COVID-19

Wednesday, March 11, 2020 - Alpine, TX

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) is spreading around the world.  This is a virus that started in China and it is rapidly spreading around the world.  It is very contagious and, in severe cases, can cause difficulty breathing, pneumonia, and death.  Schools and businesses across the country are closing in order to slow the spread of the virus.

As cities and towns are shutting down and the CDC is talking about social distancing, we have heard people worldwide are panic buying toilet paper!  I did look on-line to find out why and this was something I found on https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/03/this-is-why-everyone-is-hoarding-toilet-paper/

"Panic-buying during a crisis is nothing new. Midwesterners joke about everyone making Apocalypse French Toast before a blizzard, because store shelves mysteriously empty of bread, eggs, and milk. On the coast, peanut butter is the must-have item every hurricane season. In part, it’s reasonable to want to be prepared, says Yarrow, but panic-buying is partly an attempt to gain a sense of control when the world feels uncertain and dangerous."

They went on to say:

"It’s easy to see the logic—even if it’s irrational—behind frantic stashing of soap or hand sanitizer. But why toilet paper?

Yarrow says that is a bit unusual. "I don't think most people think about toilet paper during panic-buying times like hurricanes and so on. This is kind of a first," she told Ars. The run on toilet paper (sorry, not sorry) is what happens when social media-driven communication meets human instinct in the middle of a crisis."

It was another wonderful day?!

Brick Vault Brewery & BBQ

Saturday, March 7, 2020 - Alpine, TX

We heard there was a good BBQ place (Brick Vault Brewery & Barbecue) in Marathon, TX, so we decided to go there for lunch.

The food was very good.  We did try a couple of times while we were here to take a couple of selfies.  After five or six tries, we finally got one without our hands in the way.  Obviously, we are not very good at taking selfies. :)

Once we finished our lunch, we walked around town for a little while.  We found out the old Gage Hotel, which was built back in the late 1920's by Alfred Gage, but is now owned by a Houston businessman, JP Bryan.  He has restored the hotel and poured a lot of money into the town.  Some people are happy about it and others are not.  

After walking around town we drove out to a county park south of Marathon.  It is a very nice park with a small pond.

In driving back to alpine from Marathon, we passed the small building you see in the picture.  Unlike the Prada store front in Marfa,  the Target store (complete with grocery cart) in Marathon was done by persons unknown.  It is a tiny cinderblock building with Target's lettering and the bullseye logo.

It was another wonderful day!

Hike Madera Canyon Trail

Sunday, March 1, 2020 - Alpine, TX

We have felt Gracie's feet are tired of the sharp, mean grass and the gravel, so we bought shoes for her.  Today I got them on her front feet, which was not an easy task.  :)  Once she had them on she did not want to walk.  I carried her down the steps, then she did not move.  LOL!

I finally gave up, took them off, and took her for a walk.

Then we headed for the Madera Canyon Trail, which is just north of Fort Davis State Park.

It is a loop trail that is a couple miles long.  The views were beautiful.

While we were hiking we heard someone yelling, but we never did figure out what it was until we were back at the parking lot.  The gentleman in the car next to ours was hiking the same trail we were with his German Shepherd type dog.  The dog took off chasing a large wild hog and the hog turned and attacked the dog wounding him.  The dog seem to be walking ok, but he had a deep gash  on his chest between his front legs, probably from a tusk.  The dog was very well behaved and took his handling and our help well.  He bandaged up his dog, then headed for a vet and we headed home.

It was another wonderful day!

Finish up the Water Heater

Saturday, February 29, 2020 - Alpine, TX

Today we finished installing the water heater.  While we were working on it Gracie, was working hard on relaxing.  :)

After we got the water heater all hooked up, it was time to get the outside trim back on.  It took a while to get it lined up, but we were eventually able to do it.

Next we needed to caulk the trim strip.  Too bad Jess wasn't here, she does a great job of caulking.

But Mike did not do too bad of a job; it actually ended up looking nice and neat.  :)

We will finally be able to take a shower in our own shower again!

It was another wonderful day!

Replacing the Water Heater

Friday, February 28, 2020 - Alpine, TX

The water heater arrived yesterday afternoon, so Mike got started replacing the water heater.  :)  It took him a little bit of time, but he finally got the old one out!

Then we had to wait for the wood and carpet to dry.

Which took most of the day.

This evening we finally got the new one in.  It was a very very tight fit to get it back through the hole in the side of the trailer.  It took a lot of compressing the styrofoam to get it in.  We even used a couple of our longer spatulas to help it slide in.

Once we got the water heater in, we got cleaned up and headed over to Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church for their fish fry.  It was good, but the fish fry at St. Dominic in Bremen was much better and is still my favorite.  :)

It was another wonderful day!

Water Heater Failed

Sunday, February 23, 2020 - Alpine, TX

When Mike went to dump the black and gray tanks today, he noticed water dripping from under the trailer.  Upon further investigation, he determined it was the water heater that was leaking.  Fortunately it looked like it started just recently.  We turned it off, so he would be able to drain it.  We will be taking showers down at the bath house until it is fixed.

This afternoon Mike ordered a new water heater online.  It is supposed to arrive on Thursday.

It was another wonderful day!

Tony and Miranda are Expecting!

Saturday, February 21, 2020 - Alpine, TX

This morning while we were getting ready for the day, we got a call from Tony and Miranda.  They called to let us know they are expecting!!!  We are very excited for them. :)  And we are now planning to be in Indiana for the month of October!

After talking to Tony and Miranda and we finished getting ready, we finally took Gracie for a walk.  Last night a "Tiny House" RV came in and I just had to take a picture of it.

This afternoon we went to Lone Star Cowboy Poetry Gathering at Sul Ross State University.  It is an annual gathering of musicians, singers, and storytellers here in Alpine and draws people from all over the country.

The first program we saw was Red Steagall and Friends in the Auditorium.  I really enjoyed his songs and stories.

Next we went to the Fine Arts building to see Mike Blakely, Dale Burson, Jack George, and Rodney Nelson.  They were all very good.  Jack George is a 13 year boy from Quemado, NM.

Finally we headed for Lawrence building room 309 to see Rod Taylor, Deanna McCall, Terry Nash, and Mike Blakely.  It was another outstanding performance.

The performance was on both Friday and Saturday, but we only went to 3 performances today.  It was a lot better than either of us expected.  :)

It was another wonderful day!