Wednesday January 28,2015     10:30 pm cst  60 degees

It was beautiful, bright, and 80 degrees today which made me think about all the things I love about being here in southern Texas.  First and foremost, Maine got two feet  of blowing snow, and is now expecting another 9 inches tomorrow and...........

 I am not there.

I love the crooked mesquite trees and the way this owner just cut the fence to accommodate the trees.

And this fence they made crooked like the tree.

I like the fact that even the bus stops are  made a little nicer than just bare bones bench.

And I like the crazy colors that somehow don't seem out of place....  ok a little out of place on this one.

Soooo,  that's why we decided to make permanent changes to our lot ....making a commitment to being permanent residents.

 We ordered a new carport to cover the rv, the car and provide a nice area to sit outside out of the heat of the sun...eventually to be made into a screened deck.

. 

So two guys from Superior Carports show up at the appointed time and proceed to lay out this stuff, (most of it out in the road) that looks like  the bones diagram  for a whale.

And then without a wasted motion or uncoordinated  movement, they set up our carport. Among all the spectators who stopped by to see what was going on, most of them said they were glad they didn't have to climb up and put those top pieces on..

and here it is.  We are crazy happy with it.

Never noticed that some of the brown pelicans have a white belly and brown head.  Turns out they are juveniles.

And speaking of juveniles, I had a hard time believing that this man is old enough to be the game warden.  Awfully cute tho, isn't he?

I like the rule at a park that tells you to leave the area if attacked by birds.  Really, was that necessary?  If the sign was not there, would you just stand there and be attacked? What Alfred Hitchcock movie were they watching?

And even more creepy than attacking birds, I saw this...I guess it is a rodent.... crossing the road at the Cameron County Park.  I think it is a Nutria

This man either has a big family or is a thief.

January 20, 2015  8:30 pm cst  52 degrees

                                                                     blue heron

So I'm sitting in the car eating a Churro outside a convenience store waiting for Neil ......A churro is a fried dough snack with cinnamon sugar ....yum!

When this grackle lands on the mirror and gives me and my snack a serious look.  I was debating  breaking off a piece when he got more demanding and I have to tell you, he was quite intimidating,

About this time, Neil came out of the store and threw him some bread but i wonder what he might have done.  He was pretty bold.

Can you see a cat in this picture?  Answer at the end of this post.

They have been dredging the river..the Arroyo Colorado.... out in front of our RV park .  this is the front of the operation.  I dont  know exactly how this works but

the stuff that is dredged up goes into this extremely long pipeline and is blown into a settling pond where the silt settles out and the water is returned to the river.

Well, it is still rotten weather for southern Texas......the water stands in the fields 

If you are brave enough to go to the beach, it's a good idea to bring an umbrella.

I do like looking at the heavy surf, tho.

Gardens are doing nicely tho but I can't imagine what this gardener was thinking planting petunias and cabbage in the same garden right next to the road.

I saw this man walking downtown and took his picture because I thought he looked silly in a dress and not until I saw the pics on the laptop did I realize he was wearing a hospital gown and hospital socks..no shoes.  Escapee?  Wish I had stopped to see if he was alright.

Did you spot the cat?  The dog on the right and another not in the picture had the cat treed.  Cats are so cool..he just sat on the branch knowing he could outlast the dogs.

January 6 2015  10 pm cst 51 degrees

Neil and I have both had colds so by the weekend, we just wanted to get out of the house.  We ended up at South Padre Island  where we were pretty much the only ones there because it was cold and threatening rain.  There was only one brave guy all bundled up  walking and from the tracks I would say everyone else that visited this beach was in a vehicle.  Good thinking.

The red flag indicates heavy surf and dangerous currents.

Was pretty surprised to see that the sand castles that we saw last winter are pretty much still there.

Notice that the Marines sand castle has been there long enough to grow  greenery.

This one is the biggest one we saw and was constructed by Andy Hancock. (many of them were.  He gives lessons on building sand castles!)

But as you can see from this close up, they are beginning to crack and erode.  I don't know how they lasted this long although I do know that they put hardeners in the sand and spray with a mixture of glue and water.  Still it is sand and out in the elements so my logic says it should be  one good rain and poof!

We stopped by the turtle rescue and saw this poor unfortunate who, like many of the turtles that have been there over the years, has had a run in with a boat motor..  He will not grow new shell to fill in that open wound but he will  grow a sort of cartilage that will protect him and he can be released when that happens.

Too cold for even the turtles, their tubs were all covered.

We found some people who didn't mind the weather.  It was the last day of Christmas vacation for kids.  They were having a great time running on the rocks and fishing.

And finally  these people determined to have a nice day at the beach...all bundled up  and covered in blankets.  That's when we decided to go home before we caught cold again.  Seemed like the sensible thing to do.