Fun Filled Day...and Evening

This last couple days where "none days"...the weather was too cold to do anything outside, so we just worked on the inside....today(Thursday) started off a little cool but by 0830 is turning into a GREAT day.....Bride decided to do a little more planting, and I figured I better stay out of her way, so I'm off to the KC zoo...thinking a week day and early morning should be pretty much empty except for some of my distant relatives that reside at the Zoo....


Horst Kelly Photographer



Horst Kelly Photographer

 

Got there right at opening, 0930..parking lot was pretty empty...what I didn't see where the Buses....a whole parking lot full of them...seems it was "preschool day" at the zoo....so the first order of business was either staying ahead of them or falling back...but there was no end to the back...so I took the point.....what I didn't realize is that groups split up....its not nice to fool an old fool....but it all worked out....

Horst Kelly photographer



The Zoo has three main areas, Australia, Africa, and KidZone...a lot of water, trams and sky ride...very child friendly...I started with the Polar Bear display.....great venue for kids to view...bad for photography...glass so you can view them underwater....and the part that has no glass, also has no view...oh well, the kids where enjoying it...next it was off to view one of my favorites...Tigers...I am guessing they are being housed in a temporary "run"....plus it had a high fence....again not conducive  for taking pic...then it was off to see Australia....again..neat for the children not too much for me...did get a couple of Kangaroo shoots...they roam freely in the area...then a nonstop flight to Africa...they have a great area here...larger then Australia and more open...

Horst Kelly Photographer

Horst Kelly Photographer

All in all, I had a terrific time...I think I like the San Antonio Zoo better..but that's just me..got back around 2pm...helped Bride with mulching...and time to clean up and go see Jim and Wendy Wilkerson of the Blog "Mighty Bus"(its on my side bar as one of the Blogs I visit), Jim is my BIL's younger brother...and they took a converted Bus and really tricked it out.....had a super visit...they have really done a great job.....They are rethinking about  Full timing vs. having a "Home Base"..

Jim and Wendy's Dragon Bus Conversion

... got home just in time to have Daughter and I go to a downtown Sushi Bar......Ms J. does not like fish, especially raw....so it was just us two and met up with a couple that my daughter knows....another great evening...walked around the area...its an old industrial area, now converted to lofts, pubs and music venues...definitely for the younger generation...

Pub District...Horst Kelly Photographer

Friday is suppose to rain.....guess I'll do a "virtual walk" on the treadmill....and try to stay out of every bodies way..Till next time Happy Trails


Horst Kelly Photographer

ps...Its now Friday....didn't get a chance to post this last night...

Chores...Chores...and more Chores

So today(Monday) began at 0500...everyone was still sound asleep...brewed some coffee, decided I would not take the Mt. Everest walk, so I got on the treadmill  for 80 minutes.....extremely boring....builds character....FIL got up....then Bride.....Favorite Lady fixed some breakfast, and then time to start the Days Activities...still had some mowing and weed eating(edging) to do...plus more flower planting...Bride took the planting chores...I took on weed eating...FIL got the riding lawn mower....I tried to trade jobs with FIL but he wouldn't have any of that..... I only wish I'll have his energy when/if I'm 88....the truth be known I wish I had his energy now!

FIL at age 88...the Greatest Generation still showing why they are

Next was grocery shopping....Bride still had some planting to do,  I did the grocery run....plus I wanted to get the stuff to make Chili....Started The Chili about 3pm...ate at 6pm...FIL must of liked it, he had 3 helpings, daughter came over and joined in then took a "care package" of Chili with her...made some calls and then started looking at alternative routes for our trip home...l-35 is getting to be really boring and you sure can't see America that way....so we may go East To Jefferson City then south...hit some of Route 66..and Meander home that way..or go west to Flint Hills area then head south to parts unknown...a lot depends on what surprises Mother Nature may have up her sleeve...there is a good chance of snow here for later Tuesday....hopefully by Thursday we'll get another Spring day...

Stare down...he won..Horst Kelly photographer

Its now Tuesday Morning...cold, raining, 25mph gusts...possibility of snow.....a inside day ..going to get on the treadmill shortly, and do some inside work on the house....have a GREAT Day....Horst

Loose Park...Horst Kelly Photographer

Day at the Park

It's Sunday...finally a decent day....got up around 0530, had my coffee, and decided to go for a walk....the Mountains of Tibet come to mind when I do  this route....but it was good to get out for some exercise...though pushing a lawn mower in high grass yesterday about did me in...

Daughter at Loose Park

This afternoon ....daughter and I went downtown to Loose Park..for some photo ops ...especially for the roses.....well the roses weren't in bloom yet...and the ducks and geese were sleeping...after we hiked around there we went to a  neat neighborhood of KC called Brookside...old homes and eclectic stores and Pubs....decided to chow down at one of the Pubs...oh and it was five o'clock somewhere and we had a Bloody Mary....I had the one with the

Where we ate

"Kick"...and it had an Overdrive kick....I thinking it was akin to having a "V-8" ......It was a GREAT after afternoon...

 

 

Loose Park...Horst Kelly Photographer




 

Horst Kelly Photographer

This evening we're having Brisket again...made that instead of Chili last evening...Bride did some more planting ....while I was drinking Bloody Mary's....such is life... FIL watching the Food channel and a channel called Create..a part of PBS...folks coming over this evening for a little catching up and bonding...till tomorrow..Horst

Cold Temps...High Wind.....Kansas City "Spring" got Kidnapped

Appears that a good portion of the country is having weather issues.....check out Carla from"Cozy be Gone"...JerryC  has had some storms and 30 something degree temps....Barney of OFM woke up to 29 degrees......the temps here didn't get above the high 40's and the winds where gusting pretty much all day...so I opened up my new laptop and tried to figure out how this beast works....finally  opened the PDF guide and was amazed about windows 8...some of the stuff is like Apple....my FIL does not have a wifi router so I thought I would use my pda.net smartphone set up...and what did I discover...they now have wifi, without having to use a usb tethering...I uploaded the new software..and man is it slick...its just like finding a wifi at Uncle Mac's...


Big Bend Nat'l Park

Didn't get back to the post last evening....today the weather starts out chilly but is suppose to warm up some....and virtually no wind issues....guess we're start on putting some plants in the ground...FIL is getting antsy  about getting that done...will do the chili today....kids will be coming  over...and still no photo's ...I'll keep this short and update tomorrow....have a great Day..Horst

Glacier NP...(c)Horst Kelly Photographer

Day 2...Final Approach

Its now Friday morning...arrived in KC late Thursday afternoon...drove 500 plus miles yesterday in 30-40 mph  winds...smacking on the drivers side...rain for the first few hours.....the good news, no tornados...watching the weather channel Thursday evening when the news about the Waco fertilizer plant explosion came on.... wow...to think a few short hours before that we passed Waco on l-35...what a tragedy....the temps took a nose dive...Wednesday 80 + degrees...Thursday morning 39 degrees and wind...and all I brought in the motel room were shorts and t-shirt.....not a pleasant experience "schlepping"...(is that a word)... out to the car in that weather...


Glacier Nat'l Park....(c)Horst Kelly Photographer

Woke up this morning to temps in the mid 30's....now I remember why we live South Texas.....no walking today...well, maybe on the treadmill......then again maybe not. ...Need to make a run to the grocery store...think I'll make some Chili..FIL really likes it and the weather is right for it....other than  that its just the Bride getting stuff done around the house and me getting in her way....such is life.....when does "Happy Hour" start in KC????...will do another post this evening...have a great Friday...Horst

La Vernia, Tx Sunrise

Tornado Alley...Close and Personal

We are on our way to Kansas City..route is I-35....aka Tornado Alley...and anyone that is watching the weather channel today is noticing that there is a strong chance for tornadoes ...we delayed a day and are currently bedded down in Denton, Texas....a  nip south of the real danger zone.....but not outside the T-storms....I do have a mobile emergency weather notification system....hopefully by morning it will be a little East of us...we will hit rain, but that's ok.....one may ask...why didn't you fly...the bride does not want to fly any longer....and for some valid reasons that occurred during flights from Hawaii back to KC.....

Tetons...Horst Kelly Photographer

On another note...my netbook that I used on the road started acting up...and appeared to be on its last leg....Good excuse to  start looking for a laptop...I have the all in one Apple for home use.... the laptop is the on the road platform.....did some research, went to Best Buy...they tried to sell me a Apple, based on my other computer...no, no and no again....told them what my requirements where, what I had researched and I ended up with a Samsung, l5 processor,  8 GB Ram, 750 hard Dive, etc....15 something inch screen....so I'm trying to now learn windows 8 along with Apple....oh well....I do like the laptop thus far.....sure a step up from a netbook...


Horst Kelly Photographer

Hoping to get some photo ops during this visit.....will try and post daily during the trip...and now will try and download some photos from my external drive.....Happy Trails...Horst sends

I have noticed that some of the Blogs I follow change their "Header photo" quite often...so I thought I would give that a try.....Boy is that frustrating...storing your photo's in a Apple software and then trying to put it on a Windows Platform, Blogger, is not the most pleasant thing..when I'm on the road I have my netbook which is powered by windows, so no problem...Bottom line I think I made a mistake switching to an  Apple, or I need to take a "timeout" and learn to use it better.....anyway..I did get a new Header Photo loaded and I will attempt to change it from time to time...

Colorado...Horst kelly photographer

  Things have been quiet on the Home Front...but up north it seems the skirmishes have started...so we are headed to KC to take care of some stuff with FIL.......while another Gate Guard gets a rest and takes a trip to visit their son...Though Ms. Casita isn't part of the Travel Package....I will take a camera and shot some photo's...do want to visit the KC Zoo...haven't done that in several years......and may take a day trip to the Flint Hills Area on a "recon mission" prior to my Fall Trip.

Outside Amarillo Tx...Horst Kelly photographer

Not much else happening here in South Texas...weather has been unpredictable...but it sure hasn't been what most of the rest of the Country has been presented by "Mother Nature"....but then maybe she's going through a "change of life" experience...I apologize...The Devil made me say that...50 thousand comedians out of work and I pop up!!

I'm going to follow Jerry's lead and leave you with some "memories"...I hope..

Air Show

La Vernia BBQ cook-off...Horst Kelly photographer

Horst Kelly photographer

Big Bend... Horst Kelly Photographer

Thats all folks...take care and safe Journey...Horst sends

Texas Road Trip….to Cowpoke Country

I cleared all the Doctors appointments, finished  all the “Honey Do” stuff and my Bride and I decided to do a road trip into the Hill Country…about 90 miles Northwest of here…weather was iffy, but what the h…, lets give it a go.  Of course Ms. Casita  stayed home …this was a drive and B&B trip….

Bandera Tx…Cowboy Country

County Courthouse, Bandera Tx

Our plan was to spend the night in Bandera…claimed by the locals to be the “Cowboy Capital of the World”…well,  at least Texas….Home to the culture of Cowboys…and Cowgirls….real Cowboys, doing real work…herding cattle…History runs deep  in this land…from a story  of Charles Lindbergh, who crash landed a plane three years before his Atlantic crossing to Vice President John Garner saying the VP position “is not worth a bucket of Piss”…if nothing else, Texas is a colorful State!



No explanation required….

We started off taking the most direct route to Bandera, but after a few miles my nomadic gypsy personality came to the forefront and we took the road less traveled…on a road... chasing Texas history ….and what a ride…the road starts to gain elevation and the vegetation  changes to typical Hill Country terrain of low-lying brush, oaks , mesquite, Ashe Juniper, and grasslands, Gnarled  limestone…..then you start  reflecting back to the 1800’s and the conflict with the Apaches and Comanche's over …their patch of land,  game, and water  …and before that the Mexicans….


St. Stanislaus Catholic Church…dates to 1876

…is The second oldest Polish Catholic parish is the USA

Got to Bandera and drove around, found a place to bed down…then did a walking tour of Bandera…..what a neat Cowboy town it was…but more. It was also a mini Sturgis…Bikers galore..plus you also got the route 66 feel…especially the OST diner….it was born in the 1940’s and hasn’t changed…on any given day you’ll find ranchers, business folks, hunters, and “us tourists”…enjoying hot coffee,  with over easy eggs, crisp bacon, biscuit's and sausage gravy…by the way the latest census indicates 972 population….

OST Diner at 0700 Saturday morning

During the summer they have a rodeo every weekend…I will be back….after walking for several hours…and buying stuff….I thought we where “downsizing”…we where back to our cabin for the evening….cooked a meal…kinda like camping and sat watching the sun set…well it was overcast…so it wasn’t a “Kodak moment” …still a GREAT Day…

Even have a herd of Buffalo..and they use to have Camels 

We where up about 0630 …the weather was not conducive to sight seeing…we decided to head home…but decided to stop at several points of interest….first was Comfort, Texas… Comfort was built on the site of a Native American Village….established 1852 by middle-class Germans….most of the current buildings are listed in  the National Register…spent an hour or more looking, taking photo’s and talking to folks…my favorite place…the Barbershop…see photo…also walked around Center Point and tried to visit Camp Verde(Fort that was established in 1856), but it sits on private land….

Barbershop Comfort Tx

Another unique old structure in Comfort Tx.

Next was a country road( FM1621...FM stands for Farm to Market) behind a hay truck to Waring, Texas…..population 73….the main point of interest is the Waring General Store…another one of those Rt. 66 type structures....spent about 45 minutes…tempted to have the “Waring Burger”…but opted for one of our Egg Sandwiches…….


Last it was off to Boerne…the mist was turning into rain so we decided to confine our sightseeing to the St. Peters Catholic Church….


It was a fast trip  but one we enjoyed very much….wish  the weather had been better…we do need all the rain we can get…..now looking at another Day Trip or over nighter….Texas does have an abundance of great places to visit…..Happy Trails to All…and a belated Happy Easter!…Horst

Entry Do Over....There is a Summer Adventure, and My New Toy

After reading my post with a fresh mind,  I took the liberty of editing my post as I think parts where a bit silly and over the top....I apologize!

First Off....Happy St. Patricks Day....I suppose it about time to let folks know I'm still a blogger and doing just fine....not much has happened since the last entry.....I haven't had a chance to go on any "Texas Day Trips"...and may not if I have all these distractions that keep popping up....since we have had very little rain...Bluebonnets will be slim to none...so my usual Spring trip to the Hill Country is for not.

Arches..Horst Kelly Photographer

The good news is that I now have a definite summer trip....my Gkids from Charleston SC want to come to Texas for the summer...and instead of flying were wondering if I would pick them up in Ms Casita and all meander  to Texas ...and then do the same going back to Charleston...sounds like a plan to me...I will need to reconfigure the Casita for sleeping 3...but that will give me something to do and keep me out of trouble...I'm thinking maybe taking 2 plus weeks for the trip from Charleston to here and about the same amount going back to SC...4 or so weeks here to have some serious fun and sight seeing...Soooo if anyone has some suggestions on places to stop along the way...and even out of the way...it will be appreciated....though they like their XBOX...or whatever the latest piece of entertainment technology currently is...daughter and SIL have insured that they have a life beside the Box, TV and Computer...they of course like camping,  scuba diving, fishing, swimming, etc... I think they are at a GREAT age...they will be 11 and 9.....the older one is into history, the younger one all things military....and best of all they still enjoy being with their "Opi"...that would be yours truly....I think is 'cause we're at the same level of "maturity'' haha...

East Glacier..Horst Kelly Photography

Now for some mundane news...I had a follow-up to my procedure, and all is going well...have another visit to the Doc in 10 days...and hopefully at that point it will be "All systems go".....I do have another small procedure next week...won't go into ugly details .....then off to the dentist on Friday and that should be it until the late fall...

Almost forgot...I did purchased a Rivet Gun...my first...brought it home all proud and happy but my wife does not share the same degree of enthusiasm...she reminds me of my first experience with a "nail gun"...yes it was an emergency room experience...I think I've mentioned it before that I am the real "Tool-Man" that the Tim Allen TV series was based on....I assure her it doesn't shoot stuff...plus it only uses one rivet at a time.....she still is not convinced and "stored it in the locked gun case with the other dangerous(her opinion)tools I own.....I am going to do a few simple mods. inside the Casita...like affix a cutting board to the stove side that you can lift and secure in an upright position...plus add some other storage units...thats if the wife will give me back the rivet gun...I mean rivet tool....I know you have guessed this is a least a little bit of "jest"....though there is  truth to this rivet post!

I'll close you now, before I put everybody to sleep....will update in a week or so...unless you read about someone in Texas getting caught trying to holdup a 7-11 with a rivet gun.....

Sand Dunes Horst Kelly Photography

.....And a little Old Time Rock an Roll....

He's Back...and Good as New

Yippee ki ah(is that the correct spelling?) ....its done...and now on the road to adventure...its not the Yellow Brick Road...but just as much fun.....'cause its unknown....

Horst Kelly Photographer

I had my day surgery this past Tuesday and all went well,   ....go back next Tuesday for a "look see"....2 percent chance of infection and all hell breaking loose...but I don't intend to have the cat lick my incision after its licked itself...if you know what I mean....won't be able to go "Full Throttle"for about 2 months, so I'll have some time here at home to do some stuff.....I haven't had a chance to go on my Day trips.....yet. Hopefully will go after my checkup next week...can't wait...But I've had my favorite Blogs to follow and enjoyed their immensely...plus it gave me ideas for future trips.....So I thank you all for your interesting adventures and posts...

Horst Kelly Photographer

Since I've had some down time on my hands, I started doing some research on my electrical needs on my trips and viable options...to provide me longer "Boondocking" opportunities....I am looking at solar....couple that with my generator and I think there may be a marriage in the making....analyzing my requirements, various viable platforms, cost, hardware needed, etc....have done alot of research, read numerous blogs and started asking questions of some of those bloggers....interesting to say the least...there are plenty of options.....it appears that 130 watts of solar would be plenty, try a new battery group...maybe two six volt golf cart batteries(T-105)...upgrade the convertor, get a pure sine inverter and for ease of placement, a mobile solar panel(s)...More research to do, but getting close....

Horst Kelly Photographer

Horst Kelly Photographer

There also appears to be a trip to the "Modification Genius" Larry Gamble...I've got a list of stuff I'd like to have done on the Casita... sometime soon I'l make an appointment with him to do his Magic....my plate is full and as they say...Let the Games begin....A New Year means new opportunities......and a smile on my face....will start posting on a regular basis again..."Funk"...Be Gone.....Thanks for checking in..Horst Sends

ps...this is why I love to go on adventures...for your viewing pleasure...Horst

Days of Funk...

First off...Wishing all of you A Happy Valentine's Day.....

Its been a while and I haven't embarked on any great project...yet...though I see I may not be the only one in a "funk".....I have been doing stuff......its just not been with a camera in hand...I did go on a "Boondocking" Trip, testing some systems...but no Photo Ops.....However, I've decided to start doing some day trips within a 100 or so mile radius of here...there are some interesting towns with a lot of history.....I'll call it "Backroads of Texas"... as seen thru my Eyes...though I am going to have  day surgery the end of the month....and have been running around get lab. work, etc done....the only downside is no lifting for 6-8 weeks...so no camping trips

BTW...I read this story recently and felt it could be the answer to bear encounters.....

  ...I couldn't resist...The devil made me do it...my donation towards a cup of humor for today...

With that I'll leave you with some photo's of Days gone By..Till next time...Happy Trails....Horst

Horst Kelly Photography

Horst Kelly Photography

Horst Kelly Photographer

Horst Kelly Photographer