The Ties that Bind

We continue the first stop of the Winter 2023 here in Galveston at Stella Mare RV Resort. It has been a busy week. We have enjoyed being with our Daughter and the Grands and starting on our Winter projects. Full-time RVing takes on a different pace from the months spent traveling every week. Living in the RV's small space is similar to living in an apartment. The most significant difference is the limited time to complete some of our annual chores before we hit the road in the early Spring. Planning and sticking to the plan are necessary to get everything done. After February 29^th, there will be no "later." We have less flexibility than we enjoy when we are on the road. But, again, this is all part of the adventure and can either be resented and resisted or embraced and enjoyed. But then, I have always loved checking things off a list. Hey, I take my fun where I can get it! So, here goes!

Much of RV life is about creative problem-solving. Last year, we bought the plastic containers in the picture to carry our bulk groceries like flour, sugar, beans, and coffee. They worked great, but they moved around when we were driving. We would have to rearrange them whenever we stopped and wanted to use them. We tried keeping other items in front on move days, but that was a real pain. This week, however, the fog parted, and the problem resolved itself. While unpacking an item from Amazon, I noticed several pieces of angled cardboard used in the packing material. These sturdy, lightweight pieces set off my hoarding instinct. They were too interesting to throw away. Unfortunately, this instinct does not go well with RV life, so I have to come up with an immediate use or toss them in the recycling. Then I put the bouncing canisters problem together with my need to hang on to the cardboard, and voila! A little black duct tape and some judicious bending allowed me to fashion a spice rack filling the space in front of the canisters. Moving our spices and seasonings to the new rack freed up some precious pantry space. In our 2,400-square-foot house, the cardboard would have gone onto a shelf somewhere. But here in Koko, necessity and opportunity came together, and we solved three problems with one little homemade spice rack. Yep, that is part of the adventure for a hoarder who lived in a 150 sq. ft. home.

Marlene and I lived in and around Houston for 26 years before we hit the road. She was associated with Houston Methodist Hospital for 23 of those years. We have maintained our medical support there at the Medical Center. Marlene has many former co-workers still working at TMH. Also, the last three years of our time in Houston were spent in an apartment complex within walking distance of the Med Center. Therefore, when we return for our annual check-ups, we get a room at a hotel and spend a couple of days on Main Street.

 

We cram 4-5 appointments over a couple of days. Before leaving each office, we set the week we will be back and back appointments for the following year. This works well unless the Doctor's schedule changes and they cancel the appointment. When this happens, we start Calendar Shuffling until everything is covered, one way or another. So far, it has worked until it doesn't. Sounds like life.

 

The second part of our annual pilgrimage to the Med Center is a homecoming for Marlene. She spent over two decades building professional and personal relationships with many people at Methodist. She always enjoys getting together with them, even if it is just a visit in the hallway. Maintaining relationships is always a challenge for full-timers. This is one way that Marlene scratches that itch.

 

One last reason we love returning to the area is to visit some of our favorite restaurants. One of our favorites is Miller’s Hamburgers in Scurlock Tower at the Med Center. This picture is from one year ago when we enjoyed the Guacamole Burger and Onion Rings. It showed up on our FB feed on the day that we ate the same meal in the same place this year. It would not be a trip to the Med Center without a stop at Miller's. Unfortunately, our travels have introduced us to better Guacamole Burgers, so the menu may be different in 2024. That is one of the risks of travel. It can really mess with our biases.

 

Does anyone want to make a guess as to why I am hiring someone to wash and wax Koko? Yep, they are standing on top of Koko. That should explain it! Generally, we wash Koko three or four times a year and wax once or twice, and he was due. When we arrived in San Marcos last month, we had several months of grime built up on Koko. I hired a young guy to come out and wash Koko. Most parks do not allow you to wash your own rig using their water. They require that you hire a service that brings their own water. This young guy did a great job, and we were ready to hit the road the next day. Unfortunately, the next day, we drove through an infamous Central Texas drizzle all the way to College Station. When we got into our new park, Koko was covered in road grime, even worse than three months in the desert and high plains. We had to get Koko washed and waxed for the second time in a month. But we decided to wait until we got to Galveston before trying again. This was the week Royal Detailing came out and did a great job washing and waxing. The fiberglass is protected from the sun, and we can see through our windows again. I hope this wash will hold us until we are ready to leave the Valley at the end of February. Koko looks great!

 

Our Daughter has been home-schooling the twins, who are 11 this year. Last year, I created a book of maps for the twins to help them follow along with us on our trip and learn a little geography along the way. Our Daughter reports that they used the maps, so I am creating another book for them for 2024. I am adding a few extras this year by encouraging them to calculate drive times and gas usage. I  provide the distances between stops and MPH and MPG, and they can do the calculations. I am looking for things they can explore on Google if interested. I hope this will help keep our connection strong while we are away. There are so many places that I would love to share with them, and this is one way that we can be Grandma and Grandpa in absentia. 

 

Our grandson, Aiden, joined us for the weekend. We spent the day with Melissa and had a mini-cousin's reunion. Anthony and Aiden discussed much while we ate at Russo's Pizza, where Sean works. It was good to see the grands laughing, talking, and teasing each other. Though, at times, they seemed to think it was funny to gang up on Grandpa. (Don't tell them, but Grandpa thought it was fun too.) Sean took good care of us and joined in when he could. I also watch Cowboys Football with Anthony via text and keep the family bonds strong. This is the one part of wanderlust that I do not like. I do not like being separated from my family for most of the year. But Marlene and I do what we can to stay connected and involved in our children's and grandchildren's lives. FB, texting, Facetime, and our annual visits help, but there are those moments when I would love to have them all with us as we wander around and see exciting places. Fortunately, the family has encouraged us to wander on, making the separation bearable.

 

Sean, our host for our family reunion at Russo's, does not like his picture being taken. But he deserves a lot of credit! Thanks for making it a wonderful evening!

 

We will be in Galveston for another few weeks before heading south to the Rio Grande Valley. We have Christmas shopping to finish and a few more projects to complete. I am glad you are hanging with us while we winter away our winter days. We have birds to see, grands to hug, and new experiences to enjoy as we head toward our March 1^st appointment with another year of wanderlusting after the next encounter on the road.

 

Happy holidays!

 

Bob