'18/#3 Do My Eyes Decieve Me?

This blog is not so much about our RV adventures as it is about things we observe. I'm not saying these things are traits unique to the area or that it is anything worth noting. These are things that just start conversations. They are oddities, quirks, or any other thing that might have you scratching your head and saying "what the heck?".

This first thing I noticed when we first arrived here in the Rio Grande Valley(RGV). In our travels and over many years we have observed that most state and local laws prohibit certain lights on motor vehicles. Usually they are red and blue which I understand are reserved for emergency vehicles. I personally was stopped in Florida for red light-up valve stem caps on my motorcycle tires. No ticket but was warned and told to remove them. Researching this later I found out about the red a blue light restrictions. Now here in Texas just about any vehicle that is meandering down the road has flashing blue lights on it. Tractors, farm trailers, utility trucks (both public and private), construction vehicles, etc. Too many times I have tried to avoid what I perceived as an emergency situation just to find the local yard crew rumbling down the road. Lack of consistency can cause confusion. Maybe it's just me, but I am starting to get used to it.

I know I talked in the past about what many of the women wear just going to the grocery store. Clothing that leaves nothing to the imagination and teetering on 5 and 6 inch heels. Mary's latest observation is the seemingly acceptable trend of walking around in public in your pajamas. I'm not talking about little children riding in a grocery cart, these are adults with their children. We've seen it at gas stations, grocery stores, department stores, and most other places where we frequently shop. We have even seen it in restaurants! Where has common sense gone? I'm not asking everyone to dress up just to leave the house, but is it too much to ask that they not wear their PJ's out in public?

I know I am starting to sound like a cranky old man but I guess that is what I am. I know I'm old but I try to be accepting of other people and their personal choices. I just don't understand them. Maybe it is like when I was a little kid and we only wore our sneakers to gym class and not during the rest of the school day. I may not be as old as dirt or have been around since the dinosaurs roamed the earth but things have definitely change during my life time.

Well thanks for letting me vent a little from our home here in Pharr because....

Home is where we park it,
Frank and Mary

'18/#2 Quirks Of The RV Life

Here we are in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) for the winter. As Winter Texans we are here for the warm weather just like the Snow Birds in Florida. The only problem is that the weather has not been very nice or very warm. The propane truck is a regular visitor here in the park and we have filled 2 cylinders since October which is quite a bit for us. I can't really complain seeing the winter nightmares that the northern states have been experiencing. No matter how bad it gets down here we still don't have to shovel the white stuff!

Lately the sun has started to poke out a little more and the temperatures have been rising so we are getting out more. Yesterday we spent the whole day running around the RGV. I finally got Mary to the flea market in Donna TX that she had been wanting to see. Not like bigger flea markets we have become accustomed to in Florida but not bad. The produce, like it has been all over the area, was awesome. 5 lbs of Super Sweet Texas onions for five bucks and cauliflower the size of your head for $2. Got home and weighed the cauliflower and it was over 4 lbs! 

While walking around the flea market we heard someone yell out "I know you!". We turn around and there is Stacey who we worked with at Amazon in Campbellsville, KY a few years ago. We chatted for a while and caught up before heading on our way. This is one of the joys of RVing. An old friend once said that the RV neighborhood is 3000 miles wide and it seems to be when you run into friends months or years later and hundreds or thousands of miles from where you met.

We were done early so decided to head out to South Padre Island. The park bus was going to Port Isabel near by so we thought we would try and hook up with them. It was really just an excuse for Mary to see the lighthouse again and this time climb it. Well we pulled into the parking lot and our timing couldn't have been better...here comes the bus! We joined the group and had lunch with them. It gave us some time to sit with one of the other work camper couples and get to know them a little better. Talking to them we realized that we had worked the whole summer in South Dakota just over the mountain and one town away. Odds are we saw them in passing well before we got to know them. What do you know, another RVing moment!

Mary got to do the lighthouse thing, with pictures on Mary's Facebook, and we went to the beach on South Padre Island. Walked along the beach, collected a few shells, and waved across the Gulf of Mexico to our friends in Florida. Then it was time to head home.

We had a great day and got to meet some new people, catch up with some old friends, and spend time with our new friends. I know this was a long blog and I need to blog more often but for now this is so long from our home in Pharr because...

Home is where we park it,
Frank and Mary