Nacogdoches

Too tired to write last night, that and the fact the boys wanted to watch Spiderman 3 on pay-per-view.

Ok let's see, yesterday we went to the Brookshire World of Wildlife, Marvin United Methodist Church, the Smith County Museum(all in Tyler), Durst-Taylor House, Sterne-Hoya house and the Old Nacogdoches University Building (all here in Nacogdoches).

The Brookshire World of Wildflife (and yes, Brookshire as in the grocery Brothers) was interesting in that all of the wildlife is dead. It's all trophies, from all over the world, that the Brookshires have taken on various hunts. The monkeys playing Monopoly are worth the trip.

Today we hit a few more spots here, then head home via Lufkin and a few other places.

Tyler

We're here in Tyler, the Rose Capitol of Texas. We got here by way of DFW (I freakin' hate DFW... Seriously).

We stopped by the Amon Carter Museum, Kimball Art Museum, Sid Richardson Museum (awesome collection of original Remington's), 150 Years of Fort Worth Museum, Bureau of Engraving and Printing (very cool) and lunch/supper at Humperdink's Brewpub in Arlington.

Did I mention that I hate DFW?!? FREAKIN' TRAFFIC!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was horrid but we finally made it to Tyler where we stopped by the Camp Ford Civil War POW Prison (the largest POW camp during the war) and the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden. Tomorrow is a full plate here in Tyler then a short drive to Nacogdoches.

Wednesday!!!

Wednesday... It's only Wednesday. As God is my witness I thought today was Thursday. Now I'm depressed, it's only Wednesday. I really need to win the lottery, quit this job, and roam the country with Tab and the boys.

It's amazing what the government (and yall as tax payers) pay me to sit and write blogs... Amazing.

Del Rio II

Got up this morning  and ate powdered eggs... Powdered eggs. At a Hilton. I haven't had powdered eggs since I was in the Army. We then drove out to Langtry, named for Judge Roy Bean's favorite actress, Lillie Langtry. That's of course if you ask the Judge. The Railroad folks will claim that they named it after a Railroad fellow.

Langtry is a speck in the middle of nowhere but it is extremely interesting. So far it's the highlight of the trip for me. We got to see Judge Roy Bean's Courthouse/Saloon, the "Jersey Lilly", also named for Ms. Langtry. It seems the man was a bit obsessed with her even calling his home the Langtry Opera House in an effort to get her to come to Langtry. It's co-located with the Courthouse. You can also see what remains of the "hanging tree" as well as a nice cactus garden all located at the JRB Visitor Center in Langtry.

Driving back to Del Rio we stopped at the Pecos River to take pictures. At this point the Pecos is a far cry from the little creek that ran through Buddy's deer lease out past Ozona. I told the boys, "Remember that river yall played in at the deer lease? The one where your Uncle Buddy was throwing cow turds into the water upstream and screaming, 'Watch out for the Turdles', yeah... That's the same river." Where we were we could see it empty into the Rio Grande. The Pecos here is huge and surrounded by a beautiful canyon.

Leaving the Pecos River we travelled to the Lake Amistad Dam. We drove out to the middle of the dam and pulled over. I told the boys to come up and stand on this line that was on the ground. I then told them, "You are in the United States of America. Now, take one step forward. You are now in Mexico." The response was, "Whoooooa." The dam is pretty cool. If you drive over it there's not a lot to see until you arrive in Ciudad Acuna.

We then drove down to Lake Amistad National Recreation Area, got our NP Passport books stamped and then took a driving tour of the Diablo East part of the Rec Area. Lots of cool terrain and the lake is huge.

By this time we were getting a little hungry, except for Mike oddly enough whose stomach had decided to revolt against him (at least I wasn't alone in my struggle now). We went to... Dramatic pause... Taco Bell. In Del Rio. 3 miles from Mexico. I ordered the Mexican Pizza Combo. I've been to Mexico 5 times now and never once have I come across a "Mexican Pizza". Weird, huh?

After our late lunch we decided to go to Ciudad Acuna, Mexico. It's just over the river from Del Rio. As we approached the checkpoint I noticed a huge sign that read, " Do not bring firearms into Mexico. Violators will go to prison, by Mexican Law." We got to the checkpoint, paid our fee and headed across to a symphony of, "Uncle Stu, are we in Mexico yet?" "Not yet." "What about now?" "Nope, not yet." "Now?" "Hey, you see that river down there?" "Yessir." When we get to the middle of that river, we'll be in Mexico. Ok?" "Cool" We got to the middle of the river and in stereo I heard, "HEY! We're in Mexcio." Thank you "Captains Obvious".

Now we had to proceed through the Mexican chekpoint. We pulled up next to the Mexican agent, rolled the window down and he asked, "Habla Espanol?" Tab responed, "Un poquito." He said something in Spanish and Tabs' response was. "Uhhhhh..." He then said in perfect English, "Open the back." I got out, opened the back, he reached in, moved a blanket, and pulled out Chances' BB gun... My pucker factor went from a 0 to about a 50 in one tenth of a second. I was going to go to prison in Mexico because my nephew had brought his BB gun, that I bought him, with him on this trip and I had left it in the Cherokee instead of taking it up to the hotel room. I felt like crying and peeing my pants at the same time. I looked at the agent, he looked at me with the BB gun in his hand, smiled, put it back and said, "Have a nice stay in Mexico." I got in and immediately began to drive into Ciudad Acuna... Quickly before he changed his mind. Tab was like, "I got a little nervous when he found the gun." "YOU GOT A LITTLE NERVOUS?!?!?!?" We drove around for about 5 minutes and I realized that Ciudad Acuna is NOTHING like Nuevo Laredo. No little shops, no little Cantinas, no little Plastic Surgery/Dentista offices. So we turned around and drove back to Del Rio, thanking God the entire time that Dad/Uncle Stu didn't go to prison.

Laters...

Del Rio

We left Corpus this morning around 10:00. We arrived in Del Rio about 5:00ish after a stop for brunch and a stop in Uvalde at the John Nance Garner Museum. Interesting guy John, especially for a Democrat. The museum is small but very informative.

We were met at the city limits of Del Rio by multiple T-38's flying overhead. And I do mean overhead. They came right across Hwy90 to land at Laughlin AFB. We pulled over and got out to watch them come right over our heads at about 50 or 60 feet. The boys thought it was really cool and Chance and CW want to join the Air Farce now.

I'm still sick but after spending some time in the hot tub, I'm a little better. Tomorrow will be busy. We are going to Langtry, Seminole Canyon, Lake Amistad National Recreation, a winery and other places.

 

Corpus Christi II

Just back from a busy day. We went to the Padre Island National Seashore. The boys completed the requirements for the Jr Ranger program and got their badges. We also spent some time with Ranger "Buzz" Botts. He was a very knowledgable man and got the boys involved in catching and studying Ghost Crabs.

After that we went into Corpus and visited the Art Center and Cole Park. Cole Park was cool. They have a Skate Park as well as a ginormous play area for kids.

When we finished at Cole Park we went over to the Texas State Aquarium and spent a few hours looking at fish, otters, dolphins, crabs, jellyfish, sea turtles, sharks, rays, birds, frogs, snakes, gators, lizards, etc.........

Leaving the aquarium we then bounced over the bridge and ended up at Whataburger Field, home of the AA Corpus Christi Hooks. Like the Express, they are a farm team for the Astros. Very nice ballpark. Tonight was a double-header (make up game due to past rain) against the San Antonio Missions, who we saw several weeks ago in San Antonio.

We left a bit early due to the fact that I am now sicker than a dog. Sinuses have drafted a Declaration of Independence and declared war on the rest of me. Lovely...

Corpus Christi

Left Humble today with Tab, Mike, CW and Chance. Stopped in Wharton to visit the county museum. Really cool place. The Big Game Trophy room was incredible. There is also a Roy Benevidez display. Again, incredible.

Stopped in Goliad... Lots of history there! Students of Texas history really should visit this place. The Presidio is a really cool place and down the road you can visit Fannin's grave as well as the other men who were killed in the massacre. Santa Anna may have been a great military strategist but, he was also a very cruel man... A real bastard. Seriously.

Arrived in Corpus Christi and went to the Texas Surf Museum. It's a really neat place even for non-surfers. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.

Watching Shark Week on Discovery and typing this. Getting ready for bed. Laters...

Just another day...

Not much going on this weekend. I'm in desperate need of some rest before next weeks trip.

The four of us and Chance are going to spend 2 nights in Corpus Christi, 2 nights in Del Rio and 1 night in... Somewhere (we haven't decided yet). Then it's back home and at least a few Express games.

I'll update from the road next week. Laters...

Amarillo

I'm sitting here at our hotel in Amarillo. Tab and I are here to research a few things for her book. Batman Begins is on TV, Tab is asleep and I'm typing this...

This is our 2nd night in Amarillo. We stayed in Lubbock on Thursday night and will be staying in Abilene on Sunday night. Lubbock and Amarillo have been fun as well as educational. The highlight for me was visiting Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument up in Fritch. Our guide was Ranger Dean Watkins, a very knowledgable and friendly Park Ranger. He took us on a two hour hike up to the quarries and back down.

Our trip has taken us to quite a few county courthouses, the various museums of Texas Tech, Breedlove Foods, Prairie Dog Town, Alibates, Lake Meridith National Recreation Area, various county museums, the Bug Ranch, the Cadillac Ranch and parts of Historic Route 66. We'll be visiting the Amarillo Zoo and Arts Museum tomorrow before we head to Abilene. We've got a few places to visit in Abilene as well as have lunch with my old friend Grant (who I haven't seen in probably 15 or more years). I'll let yall know how Abilene goes soon.

I guess I need to post the pictures of California too... Maybe next week.

Laters...

Hacienda Calima

The only decent restaurant in the city of Barstow. Awesome Mexican food. The waitstaff, bartenders, cooks and customers are all Mexican... It has to be good.

What's better than great Mexican food? How about great Mexican food with a live Mariachi band every Friday night? HOLEE CRAP! These hombres were incredible. I sat there for over 2 hours listening to them. Really talented guys. I was so impressed I bought them all cervezas after their second set. They were very appreciative.

If you ever come through Barstow on a Friday night you owe it to yourself to stop in for a while, have some supper, a cold beer and enjoy the music.

I recommend the Carne Asada and a Dos XX's.

3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment (Brave Rifles)

Well, didn't make it to the Astros/Angels game tonight. We worked 16 hours today trying to get the systems up with the 3rd ACR. We're almost there. Just a few more squadrons to get up and running. We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

By the way, these are the guys I'm going to Iraq with. After spending some time with them I feel much better about going. They're a good group and I already know a few of them (they came through my last class at Fort Hood).

It's amazing how fast the temperature goes from a nice cool morning to stupid-hot. And I do mean stupid-hot. It's been 105 or hotter everyday. "But, it's a dry heat..."

 Laters...

Mojave National Preserve

Wow, talk about your complete opposites. Denali last month- Mostly green, lots of trees and mountains, lots of critters, and miserably cold. Mojave today- Mostly brown/tan, few trees but lots of mountains, a handful of critters and miserably hot.

I was on the road/on the Preserve for the better part of 8 hours today. The Preserve is around 1.6 million acres and I think I covered quite a large chunk of it, both on the road and off the road. And speaking of off road, don't come here without a 4x4 truck/SUV/Jeep of some sort. You will be limited to the hardtop if you do and you won't get to experience this place to it's fullest.

For those of you who collect NPS cancellation stamps you have the chance to get 3 here. One at the Barstow Visitor Center, one at the Kelso Depot and one at Hole-in-the-Wall Visitor Center. I got all 3... ;P

Saw the following critters: A Collared Lizard, Fringe-Toed Lizard, Jackrabbit, Desert Cottontail and a lizard I didn't get to identify because it was moving at the speed of sound across the sand dunes. I saw a large variety of tracks and scat as well

Laters...

San Diego

Drove to San Diego today (or to be technically correct, La Jolla) to see Erin and Enrique. Cristian should be arriving sometime next week. Which is good because I think Erin is going to go mental if she doesn't get out of that hospital bed soon. We include the 3 of them in our prayers every night and it would be great if you would too.

San Diego. I thought I was going to have to put a jacket on when I got out of the parking garage. It was 77 degrees. Now that doesn't sound chilly. In fact I love a good 77 degree day, BUT... When you've spent the last 2 in 109 degrees and then you're hit with a sudden 77, it'll put a chill down your spine.

I-15 sucks! No other way to put it. ESPECIALLY in San Bernadino and then again once you hit San Diego. Enrique assured me it wouldn't be so bad going back... I'm gonna punch him next time I see him. It was worse going back. A 2 hour drive turned into 3 and 1/2 hours. Got back to the hotel at 2200hrs, wore out and in need of a cold beer. Gonna watch a movie then go to bed. Laters...

Sunny Barstow, California

Just got in a few hours ago after a "long" flight from Killeen. Mo and I landed in Las Vegas and then drove out here to Barstow. What should have been a 2 hour drive ended up being a 2 hr 45 min drive due to a wreck on I-15.

Did I mention that it's 109 degrees?

Last month I'm at the Arctic Circle and it's -11 degrees... Amazing what a month and a few thousand miles can bring you.

Tomorrow we check in at Fort Irwin and see what our schedule is. I'm crossing my fingers for the weekend off but, I don't see it happening. Depending on what happens next week I may drive to Anaheim, the Astros are in town to play the Angels... Laters.

We met the Grand Nagus today...

We were in Austin on a fact-finding/picture-taking trip and we ended up at the Driskill Hotel. We got in and CW said that he saw Vizzini from The Princess Bride. CW and Tab walked back outside and sure enough, it was him. We spoke with him for a bit and then I took a picture of the 4 of them. He's a really nice guy, nothing like Vizzini or the Grand Nagus Zek (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine).

Needless to say, Mike and CW were a little starstruck/freaked out. Laters...

Wednesday the 16th

I'm sitting at the Glacier Brewhouse in Anchorage. Thank God for free wireless connections. I caught an early flight out of Fairbanks in hopes that I would get an early flight back to Texas. Ain't happenin'. The only flight from Anchorage to Dallas on American Airlines leaves at 10:05pm. So... Here I am. At the best dang brewpub I've ever been to in all my travels. They have the best IPA, bar none.

I'm talking with the bartender and I ask him how long he's been here. He says 4 years. I then ask about one of the bartenders I met last year and he says, "Oh, Monique." Ten minutes later in walks Monique. When she sees me she does a double take and says, "I know you." Turns out that Gayla will be in as well in a few hours, so we'll have a little reunion of sorts (I was in here everyday for 3 weeks in February of 2006).

Now, as far as golf is concerned... Sunday we played at the Northernmost golf course in the United States. That's all fine and good except that it's the worst course I've ever played. The course is on Tundra. It's like walking on a giant sponge... THE ENTIRE COURSE. It's more tiring than walking on wet sand. That and the fact that it rained the day before didn't help. That and the fact that they had just opened the day before (after a Winter break) didn't help. That and the fact that the course is pretty much covered in Moose turds, fox turds, bird turds and some turds I couldn't readily identify, didn't help. We did manage to piss off a group of Japanese tourists and almost cause an international incident (when I hit into them on the green with my 5 wood from about 215 yards). They were playing stupid-slow and wasting time on the green. I didn't really think I'd reach them but I knew that if I really got a hold of it... I would. And I did. They yelled, screamed and cursed at us and when we caught up to them on the next hole, I guess they got a little scared. They pretty much clammed up and refused to look at us other than to bow in our direction. Good thing too, I was in the mood for Sushi... ;)

Anyway, here I am in Anchorage... Waiting for my flight tonight. I'd rather already be home but if I have to be stuck in Alaska, I can't think of a better place than the Glacier Brehouse.

Denali Part II

It was very cold this morning. Two minutes after I walked out of my hotel it began to rain. It rained for the next hour and a 1/2 as we made our way back to Denali. It stopped raining around Healy and cleared up somewhat.

By mile 5 inside the park it was snowing. Not too bad but just enough so that we couldn't see very far across the plains. We'd seen a few Ptarmigans and an Arctic Hare but at this point we weren't holding out much hope of Bears or Wolves. We reached the 30 mile turnaround point and got out to stretch our legs as well as eat lunch. Bill and I walked out onto the big overhanging deck to check out the scenery (or what little we could see due to the snow).

And there she was... A big mama Grizzly with her cub across the river. I hollered at Bill and we both stood there trying to see them through the snow which was becoming worse by the minute. I grabbed my camera (which didn't help a bit) and took a few pictures (mama looks like a little blonde dot and the cub looks like an even smaller black dot, time to buy a new camera). I ran back and got Brian and he joined us on the deck. By this time we had yelled at everyone who was there that there was a bear on the other side of the river. Luckily, one of the guys had the biggest pair of binoculars I've ever seen and let us borrow them. Mama was extremely large and very blonde. The cub looked to be about as big as a certain 14 year old son of mine and was a very dark brown. It was so cold that Brian and I had to return to the car and get our heavier coats on before we could resume watching the pair. This pretty much made the trip for us.

The drive back to the main gate was uneventful except that the snow was REALLY coming down now and the bottom fell out of the temperature. We exited the park and proceeded back to Fairbanks.

Stopping along the Nenana River, Brian and I got out to take a few pics on the foot bridge across Nenana Canyon. I had taken a few shots when something caught my eye near the end of the bridge and up close to the highway. It was a large canine which I originally mislabeled as, "BRIAN!!! WOLF!!!". It ran down into a little gully with something in it's mouth. Brian and I moved down the bridge towards it to try and get some pictures. Once we got close enough we realized it was a fox (albeit a rather large fox) and it was munching on an Arctic Hare. As we got closer I got one last picture, he noticed us, tore the hare in half and proceeded to vacate the area. Another very cool experience.

The drive back to Fairbanks was a mix of snow and rain. We did see two Moose in a field off the side of the highway and stopped and took some photos quickly but by then we were all a little tired and it was friggin' cold outside so, off we went.

Stopped by The Pump House for supper and then I dropped the two of them off and headed back to the hotel.

Fun day.

I miss my wife and kids.

It would have been more fun had they been here. Laters...

Friday the 11th

Visited with the Aviation Brigade today to give them an Executive Overview of our software. Bill and I will be teaching 8 of their soldiers on Monday and Tuesday of next week before we pack up to fly home.

Tonight we went back the The Pump House. Had a few beers and ate some Halibut. We played shuffleboard again and Bill and Brian together were able to defeat me 2 games out of 4. Then Bill beat me twice... I'm losing my edge.

Tomorrow we are going back to Denali.

More on that tomorrow. Laters...

Wednesday
Not alot going on. Today was "troubleshooting" day in class. The students performed better than expected.

I went to a fur trading company and got me a Fox. A whole Fox. This place has furs/skins from dang near every critter in N. America.

Going to The Pump House tonight with the guys for supper. Cool place, right on the Chena River. Not that we can sit on the patio or anything (still a little chilly). It was 37 this morning and it's supposed to get down to 25 tonight. Anything above 2000 feet is supposed to get snow tonight.

Tomorrow we test out and Friday is an Executive Overview for a National Guard Unit here in sunny Fairbanks.

I think we are probably going to go back to Denali on Saturday and then play golf on Sunday at the Northern most golf club in America. http://www.northstargolf.com/golf/proto/northstargolf/index.htm

Laters...

Two Days
Well nothing exciting Monday or Tuesday. Bill and I did see HotFuzz last night. Great movie, funny as all get out.

No idea what we're doing tonight. Laters...