Deer in Sophia's Headlamp

November 11, 2011
Austin TX

            Rolled Sophia out of the trailer and headed out for the Hill Country with Harley coming along for the ride.  Harley, my son’s sweetheart, and I had originally planned for a run to Fredricksburg but decided to workout first and then go for the ride. 
            So, the late start got us only as far as Johnson City.  But that was a good thing because we discovered Texas Hills Vinyards and, lucky for us, they were open until 6pm….and we arrived at about 5:15pm!  We met Jana, the young lady serving the wine in the Tasting Room, as we entered, and she assisted Harley in selecting some cheese and a salami type sausage for us to munch on crackers in between tasting the various liquid grapes.  However, in my case, I didn’t drink the wine, I just sipped, aerated, tasted, and then spit it out.   Since it would be dark out when we made the return ride, I didn’t want to take any chances on being impairing my motorcycle skills on the night ride back to Austin.

Jana told us a lot about the winery and the area and engaged us in conversation.  We were the only customers there at the time but I suspect that it is Jana’s nature to be an excellent conversationalist.  It was here that I learned many of the grapes come from the Lubbock TX area.  Also, it seems that the Texas soil lends a spicy flavor to the grapes.  After taking my order to ship some bottles to Orange County CA, Jana opened the door to the winery warehouse and we had a pic taken of the three of us there.  I'm still amazed that the wine made in these metal vats match the taste of those aged in oak casks of old.  Here’s a pic of moi and dos Tejas cuties.

Texas Bats of Congress

November 10, 2011

Austin TX       

            First and Foremost…..Happy 236th Birthday to all my Fellow Marines….Semper Fi to all you Leathernecks out there !!

            Today was a beautiful day in Austin.  Harley and I started out with breakfast at 24 Diner where we ordered the Waffle Breakfast consisting of two eggs over medium, ham, brown sugar butter waffles and an Applewood Bacon & Cheddar Frittata with pickled jalapenos.  We then shared half and half for a great breakfast with very tasty coffee.  Kim was our waitress and she, as well as her teammates ensured we had everything we needed and never let our cups get empty!  A quick visit to Waterloo Music Shop next door gave us a view of all the LP’s they have in stock for DJ’s and the eccentric public at large.  Found a nice straw cowboy hat in there but didn’t buy it as I would like to check around.

            Our next stop was the Capitol building of the great Republic of Texas.  Wow!  It is a gorgeous building…and it’s taller than the Capitol building in D.C.  Passing security was not as strainful as airport security.  And the Texas guards engaged us in conversation the whole time making it a very pleasant experience.

Zach The Pizza Dude

November 8, 2011

Austin TX

            Low key day today, little rainy and windy.  Zach had to go to work…will be all this week…so Harley and I worked out then went to Torchy’s Tacos and had a breakfast burrito and coffee…..very, very delicious!  After that we did some grocery shopping at HEB and I picked up a Texas Hill Country bottle of wine….interesting flavor….will have to visit a local winery and get a little education on their grapes here abouts in Texas.  The final stop was at the AAA to pick up some maps.  Got maps of TX, OK, NM, AZ, CA, OR, WA, ID, MT, UT, and CO.  Also pick up some guide books on all the camping sites within the southwest.  I’ll have to remember to pick up camp books for all the states so I can find campsites easier next year without relying on the internet.  And the last thing I was able to get was a map of the Hill Country….now I can do some local sightseeing on Sophia.

            Zach has always had an interest in cooking and actually makes a fantastic guacamole with loads of spices and lime and crunchy onions, tomatoes, and other secret stuff that I need to get the recipe so I can have it more often.  But a new surprise came to light today….he makes a mean pizza! 

            So we spent the evening eating pizza, drinking some wine/beer, and watching one of the Walking Dead episodes…..with only one zombie showing up in it….very gross scene!

            Hope I can sleep tonight without imagining I hear shuffling feet L,

C ya mañana

Gonzo

twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA

email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com

Looking Upon Austin

November 7, 2011

Austin TX

            Today was Harley’s birthday, and Zach had to go to work.  So Harley and I worked out, had some breakfast then picked up Melissa and IO and headed out for some sightseeing.

            Melissa really knows her way around the greater Austin area so she first took us to Mount Bonnell to view Lake Austin and the City of Austin.  The mount is around 800 ft above mean sea level and does indeed have a nice view to both…..here’s some pics below.

Happy Birthday All

November 6, 2011

Austin TX 

            We all slept in on this fine Austin “Sunday Morning Comin’ Down”, so it was a late start for breakfast.  That meant that the only place we could get breakfast served was at Kirby Lane restaurant on US183, about a 5 minute ride from the apartment.  Kirby’s is about the only place in the neighborhood where you can get breakfast all day long…..nice J.

            After breakfast we did some grocery shopping for the evening meal.  I had volunteered to cook Japanese style curry and Melissa volunteered to a pistachio birthday cake for Zach (5Nov), me (6^th) and Harley (7^th).  So I needed to get the curry sauce, lotsa

Pausin’ in Austin

November 5, 2011

Austin TX

            After departing Lander’s Toad Suck Harley in Conway I headed southwest to Texarkana then skirted around the east side of Dallas to pick up the I-35 for Austin.  Somewhere north of Waco I pulled into a Mexican Restaurant and had an authentic Mexican dish of taco, enchilada and tamal.  Ahhhh, it was so-o-o-o-o good to have a real dinner and a DosEquisXX!  It was late when leaving the restaurant so I parked in a motel parking lot and camped out there for the night.  The temperatures were in the 40’s during the night and my sleeping bag kept me toasty.  In the morning I found a Starbucks and treated myself to my usual medium latte no foam, and worked on my emails and blog.

            The next stop was at Temple to visit “Horny Toad” Harley Davidson for a Tshirt with “Horny Toad” on it.  Another must have!  Although I already have Texas T’s from El Paso, I felt that this one was a very unique name to have.  This time I remembered to get a pic of the store….hope that gives me a little credibility on the “Toad Suck” store in AR.  Found me a nice pinup T and headed down the road to Austin…about 2 hrs away.

Toad Suck

October 30, 2011

Somewhere in Arkansas

Spent the night camping in a Motel parking lot, hmmm, let me explain that a little. Earlier I had pulled into a rest area but signs directed me into a wooded area away from the Highway and it was totally isolated, no other cars were there.  I Didn’t feel comfortable with the set up so I drove a little further until finding an exit loaded with motels, gas stations and fast food places.  This is where I found a motel parking lot that could accommodate the Expedition and Trailer.

So what does “camping” mean to me on this road trip?? I’m driving a Ford Expedition

Thrill in Nashville

November 4, 2011

Nashville TN

Never been to Nashville before, hell, I’ve never been in Tennessee. Oops, let me correct that, I did drive through it with a friend in 1967 on my way from San Diego to Buffalo. This is an example of how memory fails and fools us sometimes.

It’s interesting how memories are subject to be corrected and updated when meeting with another who was involved in the events that created the memory. And this trip to visit Neal Nadler, a USMC flying buddy who shared a nighttime rescue flight with me on the side of Mount Fuji, updated a memory that was vivid in a few details, totally incorrect in some, and vague in others.

The ride from MD through VA and into TN was eye opening with the gradual change in geography, the hills and then mountains, the climbing and descending roads winding through the forests, and ‘smoke’ was visible in the valleys signaling the arrival of the Smokey Mountains.

First stop was at Pigeon Forge to get a H-D Tshirt from TN. Young lady there, Rachel, assisted me in finding the perfect pinup. She commented on how a customer said the pinup girl on the shirt looked like here. Actually, Rachel was a lot cuter J …probably should’ve said that to her but didn’t think of it at the time L. When I charged it and showed my CA driver’s license it turned out that she grew up in Huntington Beach…so we reminisced a little. The real nice part about this dealership (besides gorgeous young ladies) is that they offer a 10% discount to military. Nice!

It was great visiting with Neal and his lovely wife Liz. They both have had interesting and successful lives. Neal is now a PhD and owns a consulting practice while Liz is with South West Airlines flying around the USA (which is almost as good as Harleying around the USA :). Here's a pic of us infront of ther Lil' 4000 square foot cottage nestled in the country south of Nashville.

Since Liz was scheduled for a flight on Wednesday, she decided to take us to

Heading for Tennessee

October 29, 2011

Somewhere in VA

            It was interesting to drive from the relatively flat areas of MD along the Chesapeake, across VA and south into Charlottesville before heading west to pick up the I-81 to head south.  The flat areas began forming into hills, then larger hills flowing into small mountains and valleys and then WHAM, hello Shenandoah Valley and the Appalachians.  It was here that I saw the first remnants of the recent storm that brought the first snow to the higher elevations and the rainbow of Fall colors as the leaves began their change to the yellows, golds, rusts, and reds that are so beautiful this time of year. 

Maryland Butt Flutter

October 26, 2011

Lusby, MD

Just couldn’t seem to get to bed.  I spent some time standing at the dining room sliding door looking out over the creek, sipping cups of hot water.  Then I’d get more water and walk out to the front porch and listen to the soft breeze stirring the early autumn leaves.  I liked the whispering, no syllables, just mamasita natura flowing through the leaves telling them it was time to sleep, time to let loose, to leave their source of life and float to earth for the last time.  I think I got the message, finally went to bed.

At about 6 or so I woke up needing to go to the bathroom, that’ll happen after drinking about 4-5 cups of hot water the night before after having 2-3 glasses of red wine.  I drink the hot water because I no longer find the wine tasty and because it is good for a healthy system.

My eyes were weary, and my bones were tired with only 3 hours sleep.  So instead of standing I lifted only the toilet lid and did the unmanly act of sitting on the stool to urinate. 

Elbows on my knees, chin resting on my hands, I let my eyes close to shield the light and to rest the weary eyelids.

Suddenly, my eyes came wide open!

Involuntarily, my body froze all muscles.

I stopped breathing.