Where is the Crack of Dawn…..???

 

 

For some reason we got up early…well the bride did…I always wake up at the “crack of dawn”…BTW …WHERE is the Crack of Dawn…I can’t find it on Goggle Map…I suppose its right next to “Ground Truth” and I haven’t found that either…I’m sorry, I digress….anyway we where heading south on I-35 by 0700….72 miles later we where singing “The Eyes of Texas are upon You”….. and then we hit Waco, Tx…to me the worst stretch of interstate  in the USA is Waco to Austin on I-35…especially now, as there are cement barriers almost all the way down…and we hit another accident…not as bad as going up, but an accident never the less….we did get on the 130 toll road at Georgetown and the rest of the way home was a piece of cake…home by 1300 hours…life is good..unpacked made all the calls to tell folks that “The Eagle has Landed”…instead of Houston we have a problem….and the rest of the evening  was one of relaxation , reviewing, reflection….

Grand Tetons…..

I started thinking of my planned trip to Big Bend, then began wondering why I am so passionate about exploring this Country and wondering if I will ever come to a time when I will write a postscript of my time in the Casita …all of a sudden a song of some years ago came to the forefront of my thoughts…it was by the Highwaymen…you know the Guys..and the song was “America Remains”…I’m going to try and post a utube of it for your listening pleasure…and with that I’ll close for today…thanks for stopping by….Horst sends..I guess you need to click on the link below to watch the video….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8Q0sX2cv-Q

On the Road Again…..Homeward Bound

Yesterday  started off at 0630, and it was cold…17 degrees…decided to try and see if I could get the treadmill to work….after  about 10 minutes  of hitting this, kicking that, I got it to work…spent an hour on it, and felt a lot better…decided to day I was going to go head to head with “Turkey Tetrazzini”..and make some Texas Chili for Dinner…went to the store and fetched all the fixings..started about 1300 hours and by 1800 it was ready for unveiling…FIL couldn’t get enough, daughter and Gson had multiple helping and Friend Tim wanted to lick the laddle…Turkey left overs are officially “dead”… Chili took the Gold ……I am now one with the Universe again…
Daughter and Friend at Plaza
WE left later than Planned to day…drove about 400 miles to Pauls Valley, Oklahoma…Another History lesson:
“The area that eventually became the city of Pauls Valley was one of the earliest European settlements in what was then known as Indian Territory. Smith Paul, born in 1809 in New Bern, North Carolina, discovered the fertile bottom land which is now Pauls Valley while a member of a wagon train traveling to California. Paul described the land as "a section where the bottom land was rich and blue stem grass grew so high that a man on horseback was almost hidden in its foliage"^{[citation needed]}.
The Tri-Party Treaty of January 1, 1837 ceded this part of what is now the State of Oklahoma to the Chickasaw Nation. When the Chickasaw Indians were relocated to Indian Territory that year, Smith Paul moved with them and married Ela-Teecha, a Chickasaw Indian woman. In 1847, the Pauls settled on the rich Garvin County bottom land which became known to locals as "Smith Paul’s Valley".^[4] By 1871, postal service was established in the area, although the Post Office was accidentally called "Paul's Valley, Arkansas" as the Indian Territory was being administered out of Arkansas.^[5] The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway shortened the name to "Paul’s Valley" when the railroad came to town in 1887.
The railroad brought growth and prosperity to Smith Pauls Valley. The first newspaper was published in 1887. The Pauls Valley townsite was laid out in 1892. A U.S. Court house was built in 1895. The first  school in Indian Territory was established and brick buildings were built downtown. In 1909, the streets were bricked.^[6] Today, Pauls Valley has more brick streets [17,986 square yards (15,039 m²)] than any other town in the United States.)^[7]
The Oklahoma Cartoonists Hall of Fame located in the Toy and Action Figure Museum was opened in Pauls Valley in 2005”<sup>"]…

Sonic won the day for dinner…now watching a little TV…should get home early afternoon tomorrow….then start planning the Big Bend trip at the start of December…getting Ms Casita road ready…really looking forward to a little Boondocking in December…Life is Good…Until tomorrow..Thanks for stopping by and Happy  Trails  Horst</sup>

A Evening on the Plaza

So far I haven’t solved my one GB limit problem with Blogger/Picaso…Tried to get my photos and reduce their pixel size in Picaso…haven’t been able to do that…if I delete them, it also deletes them in the Blog….I  can pay to increase the storage space, but that probably is not a long term solution…if I where more of a detail person I wouldn’t have these challenges…

Today it warmed up a bit and I did a six mile walk…felt good…..then it was lunch time, open the Frig….and there it was…more Turkey. Decided a would make a Dagwood, triple plus layer sandwich….Toasted some wheat bread, turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, cream style corn, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, slice of provolone cheese just for waking up the arteries….and a glass of Buttermilk…called 911 before starting this feast and had them on stand by….ok, in reality, I had a veggie burger with tomatoes and sliced onion….but it could have happened…

This evening Daughter and friend picked me up about 1730 hours and we drove to the Plaza for some Photo Ops of Christmas Lights…It was so packed with people it was hard to find places to get some good photo’s…we spent about 2 hours trying to get on roof tops, side streets etc….with no real luck…also told that they didn'y have nearly the amount of lights as in past years....I may go back tomorrow evening if the weather holds up… we went into a pub had a couple of brews and some dinner, home by 2030 hours,,,super time even though the photography didn’t pan out the way I would have liked it…but that’s life, and hopefully there's always tomorrow …thanks for stopping by….Happy Trails…Horst...

ps..well I wrote this in Live Writer, was able to reduce the pixel size of photo's and as you can see it posted...Boy the photo's didn't turn out crisp at all, oh well....it still was a nice time..don't think I'll go back this evening as the temps are suppose to drop...low  at 19 degrees...with wind.....

Its Cold.....Can I go Home... NOW

Kansas City Christmas Lights.. Plaza...not my photo

First I want to welcome Lynn for following/ joining this Blog and you can see her Blog on Casita in the Desert casita in the Mountains , Great folks with their 16 Ft  Casita...please take a look...again thanks Lynn for taking the time to stop by...I really enjoy this "Casita " Community!!!

We are still in KC...and the weather has turned frigid....lows in the 20's. highes 40's.......my  daily walks came to abrupt halt....and the treadmill is not working...oh well it gives me more time to munch on an assortment of Thanksgiving leftovers....it still amazes me on the variety of stuff one can do with turkey....I still hope to get down to the Plaza and take some photo's of the lights...but not when its in the 20's.....
Had a great Thanksgiving day...FIL, Kids and Grandson....and a lively debate with SIL on politics...I enjoy throwing a hand grenade in the middle of the discussion and seeing how he responds....hope he realizes half of what I say I don't really believe in...it was a fun day!!!!....have been doing some errands for FIL, setting up appointments, grocery run, winterizing sprinkler system, refilling meds., etc....."The Greatest Generation" though decreasing in size is still vibrant and full of spunk...and that's a good thing!!!..I enjoy our time together....

I suppose this evenings  dinner will be another creative creation of some sort of turkey meal...I can hardly wait...NOT...I may sneak out and get FIL and myself a juicy, messy, over the top, bacon, mushroom, cheese and onion hamburger...cheesy fries...a local beer brew...and sneak down in the basement and enjoy our "Last Supper"...lol

The plan is start heading back Tuesday morning...I wouldn't mind taking a side trip as we meander south...if anyone has any ideas, please share them...we do have Rt.66 south of here....till then there is still lots to do here....BTW some asked about my Santa Fe trail title...FIL lives on the "Old Santa Fe Trail" on the Mo. side about 1.5 miles from the State Line ...kind'a neat....

I just tried to load some photos and it came back and said I've used up my space...what gives...probably large pixel files, but I didn't realize it would  be this soon...anybody have any ideas and/or  options...this is a PHOTO Blog...Mmmmm, woe is me.....Happy Trails...Horst

Bedded Down at Old Santa Fe Trail...Kansas City Mo..

I know, I'm late....but you know how hectic it gets when you arrive with waiting in-laws and Kids, etc....the trip from Ardmore to K.C. was uneventful...arrived around 1500 hours, unloaded the car and relaxed with Father-in-law....decided to get some carry out "good eats" from Smoke Stack BBQ in KC, Mo....pricey... but not bad...still not as good as Texas BBQ...though I can't say that too loud...as I will have to then stay at a motel...

East Glacier..Horst Kelly Photographer

Spent the day getting all the food for tomorrows feast....what a pleasant, serene experience that was....I thought I was  on the Jerry Springer show instead of being at a Super Market...Aisle 6 seemed to be having a slug fest over the last can of green beans, or was it the can of Cranberry Sauce.....I decided to get a fifth of Makers Mark Whiskey(which you can buy at a grocery story in Mo.)....sit on a display box of Ritz crackers and have a couple of "Gentleman's Sips" from the bottle and watch "Tag Team"( husband & wife teams)Wrestling over the last box of stuffing....it does work well on ones Blood pressure....got home way to late....decided to take a long walk......lasted two hours, took a shower, refreshed, time for a Loooong Happy Hour.....leftover BBQ...still good..

Glacier..Horst Kelly Photographer

Can't wait until tomorrow....Macey's Day Parade, family, love, laughter, and rehashing of memories from years long past...the sound of a cracking fireplace, football, and the sound of snoring of us old folks at the middle of the forth quarter...it don't get any better then that..

 I do hope to get down town during the evening hours and take some photo's of the Plaza with all their Christmas lights....BTW I found out a little more on the "Pile up" accident on I-35...it involved 13 vehicles, nine autos and four 18 wheelers...so far one person confirmed as dead, several in hospital and it took 9 hours  or so to clear the highway.....very, very sad...as I suspect most where, like us going to visit family....though they say Thanksgiving is the worst holiday for auto fatalities(800+).....

I wish all of you a Healthy, Happy and fun filled Thanksgiving....God Bless...Horst sends

Thanksgiving Trip to Kansas City

I know..its been a while since my last post, and there is no excuse...got back from my Charleston S.C. trip and it seems time just slipped away...doing some mods on the Casita, work around the house and testing my ability to capture some gophers that are doing a number on my front yard...I'm having a flash back to "Caddy Shack" ...and my outdoor cat has decided to go into retirement....was asking where his annuity check was...oh bother.

Arches..Horst Kelly Photographer

So today we pulled out of the driveway about 1000 hours and the GPS was showing Kansas City, Mo. as a destination...layover Ardmore, Ok....pulled into Ardmore around 1600 and are now relaxing...no Casita this trip.....one major accident which backed things up...lucky for us we where 1/2 mile from an exit and stayed on the access road for a couple miles...I'm thinking some of the folks in that accident where seriously injured and may have died....its never good, but its especially sad during the holidays.....
Ardmore is pretty much a half way point between home and KC...we use to drive it in one day...Why...and we don't anymore
I guess a history lesson about Admore, population around 23000...
Ardmore, Indian Territory began with a plowed ditch for a Main Street in the summer of 1887 in Pickens County,Chickasaw Nation. It owes much of its existence to the construction of the Santa Fe Railroad through the area during that time. It grew, as most frontier towns grew, over the years into a trading outpost for the region. A large fire in 1895 destroyed much of the fledgling town, which forced residents to rebuild nearly the entire town.^[7] In the early 1900s, Ardmore became well known for its abundance of cotton-growing fields and eventually became known as the world's largest inland cotton port.

After the fields were stripped of their fertility, however, the city found itself positioned next to one of the largest oil fields ever produced in Oklahoma, the Healdton Oil Field. After its discovery in 1913, entrepreneurs and wildcatters flooded the area, and Carter County quickly became the largest oil-producing county in Oklahoma, and has remained so ever since.^[8] Ardmore has remained an energy center for the region ever since, with the region's natural wealth giving birth to such energy giants as Halliburton and the Noble Energy companies, among others. Ardmore also learned the perils of being energy-rich with yet another disaster in 1915, when a railroad car containing casing gas exploded, killing 45 people and destroying much of downtown, including areas rebuilt after the 1895 fire.^[9] The disaster, which made national news at the time, gave residents the resolve to establish the city's first fire department to ensure that such events would not recur in the future. The city has not experienced any major setbacks since the 1915 fire, save a 1995 tornado that nearly destroyed the Uniroyal Goodrich (nowMichelin) Tire Plant in west Ardmore. Despite a shift at the plant working at the time, miraculously no one was killed as the tornado ripped through the area, due to the public being alerted by area news and tornado sirens.

On April 22, 1966 just outside of Ardmore was the site of the worst plane crash in Oklahoma history, when an aircraft of theAmerican Flyers Airline crashed and killed 83 people. There is a memorial to the crash just outside of town.

Arches...Horst Kelly Photographer

East Glacier..Horst Kelly Photographer

Ardmore became nationally famous in 2003 when 52 Democratic members of the Texas House of Representatives, known as theKiller Ds, left Texas for Ardmore to deny the Republican-controlled House a quorum when Republicans attempted to pass a redistricting plan for U.S. Congressional Districts. Redistricting of Congressional seats is traditionally done following the decennial U.S. Census; the 2003 plan, which had been engineered by U.S. Representative Tom DeLay (R-Texas), would have been an unprecedented second redistricting in the same decade, and was promoted as a way to increase Republican electoral success. By leaving the state to stay in an Oklahoma hotel, Democrats temporarily delayed passage of the redistricting plan the Republican-controlled House. Republicans eventually succeeded at the re-redistricting, although in 2006, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that new borders of the 25th Congressional District, a long thin chain of counties from Austin, Texas to Mexico, dubbed the 'Fajita Strip', was in violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1963, since it divided up predominantly Hispanic areas into multiple districts, and a U.S. District Judge ordered new boundaries favorable to incumbent Democrats Ciro Rodriguez and Lloyd Doggett to be drawn.

^{OK....plan on leaving around 0700 tomorrow morning....BTW those that live in the San Antonio area, the 130 toll road now begins in Seguin, Tx and ends at Georgetown....speed limit for the first section is 85mph....no I didn't reach that speed....there are also feral Pigs crossing the road...have had  in numerous accidents...it's not a pretty sight, auto traveling at 85mph hits a feral hog....Have a great week...till tomorrow...Happy Trails...Horst sends}