Monday morning welcomed us with
temperatures in the high 30s. Brr! So, even though it was chilly and really
windy, we decided to venture out for breakfast at Whataburger, followed by
errands around town. This included seeing “Interstellar” at Cinema 4 in
Rockport.
Interstellar is a
look at Earth’s future when a global crop blight and huge dust storm make our
planet uninhabitable. Michael Caine plays a brilliant NASA physicist who is
working on plans to save mankind by transporting humans to a new home in
another solar system through a wormhole. Matthew McConaughey plays a former
NASA pilot who leads a team of researchers, including Anne Hathaway, through
the wormhole and across the galaxy to find a potential new home. It’s a pretty good flick, although long: almost 3 hours.
That evening we were invited to dinner at the motorhome of Pam
and Gary from Oregon, to thank us in advance for taking care of their black
lab, Luci, when they go to Pregresso, Mexico on Wednesday. We dined on salmon
filets (caught by her brother from the Columbia River on the West Coast), fresh
asparagus, rice pilaf, and luscious
crusty cheese biscuits. YUM-YUM!!! What a wonderful evening! Thank you, dear
friends.
Then came Tuesday... Again, it was chilly in the morning with
temps dipping to the low 40s. I attended the weekly “Stitch and B…” session in
the morning and Dick went to work in the office. Later that afternoon, when it
had warmed up considerably we walked along Fulton Beach Road. Gorgeous! We saw
an egret, a blue heron, and met Pam and Gary with Luci as they were walking,
too. Dick also took photos of some of the turtles in our park (they weren't cold-stunned).
Caller-Times, the newspaper from Corpus Christi, reported that, due to the
cold, over 140 cold-stunned turtles were being cared for at the Animal
Rehabilitation Keep (ARK). While most of them were Atlantic green sea turtles,
also rescued was one loggerhead and one endangered Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle.
Young green sea turtles, living along the Texas coast, forage on algae and
seagrass. Temperatures in the shallow waters can drop rapidly, so combined with
plummeting air temperatures and high winds it’s a recipe for disaster for
reptiles unable to control their body temperature.
“With very cold water temperatures, 50 degrees
or lower, turtles become immobilized,” says Donna Shaver, chief of the division
of sea turtle science and recovery at Padre
Island National Seashore. “They float on the surface or they are blown ashore
by winds. In this condition, they are defenseless and, if not rescued,
generally will perish.”
Now that the temperatures are again on the rise, these turtles
are being released back into the warming waters. Thankfully, reports said only
5 turtles that didn’t make it. (As a side note, the Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle decided
he wasn’t quite ready to be released as he turned around heading for shore
again, so an attempt to release him will take place at a later date.)
Wednesday we did some dog-sitting for Pam and Gary’s Luci, and
for friends Bob and Sharon’s 2 dogs: Shane, a yellow lab, and Furby, a Bichon
Frise, as the 2 couples boarded a local tour bus for a day trip to Pregresso,
Mexico. We took all 3 dogs on a long walk that morning and, I think, wore them
all out. They were pretty happy to get home! At least we didn't have to walk them in freezing weather!
That evening was another dinner at the clubhouse following happy
hour. There were almost 30 for dinner that night. That night we had parmesan
crusted chicken breasts, pasta, salad, and tiramisu cupcakes. Again, I say,
YUM! Thanks to our new chef, Betty Peachey, we’re not going hungry—at least
that night!
By Thursday, a definite warming trend was hitting the Coastal
Bend of Texas. Temps were already in the high 50s when we greeted the day, but
it was raining, and was due to continue raining throughout the day. We trekked
to a local laundry following a takeout breakfast from Whataburger. Friends
Bonnie and Jerry from our park were already there, so we chatted with them a while.
That evening we played Pegs & Jokers with Bob and Sharon, Bill and Carol,
and Gary and Pam. Women tied with the men, 1:1.
The warming trend was continuing: 65° Friday morning at 7 a.m.
After breakfast, while Dick worked in the office, I went into Corpus Christi
with friends from the park, Marty and her sister Mary. We hit Hobby Lobby and
Joann’s, followed by soup and salad at Olive Garden. We were home by about 2
p.m., in time to hit happy hour at 4 p.m. Marty’s husband, Steve, and another
fellow from the park, Tom, provided a bit of background music on their guitars,
which added a bit of ambiance. Thanks, guys! They’ve asked me to play along on
a keyboard—we’ll see…
Saturday brought the threat of heavy thunderstorms throughout
the day, but that didn’t deter folks from attending the monthly craft fair in
our clubhouse. About a dozen camper vendors from the park participated, selling
everything from jewelry, quilts, dishcloths and coasters, to scarves, afghans,
decorative items made from sea shells, pillows, and even home-made tamales.
And…we happily purchased the warm cinnamon rolls offered from the kitchen by
friends Ed and Angie. YUM!
Later, Dick continued to work in the office for a while that
day, and I worked on some knitting back at the camper. And then the rain, wind
and severe thunderstorm hit. Lightning and thunder abounded for hours that
evening, and rain!
Sunday, we again attended the 8:30 service at First Baptist
Church of Rockport. Pastor Jones spoke from Isaiah 11, continuing the series on
the birth of Jesus. His 2 points were: 1. the birth of Jesus reminds us that
God is in the business of redeeming people and circumstances from hopelessness,
and 2. the birth of Jesus is the beginning of God’s Kingdom invading our world,
bringing reconciliation and wholeness to a broken world. Here’s the link to his
sermon. It’s worth a listen. www.fbcrockport.sermon.net.
We headed to Caroline’s Turtle Bay Café for breakfast, after a
quick stop at Walmart. We shared our table with Robert and Margery from
Victoria, as tables are a premium there because the place is so small. We
enjoyed meeting them, and our conversation which centered around full-time
RVing. It’s always interesting to find that people are so enthralled with our
choice of living on wheels.
The day was absolutely beautiful, following the severe
thunderstorm from the night before. Temperatures hit almost 80° that afternoon,
with a light breeze, clear blue skies and no clouds…the perfect Texas day. We
met friends at the clubhouse for the ice cream social that afternoon a 2 p.m.
followed by 3 games of Pegs & Jokers with Bill and Carol and Gary and Pam.
I don’t want to talk about the outcomes, but the men took all 3 games—although, they were very close games.
Dick attended his conversational Spanish class Sunday afternoon.
I’m expecting to hear great things coming from his mouth soon!
A few years ago I made an afghan with needlework lighthouse patterns I created from images on the back of a t-shirt Dick had. The afghan fabric is a pre-woven even-weave fabric I purchased, then put the counted cross-stitch/embroidered lighthouses on it from the patterns I created. I backed it with a soft fleece, so it's got some nice weight to it--and it's completely washable. I'd like to sell it, as lighthouses aren't my thing. It measures about 40x50, and all the lighthouses are from Forida and the southern east coast. I know I won't recoup my time, but I did it for the challenge. I'd like to sell it for at least $150 if possible. If you or anyone you know would be interested in it, either for yourself or as a gift, let me know. Here are some photos of it so you'll have an idea of what it looks like, and can see the work I put into it.
Well, that’s it for this week. Hope all is well with you, and
that you will be spending a wonderful and happy Thanksgiving with friends and
family. I know we will!
Hugs and blessings,
RJ and Gail
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