Goin to Luckenbach, Texas

Actually, we already went! What a cool place. No wonder Waylon and Willie and the boys all go there. Out in the middle of nowhere, an old dancehall and a saloon, chickens running around, anyone can come with their guitar and sit around under the trees and jam. It has been around 18 to 25 C here on the plus side, real nice winter in the Texas hill country!

Above:  Heavy's BBQ in Hondo, TX, the BEST ever!

Above:  A place to put your guitar and/or case while hanging out at Luckenback

Walk on the Wild Side

We went up to Fredericksburg today, about 30 minutes NE of here. They have a big flea market the third weekend of every month. It was very wet, rainy, and muddy outside the ramshackle buildings, most of which were like old drafty barns filled with stalls of the various vendors. Lots of junk, home-made salsas and preserves, cottage crafts from clothing to placemats, guns, knives, girl guide cookies -- but the award has to go to a really weird semi-covered area overseen by a Cajun Santeria priestess whose theme seemed to be New Orleans shortly after the flooding. Check out the photos below. She has an old travel trailer out back crammed full of more treasures. I went back there to ask her a price on the lion head shown in one of the photos. I was warned by my friend "go ask her but DON'T go in!" and I went alone, coward!

The market was not a total bust, though, as I scored a pair of bling flip flops that are so popular with the Texan women down here. Encrusted with huge rhinestones, 50% off, and even had my size! Love it!

Yezzem

Got my first yezzem down in the little town of Bandera yesterday while browsing in an antique/junk store. It is the equivalent to the Canadian shopkeeper's "yeah," when asked a question that requires an affirmative answer. Also got another hat-doffing introduction to a cowboy here yesterday, too. Really do like the manners down here.

We were in Bandera for Mardi Gras. The town has a population of 902 and the parade was huge, complete with a live Zydeco band that was awesome. They have old saloons here that you go downstairs to get to, in basements, and they really do have sawdust on the floors. Got a sack of Mardi Gras beads, too, from all the parade floats flinging them out by the thousands.

Postscript to Pig Hunt

When the guys got back to town with their trophy pig, they were fixin to drop it off at the local butcher's. It was around 10:00 pm and closed, so they called the after-hours phone number on the door, and, only in Texas, the guy told them where to find the hidden key to the shop, told them to drop the pig off inside, and then make sure to lock up and put the key back where they found it. Ha!

Texas Waffles

We went to a breakfast buffet at a university here on Sunday, and you could make your own waffles AND the griddles were shaped like the state of Texas! See photo of my Texas waffle below.

We got ourselves one of the big round iron cauldrons that the park provides for campfires, and we are getting a half-pickup full of dry live oak for 40 bucks so we can have us some fires at night. There is a real saloon here in the park and it has a nice big old fire pit on the patio about 3 feet high. It is round and made out of the local stone slabs, which are kind of a chalky creamy-white and brownish color.

Some of the boys in the park went out wild pig hunting yesterday. The pigs are a real problem down here and are destroying the land, so there are private properties that offer pig hunting. The one they went to is free, and you pay the owner $75 if you get a pig. I guess the guys just go sit in blinds alone for hours on end, even into the night, and the pigs come in for mash that is thrown out for them. Sounds kind of boring, but they did get one pig anyway.

There are some really weird place names around here

Nor-Wester!

A huge black sky rolled in as we were hitching up to leave the island just now. The temperature dropped from a muggy and hot 80 F down to a crisp and cool 60 F in less than a minute, accompanied by huge drops of driving rain blowing at a 45-degree angle! Hasta luego, Mistang Island!

Surfboards and Shrimp, Exit Stage Left

Bye, Bye, Beach

Heading out from Mustang Island tomorrow. Been here 3 weeks in 95% tropical humidity (latitude is the same as the bottom third of the Baja). We were here later last year and the humidity was not a problem. We're going back to Kerrville, Texas, so we can dry out! Gonna miss the nice 25-degree days, though!

Above:  Helloooo?

Above:  That's what I'M talkin' about!

Above:  This one's for Dave

Above: My future retirement home