HEB to pick up a few things, including a couple of their oven-roasted turkey breasts to have for our family Christmas dinner on Friday.
We’re really looking forward to getting together with everyone.
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Thought for the Day:
“If a law is unjust, a man is not only right to disobey it, he is obligated to do so.” – Thomas Jefferson
December 20, 2017
We Got Plucked . . .
No much new happened at work today. I did get a call from my client yesterday evening saying the Shipping area machine was down.
I asked if he wanted me to come and take a look at it, but he said no, just wanted me to know for this morning. And I’m really glad I didn’t to in since it only took me about 5 seconds to fix it.
The machine was offline, so I just unplugged the USB WiFi adapter and then plugged it right back in. And Bingo!, it was fixed.
When I got home about 4:30, we turned right around and headed back up to Webster to get Plucked.
At Plucker’s, a wing place that just opened a couple of weeks ago.
In fact, I just noticed them a few days ago as I was going into work.
Plucker’s has a pretty varied menu from wings, burgers, sandwiches, salads, and apps, but why would you go to a place called Plucker’s and get anything but the wings.
But we started out with an order of their Fried Pickles, free for a limited time. Really good. And even Jan, who doesn’t like dill pickles, liked them.
Next up was Side Salads for both of us,
with their really tasty home-made Ranch Dressing.
And finally the pièce de résistance, what are advertised as the largest wings available.
And they are big, much bigger than Hooters or Buffalo Wild Wings. Jan got 10 wings, half with Honey BBQ and half with Buffalo Medium.
I got my usual all drums with Ginger Peach Sriracha sauce. along with a side of their Fire in the Hole sauce, the hottest they have. The wings were delicious and Ginger Peach Sriracha is my new favorite sauce, topping Buffalo Wild Wings Mango Habanero, my past favorite.
However I was disappointed in their ‘superhot’ Fire in the Hole sauce. It was not as hot as BWW’s Blazin’ sauce and all I could taste was the vinegar base. And that vinegar taste why, though I like really hot stuff, I don’t care for any of the standard hot sauces, like Tabasco, Frank’s, Louisiana Pete’s, etc. All I can taste is vinegar.
However I do really like Sriracha. Although it has vinegar in it, it’s not enough for me to taste.
So as it stands now, Plucker’s is our new favorite wing place, and we’ll go back soon.
Tomorrow is a busy day. I’ve got to stop by Cracker Barrel around 11am to pick up the big pan of Cornbread Dressing that we ordered the other day.
Then in the afternoon, we’ll head into downtown Houston for Jan’s Birthday Present. Although her birthday was back in October, her present starts at 3:30 tomorrow afternoon at the Toyota Convention Center and the
We’ve both wanted to see TSO for years but this is the first time it’s worked into our schedule.
And then afterwards, another favorite of ours, Longhorn Steakhouse, when we get back to the Webster.
Looking forward to a great day.
The Headline of the Day: Wal-Mart Planning Stores Without Cashiers.
Somehow I thought they were already doing this.
Thought for the Day:
Funny, but I always thought that growing old would take longer.
