Author: stev71

2/26/21. As you can see we have not posted anything since the beginning of the year so it’s time to catch up!

Stephanie has filed for divorce after seven years of marriage. It’s a shame when any marriage fails but in this case I think it is the best thing for both of them. There is a hearing on 3/2 which will get the ball rolling there.

I’ve had some distressing news lately. Last year they removed a large tumor from my right sinus which had cancer “nests”. I was told there was nothing to worry about because the doctor scraped the bone clean. A year later he discovered a growth in my right sinus which was cancer. I am now diagnosed with stage 4A cancer and have surgery scheduled for Tuesday, March 2. The prognosis is good; however, I must also endure radiation and chemo therapy for 6 weeks. I know it will be tough but I also know I have the love and support of my wife, daughter, family and friends.

New Years – we went out to Saltgrass Steak House with a couple from the rv park. That was really nice but we were in the rv by 7…in bed by 10pm. Exciting! Damn, I hate getting old!

Christmas- Merry COVID Christmas! Haha…we are not decorated for Christmas because Jon is still occupying the house. We’ve been watching some specials on tv…but, we still limit our outside activities a lot. I fixed a sous vide brisket followed by a tour in the smoker(my best so far). I also served my jalapeño popper dinner rolls which went over well. Steph came over and we had a great time.

11/28/20 (Saturday). Steph came by to cook for her “Friends-Giving” celebration tomorrow. We had a really nice Thanksgiving with her on Thursday too.

11/2/20. Today we brought Allie to the vet to be put down. It’s such a sad day when “a member of the family” goes away but her medical condition gave us no other option. We will certainly miss her in our lives.

10/31/20. Today (Saturday) is sad because we found out Allie, our cat of 10 years is very sick and needs to be put down on Monday. She has massive kidney issues (among other things) and the vet said there was nothing she could do. We took her home for the weekend just to say goodbye.

10/1/20. Arrived in Fredericksburg, Texas today after a brief drive from Conroe. We have since enjoyed our stay here..don’t have to worry about tropical storms! This is a fun city and we really like this rv park (The Vinyards). Today (Thursday) we went out to a German restaurant (Auslaner) and really enjoyed the food. This is an odd year because of the virus. We stayed in Texas because states were closing borders to visitors and making them quarantine for two weeks. Too much uncertainty!

9/23/20. Tropical storm Beta has passed but not before dumping 12 inches of rain in Pearland where we were. We are thankful we left! Of course, we had issues here too! We decided to get new RV batteries (it was time) plus there was a storm coming so we went into Conroe to get them. The store only had one so we had to go into Willis to get the other (another 7 miles). We got back and put them in but they didn’t work. It turns out I put them in backwards! Bless my heart! We called an RV tech who came out and fixed my error. The only consequence so far is I blew out out two maxxfans (not a big deal). You see, all it takes is money!

9/20/20. What a crazy year this has been! The pandemic has affected everyone worldwide. Our stock markets are filled with uncertainty. Plus, add to that an active hurricane season. Whew! So, the unexpected happened again. We had been home from Bryan only three weeks when tropical storm Beta made its way toward the Texas coast. Having winds of 60 mph this storm must be taken seriously. So, once again, we pack our stuff and head to Conroe. We figure another 50 miles will keep us away from most of the storm issues. We expect to stay here a week before moving on to the hill country. We are not planning to go back to Advanced. These evacuations are tiresome!

On a much brighter note, once we got set up in Conroe we went to a really nice TexMex restaurant off Hwy 105 where somebody picked up our $55 tab! It was a very humbling experience.

8/26/20. Well, tomorrow is our 43rd wedding anniversary. I’m getting notifications about Debbie’s gifts are arriving on a regular basis. Only problem is they are going to Houston!

8/26/20. Well, we are still in Bryan, Texas in a very full RV Park. Lots of Texas and Louisiana license plates here. Looks like hurricane Laura shifted East so Houston is no longer under a tropical storm warning. The storm is currently a category 4 storm which could push flood waters up to 40 miles inland. The storm surge could be 20 feet high…damage is expected to be heavy. The forecast here is muggy weather.

8/25/20. I’ve got good news and bad news today. The good news is that my doctor says I’m still clear of any growth in my sinus and wants to see me in January. The bad news is that I’m currently in Bryan, Texas because we had to evacuate our base in Pearland because of hurricanes Marco and Lauren. Marco probably won’t affect us; however, Lauren will probably bring us 35 mph winds for a while. The Houston area may get 100 mph winds early Thursday morning. We are so happy we evacuated. We had the park here extend our stay for two weeks because we don’t know what condition the Pearland Park will be in after the storm. We hope to return on Sunday but we must have power there before we return.

6/10/20. Yesterday, we went to my eye doctor and got a good report and ordered more contacts. Today, we went for blood work. Fun fun. This is our COVID life! I know this will pass eventually but gzzzz it’s taken a while. Once the vaccine is out we are hitting the road!

5/29/20. Steph, Jon, Debbie and I were going out to celebrate my birthday at Perry’s Steakhouse. We ordered drinks and an appetizer and the lights went out! So, we finish the appetizer and it’s still dark so we leave and head over to Papa Gayo for dinner. As soon as we walk in the lights go out there. It was still storming and raining heavy and we thought Gzzzz., can this really happen twice? About a minute later the lights came on and stayed on. We had a nice dinner together! Later, Deb and I had a homemade strawberry birthday cake. She blew out the candles twice before she let me do it!

The following Friday we were headed over to PF Chang’s for lunch. Deb called ahead and they still haven’t gotten power back from the storm!

5/21/20. The only significant update was a post operation doctor visit. He said everything was “as it should be”. Good news! I’m now on a 3 month recall now and if my next visit goes well he plans to extend it to 6 months! Not much else going on…we sit outside in the evenings listening to music. We eat out a couple of times a week. That’s kinda fun. Restaurants open to 50% capacity on Friday.

5/10/20. We arrived in Pearland with no problems except losing hub cap (again): sigh. Today was Mother’s Day so Steph came over for the afternoon.

They opened barber shops last Friday…yea. Scored a redneck haircut yesterday. Deb is going Thursday and Friday. Just to remind you these services have been banned for unite a while due to the Caronavirus.

5/6/20. Well, next Sunday we will be leaving a Galveston for Advance RV in Pearland. We really enjoy Galveston but this is no place to be during hurricane season. We went to the beach yesterday (first time) for a couple of hours and had a good time. Most everything is fixed on the rv thanks to our local repair tech (Jeff). Looks like we will spending the year in Texas. Some states are making tou quarantine for two weeks if you come from another state. It’s crazy!

Businesses are starting to open at 25% capacity. Beaches are open. Hair cutters open Friday. Houston currently requires masks in public areas. Yuck!

We will be back in Galveston in November.

3/24/20. Well, ok. We are still in Galveston until April 12. Restaurants are take out only and Galveston county has issued a stay at home order starting tomorrow because of the Caronavirus. Travel is allowed only for essential services only – gasoline, food, drugs, liquor. That’s right…. liquor! Love Texas…they know how to prioritize! Actually, the order won’t affect us much because we don’t like crowds anyway. The Prez thinks America will be back to business by Easter but I think that’s a little ambitious. So, who knows? We have enough of most things although the stores are getting bare from hoarders. But, there is enough.

2/19/20. Yesterday was the conclusion of a very difficult time in my life. I had surgery to remove a large mass (inverted papilloma) in my right sinus cavity. Yesterday, we discovered what the biopsy report said. It seems the surgery went well but the tumor had “nests” of cancer inside. The surgeon feels he removed all the cancer plus all the tissue margins. But, because it is cancer, I will be followed every 3 months for at least two years. Any new growth will be removed and biopsied so I feel very confident about my future. I want to thank the many people who prayed for me during this time. Prayers matter!

We opted to stay at the Holiday Inn to shorted our commute to the medical center and had an enjoyable experience. we even scored a free breakfast!

1/25/20 to 2/1/20

We went on a cruise aboard the Carnival Vista to Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios (Jamaica).

12/2/19. Well, we have been in Galveston for three weeks now and have little to show for it. We had several things to fix on the RV which requires a tech. One big example is the awning topper which was torn from its brackets during a windstorm. Then, there are the doctor visits (in fact I’m at now now)

I’ve set appts for my dentist in February, my retina doc,(ongoing), and my cornea doc (ongoing).

the good news about my eyesight is the possibility of improving my vision in my left eye with a contact lens. We shall see about that. I’ve already had a YAG done there so, maybe so? Who knows?

I will need to get a referral for an Eye Ear Nose Throat guy for my nasal congestion. Also, it’s time for my colonoscopy. Geeee, sounds like I’m an old man!

I’ve ordered Deb’s Christmas stuff already. Didn’t take long since we are on a budget due to our cruise in late January.

1/17/2020. Wow, what a month! A diagnosis of a slow heart rate (which I thought was good) led to a stress test and Echo which proved I’m okay. A routine colonoscopy revealed four polyps which looked benign but no results yet. My stuffed up nose resulted in no allergies but a nose polyp which could be cancerous!

Mercy…….I’ve just received the best blood results I’ve ever received yet I now face possible death from what I thought were allergies is a tough nut because I have a polyp in my nose. Doc said these are usually very aggressive. I thank my wonderful wife for standing my me in this dark time. Today, I’ve had a CT scan and a MRI. My next appt will determine my options. Hopefully, and most likely, the mass is benign and I will only have to endure the surgical effects. But, how can I know this at this time? Faith and family is truly my only recourse at this time.

11/5/19. This is our last day in Houston and are headed to Galveston tomorrow. Advanced is a nice park; however, it’s noisy because of the freeways. We have certainly enjoyed eating out at the excellent restaurants nearby. Also, it’s a joy seeing Stephanie again after 6 months!

10/20/19. Arrived in Brookshire, Tx safe and sound!

10/17/19. Went to Natural Bridge Wildlife Park today. Really enjoyed feeding the animals.

10/15/19. We toured four missions today.

10/14/19. Our second day in San Antonio was a trip to the Riverwalk.

9/24/19. Tried going to the Santa Fe historical district but it was too congested and the streets too narrow for us to park our big truck. So, we said no way to that and went to “Old Town” Albuquerque.

9/22/19. Went tp Acoma Sky City to see the ancient dwellings on a Mesa. We decided it was too hot (noon) and too expensive ($27) to spend 90 minutes on top of the mountain. We did tour the museum and lunched at a local casino after.

9/21/19. We went to the Pueblo Indian Cultural Center today. It was a great experience learning more about the Indian culture.

9/20/19. Too tired to be active today so we napped and are now sitting out listening to music.

9/18/19. Went to Sugarite State Park to look around. It was pretty with a lake but it was clear this park caters to fishermen (er fisherpeople?)

9/17/19. Arrived safe and sound at the Raton, NM KOA. We have a long site in this old campground. Our biggest complaint is the lack of WiFi.

9/13/19. We took a short trip to Pueblo, Colorado where we ate lunch and went along their Riverwalk. We later went to a farm which grows the famous Pueblo chili (we bought 10).

9/10/19. We took a rail tip into the Royal Gorge!

9/6/19. We visited the Garden of the Gods today and the park was so full we could not find a parking spot!

9/2/19. This concludes our sojourn to Wyoming. What a great time we’ve had here with the beautiful scenery and great eats. Next stop, Colorado Springs!

8/28/19. Took a long drive to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park!

8/27/19. Our 42nd wedding anniversary! Still going strong…our plans are to go to a park and then out to dinner…BUT…

Went to Curt Gowdy State Park for an afternoon of sitting under a tree looking at the lake. We were in for a disappointment once we paid the $9 entrance fee. None of the picnic areas had trees! What a bust! Anyway, we left there and had lunch at the Bunkhouse Grill which had really good food!

6/9/19. Visited Park City for the second time today. The first time was July 5 – it was so crowded we turned around and went home. It’s a touristy town with lots of art galleries.

6/27/19 Drove to Bridal Veil Falls near Provo today.

6/24/19. Arrived in Springville, Ut KOA. Despite what we heard about the WiFi and spacing, both are fine although the sites are a bit close. A great surprise was finding our friends from Maine were parked next door!

6/3/19. Arrived safe and sound at Beaver, Utah. Passed by Hoover Dam and Las Vegas which was interesting. Also, we passed thru a beautiful gorge with steep walls and 10 foot lanes. Whew!

The Beavor KOA is really nice with wide spaces!

6/2/19. Stayed overnight at Desert Sky RV Park. It was a huge place which included manufactured homes for sale. We parked on gravel but had a long concrete strip for cars. It was very hot there in June.

I will begin posting newest posts first so you don’t have to scroll thru the whole file to see the latest items. Easier for everyone!

6/1/19. Our last day in Arizona! It’s been quite a trip. These sights will stay in our hearts and minds for quite a while. We spent the night in Kingman, Az at a nice park. Next stop….Nevada!

4/6/19. Arrived in Picacho, Az. This is a really small town. How small is it? This town is so small the only business is the rv park where we are staying.

2/17/19. Arrived in Frentress, Tx at the Leisure RV Resort. It’s a nice park but we do not have any satellite reception. WiFi was good.

3/2/19 to 3/6/19 Brrrrr too cold to do anything! We didn’t go out unless absolutely necessary.

3/19/19. Well, tomorrow we leave Comfort, Texas and head toward Ft. Stockton. It should be an easy trip and there are many things to do once we get there. Comfort is a nice quiet town with a few good restaurants. The campground here (RV USA) is very quiet but older and lots of permanent people here. We are really enjoying our tour of Texas.

3/22/19. Today, we went grocery shopping followed by sightseeing. Unfortunately, our first attempt to see something were dinosaur tracks but we passed right by it because you need to know it is at a certain picnic area without any signage. We did score some good burgers at McCamey (see our fb post). Ok, now we are full, we head toward an area struck by a meteor —— we never saw the sign, so the big hole in the ground remains undiscovered by us. They say when given lemons we should make lemonade. I day we should make margaritas!

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