We had smoke coming from under the hood in Austin and then a little bit more while putzing around Galveston. So I made an appointment with GMC dealership in New Orleans where I know we would be for a few days. Our last 2 days of travel to New Orleans the HVAC fan was temperamental…wouldn’t run at all then randomly would start up again. Then in Baton Rouge I got the dash message that said I had 500 miles of DEF left…I figured I’d just have dealer top it off for me.
Author: Huck
Life on the move
We’re still total newbies at this but here are a few observations about a life on the move.
FlotaSHON, ConnecSHON and DestinaSHON
I’m an Adam Sandler fan and love to imitate Cajun Man. Today was a drive day that took us into a new state: Louisiana! So, I had to bust out a few -tion- words to annoy my lovely wife. So now I will share with you some of the highlights of this travel day in my best Cajun Man accent.
Galveston, oh Galveston
Growing up my folks had a radio that sat on top of our fridge which never had its tuner knob on anything other than KSSS…”K triple S, country’s best”. Glen Campbell had a popular song called Galveston that would stream out that radio. I thought I knew the song pretty well but apparently never paid attention to the lyrics because I had Galveston pictured as a dusty cow town. But now I come to find out its an island!! Ok, ok….I didn’t just find that out, but I was an adult before I realized it was a coastal town. Hopefully my kids are smarter than their old man. Anyway, we moved from Goose Island to Galveston Island and it was not one of my favorite drives.
Big boat, big beach and big tree
Today we planned to venture to the Corpus Christi area so we packed a lunch and Steph took the wheel of the beast so I could work in the passenger seat. I don’t know why, but I’m still amazed that this little tiny hotspot I have gives me internet in the cool locations where we park our home…but when it gives me internet while we’re driving I feel like I’m living in the future! Anyhow, first stop, was dropping us boys off at the USS Lexington.
Worship and the Superbowl
How to do church on the road? I thought we’d be able to listen to podcasts from our church home, Grace Place, but it requires iTunes and I’m allergic to iAnything. I should probably suck it up for God and install the app though. Anyway, this week we were in the town of Rockport TX on Sunday and I found a church that seemed to have a good website describing their values, service times and it said “come as you are” and had a picture of a pair of shorts….so I was sold!
Goose Island
We had made reservations at Goose Island State Park for a few days and we needed to pick up a package there. The drive to the park was pretty straight forward but the park was surprisingly full. They told us to drive around and figure out a spot we wanted and then come back. We were camping in the “wooded area” which is full of really cool trees…but could I squeeze my big rolling home into some of these spots? We chose one we thought would work and started to park. It was a back in site so Steph spotted my blind side while I backed in. An englishman from Canada, Tim, came over to help while our neighbor Lee watched. One shot was all it took!
After setting up home and having some lunch Dacen and I went for a bike ride to the bay. It was SUPER windy out at the “premium” bay side campsites….sure glad we’re in the wooded area. Our package had arrived at the park office so we picked it up on our way home.
We hung out in the yard for awhile then the kids and I went on a walk around the park. We found a nature trail that was real nice. We met a dog, climbed a tree and toured a teardrop camper.
I definitely prefer the state park campgrounds to the commercial, private parks. Sure they don’t have sewer but our tanks do the trick for several days. They have so much more space, great views, are quiet and CHEAP!
Dacen and Papa go for a bike ride to the bay
Dacen on the bay
A sand (or shell) bar
Home
Tailgate party
Nature hike
Great climbing trees out here
The "big tree" over 1000 years old
Seriously some of the best climbing trees I've seen
Prayers for CMC man
It was a beautiful Saturday morning. Clear blue skies and warm sun. We were trucking south on I-37 towards Corpus Christi going our usual less-than-the-speed-limit speed when a group of 8-10 motorcycles passed us in the left lane. They had some really nice looking bikes and they were all wearing their Calaveras Motorcycle Club of San Antonio jackets. Maybe 10-15 minutes later I see brake lights ahead and so I slow down to see a bike down in the middle of the interstate! All his comrades had peeled off the interstate and were coming back to his aid…many of them didn’t even use their kickstands….they just dropped their bikes and were running back. As we approached I could guess what happened. There was a pretty good chunk of carpet in the interstate and more like it in the back of a pickup that was pulled over. So I think the carpet flew out of the bed of the truck and interfered with the biker. As we creeped passed we could tell the man was moving but we prayed…we prayed hard that he would be ok.
How quickly a perfect day can turn into a nightmare. I thought about the man’s mom…the pain she would feel knowing her son was hurt. I thought about the guy in the truck hauling the carpet…the guilt he must feel. I thought about the importance of community as the biker’s buddies all came running to help without regard for their pricey bikes.
Lord, give peace to the biker’s mom/wife/family, healing to the biker’s body, healing to the heart and mind of the carpet hauler and blessings to the biker’s buddies. Amen
San Antonio
We took the bus into downtown San Antonio to explore the famous river walk. We went by the courthouse and then to the cathedral where a funeral was just wrapping up. It was a beautiful building outside and in. Next we went to the market square where there are a bunch of little Mexican shops. I thought for sure I could score some of my favorite Mexican candy Pulparindo. The first time you eat pulparindo you are certain that someone is playing a trick on you…surely nobody would purposefully make something that tastes so nasty. The 2nd time you try it you are just mad at yourself for trying it again. But by the 3rd time you’ll be hooked on it! To my disappointment, nobody had it or seemed to know where I could score some of this strange but delicious treat. We stopped along the river walk to eat our brown bag lunch then went off in search of the Alamo. On the way back to catch the bus we decided to splurge on some Ben and Jerry’s since we had 2 for 1 coupons…even with those, its crazy expensive. My favorite was The Tonight Dough starring Jimmy Fallon….peanut butter in chocolate ice cream is the best.
We asked 3 different people where to catch the 42 bus before we got someone who actually knew. It was an uneventful ride back to the campground and once there the kids quickly changed into their swimsuits to play in the pool.
The San Antonio we saw was definitely for tourists…not my favorite. But it was nice to be outside, with my family and exploring something new.
On the river walk
My honey!
Court house
Cathedral
Tree of Life art exhibit
Part of a "tree of life"
"Tim"
Three seat tree seat
Cool bridge on river walk
Look kids, the Alamo
I am not a crook
Big gun
Splurge on some ice cream
Looks yummy!
What is this thing?
Our new album cover: Waiting for the Bus
Chillaxin' on the bus
Shame on me
We are staying at a private RV park about 5 miles from downtown San Antonio and decide to take the day to visit the famous river walk. We considered riding our bikes but its a bit far for Brielle. The beast is so big its hard to maneuver and parking could be a bear. But the #42 bus stops right across the street from the RV park and takes us right downtown. $4.75 gets all 5 of us a ride and we couldn’t have timed getting on the bus any better.
As we’re riding along with pretty typical city bus folks I decide I need some help figuring out where to get off the bus. Who should I ask? We’re pretty much the only people who aren’t tatted up…one guy in particular is inked up pretty good including a large one across the back of his bald head that reads “Lopez”. I decide I will NOT ask Mr. Lopez for help and instead find an older guy to ask. As the older gentleman is trying to help who should turn around, but Mr. Lopez. Mr. Lopez suggests a stop for us but really I don’t hear anything…I’m still taking in how this guy looks. He must sense my lack of comprehension and says “just get off with me and I’ll show ya”. So, when the bus stops and Mr. Lopez stands up we all follow him off the bus and he very kindly walks us about a half a block to the stairs leading down to the river walk. He describes what we can find in each direction before leaving us to go on our merry way.
Thank you Mr. Lopez for helping us out.
God, forgive me for judging Mr. Lopez based on the way he looked.