Amistad

We are at the Spur 406 primitive campground in the Amistad National Recreation Area (map).

Not unlike the 277 North campground where we stayed three years ago, this one is located at the end of the old US90 grade that has been inundated by the flooding of Lake Amistad. The old grade disappearing into the lake made for a nice, mud-and-brush free bottom for wading into the lake yesterday afternoon, although the water was a bit cold for a full swim.



There are eight "developed" sites here (with concrete picnic tables, metal ramadas, trash cans, and BBQ grills), and some indeterminate number of "dispersed" sites, along with two vault toilets. We had the whole place to ourselves, however -- not another soul here. A couple of cars have come and gone this morning on their way to the lake, presumably to fish.

With the place empty like this, and the temperatures in the extremely pleasant 70s-80s, we're tempted to stay another day or two. It was dark and quiet last night, and the stars were incredible, with only a faint glow of the twin cities of Del Rio and Acuña in the distance. However, we're now committed to be in Big Spring on Friday, so we will move along.

I'm just wrapping up a Red Cross conference call now, and we'll stay for lunch before hitting the road. We have a few more miles on US90, then we'll turn north on Texas 163.

"Where Yee-Hah Meets Olé"

We are at the Wal-Mart in Eagle Pass, Texas (map), a town whose official slogan entitles this post (really).

We had a pleasant and uneventful jaunt through Mexico yesterday. After running some errands in Laredo, including a quick stop at Wal-Mart for windshield washer fluid and other essentials (but no terrorist food items), the bank to get cash for fuel, and the Goodwill to relieve ourselves of five bags of clothing and other items (which Mexico is wont to tax if they think you might leave them there), we made our way to the international bridge to Nuevo Leon.

It's quite amazing to see just how many trucks, freight yards, warehouses, terminals, and other trade facilities there are in Laredo, the largest land port of entry to the US. At some point we passed a conga line of trucks that must have extended for two miles, probably the tail end of the line for the World Trade Bridge.

US$4.50 got us across the river, and, after a cursory inspection at the Aduana, we were waved through, only to undergo an immediate military inspection just 50 yards further on. Their curiosity satisfied, we found our way to the bank just past the customs facility and changed US$400 into MX$4,120, a rate of 10.3, not bad for right at the border. The current wholesale rate is 10.45, which is a fair bit less than the $10.65 it was just a few weeks ago.

The Pemex came up just a few miles later, at the intersection with Mexico 2, and we were relieved to find that diesel is still MX$5.76 per liter. At the 10.3 exchange rate, that works out to US$2.116 per gallon, as compared to the current price in Texas of anywhere from $4.10 to $4.20 per gallon. We put MX$4,000 in the tank, and headed northwest toward Acuña.

We had planned to spend perhaps one night in Mexico and cross back at the Amistad Dam, just past Acuña/Del Rio. Just before reaching Piedras Negras, though, we changed our minds and decided to just cross back there, making last night an easy stop at Wal-Mart. I still had about 800 pesos, and so we put another 700 pesos worth of fuel in at Piedras Negras, making our total fill in Mexico 215.5 gallons at about US$456. At that price, we saved ourselves over $430, making the detour through Mexico and the US$9 in bridge tolls very much worthwhile.

As usual, we had every Customs and Border Protection agent in Eagle Pass go through the bus, including the enormous drug-sniffing German Shepherd, necessitating evacuating the pets before the inspection. We were ready for the agriculture issues this time, having already hard-boiled all our eggs, and scrupulously avoiding keeping any uncooked meats, pork products, or fruits on board. We had one apple, which I ate on the way to the crossing.

The Wal-Mart here, occupying half of what used to be the municipal airport, is easily half the size of the entire enclosed mall across the street -- one of the largest stores I've ever been in. We stocked back up on apples and meat. Last night we wandered across the street to the mall, where, as usual, we found we needed absolutely nothing. Nor did we recognize any of the features playing at the cineplex. We did, however, stop in at Applebees for dinner, where we are fond of the salads.

Today we will head north along the river to Del Rio, then turn inland on Texas 163. We are diverting a bit east of our previously planned route of US285 to meet up with some folks who are driving out from Forth Worth.

Free to good home...

One cat, American Short Hair, gray. No, wait, wrong listing.

As I wrote earlier today, I've been going through my pile of things that are too valuable to throw away, but that I no longer need. Many such items have already gone into the charity-donation pile, such as clothes (including a gorgeous Bill Blass suit that was hard to part with, but I just don't wear in our current lifestyle). The things that don't go into the charity pile are withheld for a reason: either they are worthwhile selling on-line, such as my old laptop, or I'm afraid that the charity will just not know what to do with them, and might be tempted to throw them away, such as obscure electronics without packaging or manuals.

The prospect of electronics with heavy metals and other dangerous materials indiscriminately ending up in a landfill someplace always gives me pause, and causes me to take extra effort to find someone who is willing to put them to use. So, for many of these items, I take the considerable time to list them on eBay, even if I will barely break even. I have several such items listed now.

But eBay and PayPal both assess fees that, coupled with the risk factor, make some items unsuitable even for eBay. I still can't bring myself to put them either in the trash or the charity box, and so I am offering them to you, our readers, for only the cost of the postage. (Louise favors not even asking for the postage, but this is my own little way of ensuring that the items go to someone who will really use them, rather than just toss them.)

So, without further ado, here is the list of items I am giving away. The first email I receive requesting each item will get that item -- go to the "who we are" page for my email address (don't forget to remove the spam-blocking part of the address).

• 128 MB compact flash (CF) card for cameras, Janome, Palm, etc. [Taken]
  
• PCMCIA Adapter for compact flash (CF) cards [Taken]
• ZIO brand USB compact flash (CF) card reader with drivers [Taken]
• Serial data cable for Motorola StarTac phones
• Special StarTac-to-Sony-Clié data cable
• Sony Clié USB sync/charging cable (more portable than the bulky stand)
• 3Com EtherLink III 10Base-T PCMCIA Ethernet card, with dongle
• DeLorme Topo USA v4.0, entire USA, on CD (7 disks) [Taken]
• TOPO! (by Wildflower) San Francisco and Napa/Big Sur (2 CD's) [Taken]
• TOPO! Los Angeles and Santa Barbara (2 CD's) [Taken]
• Nikon Nuvis-S APS camera, working but scuffed on the outside protective case, with fairly fresh battery and one unused but old roll of Kodak APS film, however no user manual (can be purchased on-line for $7, possibly downloaded for less). [Taken]
• Panasonic RN-109 Microcassette recorder. Runs on 2 AA batteries. Scuffed on the outside, but working. Comes with earphone. Built-in mic, with voice activation. [Taken]
• Tie-clip microphone, Radio Shack. Used with above recorder. [Taken]
• Inductive suction-cup pickup for old-style telephone handsets, also used with above recorder. [Taken]

The scuffing mentioned on the above items is from jiggling around the drawer of a moving bus and the glovebox of a motorcycle.

If you have questions about any item, please post them in the comments so everyone will be able to see the answer.

I will update this post as each item is spoken for.

Tarrying

We've decided to extend another day here at Lake Casa Blanca. For one thing, once we got settled in I started on some projects, including getting rid of some of the "stuff" that's been lingering in my "to dispose" pile, and I'm still in the middle of that. For another, we'll need to get about US$400 out of the bank in Mexican pesos to pay for the diesel, and it will be easier to do that Monday than today.

Yesterday evening we rode downtown on Chip to La Posada Hotel, right on the river between international bridges 1 and 2, and had dinner in their steak house, The Tack Room. A bit spendy for Laredo, but the food was excellent, the salad bar was impressive, and they even set up a table for us on the balcony overlooking the square, on an evening where the weather was just perfect for dining al fresco.

In the course of finishing the research on our route through Mexico, I discovered that the bridge I had intended to cross, the World Trade Bridge (AKA International Bridge #4), is restricted to commercial traffic. That means that our choices are to fight our way over Bridge #2, right through downtown Laredo and into downtown Nuevo Laredo, or head a few miles further west to International Bridge #5, which bypasses Tamaulipas altogether, crossing instead into Colombia, Nuevo Leon.

As fond as we are of Mexican cities, it's best for Odyssey to avoid el centro whenever possible, so, reluctantly, we will cross at Colombia. For those following in our footsteps, Colombia is a better choice anyway, since it is a newer crossing designed for large vehicles, and there is ample parking to go in to immigration and the Banjercito to get your paperwork done. We're told there is simply no RV parking for such at the older crossings downtown. We already have our tourist cards and vehicle permits, so it's not an issue for us either way.

Small Space Saturday: Free Book Giveaway

On Saturdays I write about strategies for living in 300 square feet

Today I am offering two strategies for reducing clutter and making a small space more livable.

The first is to read about decluttering and organizing. Books and websites that share other people's stories can be very inspiring. For instance, the Organizing Junkie has a feature called the "Monthly Round Up" where her readers submit stories and photos of how they cleaned up their kitchen, garage, etc. Seeing those "before and after" pictures always brings a smile to my face. A well-done clean up makes me want to get up and organize. The really bad ones, well, they make me feel better about myself...

We recently bought the book It's All Too Much, by Peter Walsh. Mr. Walsh is best known for his appearances on the program "Clean Sweep." The book is written in a personable, easy to read style, and offers a concrete method to declutter your home. Normally, this is really my cup of tea, not Sean's. But Sean liked it and said, "Walsh is dead-on about the all the reasons people keep too much stuff." While he also found the book to be a bit repetitive, it was obviously inspiring: yesterday, Sean cleaned four bags of old clothing out of his closet to be given to charity. When you consider that we each have only 30 inches of closet rod space, that's pretty inspired!



Now that we have both read the book, we are ready to move it out of the bus. That is the second strategy: get rid of things you have finished using as soon as possible. We rarely re-read books, so they are an excellent candidate for giving away. Knowing this, we usually buy used books and either leave them at a campground book exchange or drop off at a charity collection point.

For "It's All Too Much," however, I am offering it free to one of our readers. I will pay the shipping costs. The hardcover book was purchased used but in very good condition. It has a pen mark along the top edge, and slight wrinkling of the book jacket.

If you would like this free copy of the book, leave a comment with a sentence or two about your decluttering experiences. It can be something you are struggling with, a tip, or a recent triumph. The winner will be chosen randomly a week from today, on May 3, 2008. Don't leave your address or email in the comment, please, but check back next week for the name of the winner and instructions on how to claim the book.

If you are a visitor from "Works for Me" on Rocks in My Dryer, welcome and good luck.

Cooling off in Laredo

We are at the Lake Casa Blanca International State Park, in Laredo, Texas (map). We're only a few feet from where we stayed three years ago, when last we were here.

Frankly, neither one of us had recollected staying here in Laredo as we were rolling in to town, and when I suggested to Louise that we should spend a night or two at a park with power and water available (our fresh tank was empty, and our fuel level is bordering on too low to run the generator) before crossing the border, she turned this option up in her vast array of guidebooks.

We rolled in, paid for two nights, and trundled the mile or so down to the campground, thinking in blissful ignorance that it was all new to us. It wasn't until the last few feet before our assigned space that I recognized the very campsite we had occupied back then, and it all started to come back. I think Louise did not believe me, but the blog doesn't lie. Or, as we're fond of saying around here, we drink to forget; we blog to remember.

As I've said here before, one of our dirty little secrets is that the map links and location descriptions here in the blog are as much or more for our own reference as they are for our readers. Think of it almost as a ship's log. We've gone back many times to remind ourselves about places we either did or did not like enough to revisit. In this case, we just didn't think about it hard enough before heading down here to go back and check the blog about our first visit.

Unlike the last time we came through, when we were on a more limited schedule and were itching to move on towards Big Bend, this time we decided to spend at least two nights here, and yesterday we took the scooters out to explore this enormous park. We were a little surprised, honestly, at how run down it is.

For example, there are two huge swimming pool and bathhouse complexes in the park, but both are defunct. One was closed so long ago that the pool itself has since been filled in with earth, and the bathhouse serves as the shower facilities for the campgrounds. The other pool is still intact, but clearly has not been used for many years (the 2002-dated map we were handed on the way in lists it as "not in use").

Likewise, there are hundreds if not thousands of day-use parking spaces here, on acres and acres of parking lots. I counted over a dozen distinct day-use areas. But the parking lots are literally disintegrating, with the macadam slowly turning back into pea gravel. Several of the interesting day-use pavilions are similarly crumbling -- one building appeared to have a tree growing up through its middle.

By contrast, the campgrounds appear to be routinely maintained. Most sites have new-looking steel ramadas, lantern hooks, fire rings, and the like, and the water and power hookups are in excellent condition.

It's a shame to see such an extensive and well-designed facility deteriorating like this. We can't help but wonder if the more restrictive border policies post-9/11 have contributed to the decline, as they have to so many businesses and facilities along the Rio Grande.

It's been nice having full power for the air conditioning here in the heat and humidity, and we've already taken advantage of our water spigot to tank up on both fresh and drinking water. The air conditioners also drowned out the noise from the nearby racetrack last night, which was hosting an event with loud music, louder car engines, and louder still P.A. announcements. Tomorrow we will cross the border at the big-rig crossing west of here, which will bypass most of Laredo and Nuevo Laredo, and head northwest on Mexico 2 in search of fuel.

Wonder in Alice-land

We are at the Wal-Mart in Alice, Texas (map).

Yesterday morning we went for a long walk on the beach. We passed another three or four Men-of-War washed up on the beach (along with all manner of marine detritus), which convinced us to stay out of the water even though things were warming up a bit, but still we pretty much had decided to extend our stay on Padre Island by another night.

The pets had other ideas, as one of the cats peed on the bed in the course of the hour we were out walking. I'm pretty sure Louise would have throttled her if she could be sure which cat did the dastardly deed. But because the pee soaked not only the sheets, which are easily changed, but also the bedspread, mattress pad, blanket, and even the liner for our foam mattress-topper, the episode necessitated an immediate trip to the laundromat washateria.

Fortunately, we had not yet dropped another $8 in the iron ranger, and so we simply decided to end our visit to the park and head in to Corpus to find a suitable facility. After stripping the bed, we spent an hour getting Odyssey packed up (the deck was deployed and both scooters were out, along with our lawn chairs) and cleared out of the park just past noon.

Finding coin laundries that will work for us (or sometimes any at all) is always something of a challenge -- many are not listed in the phone book, or not listed in any category that you'd think to check. The small one on the island, right at the Mustang Island turn-off, could not accommodate Odyssey in the parking lot. The next one we tried, on the other side of the causeway, had suffered a break-in the previous night and was out of commission. Another possibility turned out to only be a dry cleaning service. Finally we found a small operation that worked, although it was a tight squeeze to get the bus squared away in their tiny lot.

After a couple hours, Louise had the bedding under control (and did the rest of the laundry to boot), and I had some long-overdue errands run at the Lowe's and a jewelry store nearby, and we headed to Stewart & Stevenson to see about the transmission.

It was pretty late in the day when we arrived, and, unsurprisingly, the transmission guys were tied up, but they agreed to get us in first thing in the morning. They directed us to a comfortable spot alongside the building and even hauled a 20-amp power cord out for us, plenty to run one air conditioner and keep the batteries topped off, so we just spent the night right there in their parking lot (map). I even ended up grilling a marinated flank steak there, which I think amused the last couple of techs to wander out of the shop after closing, and maybe the wrecker driver who dropped off a day cab later on.

I'll spare you the details, but the consensus of opinion after two different Allison techs spent a couple hours with it this morning is that the tranny does not have a hydraulic or mechanical problem. They did find a lot of goop in the harness connector on the transmission itself, and one possibility is that the crud was creating an intermittent electrical fault causing the code-12 errors. They cleaned the connector up, but also conceded that the fluid level, even though it is reading full, might be perhaps a quart low. They gave me a half-full jug of Transynd with the idea that I should put more in, one pint at a time, if the code comes back.

The other thing they did was to grab the serial and assembly numbers off the tranny and run the build out of the computer. That confirmed that we have the new-model stator springs in the torque converter -- an early concern in the diagnosis was that 748's with older model springs were prone to stator failures -- and also that our transmission has a fluid-level sensor, rather than a lube-pressure sensor (code 12 means either low fluid or low lube pressure, depending on which sensor was installed at build). They gave us the build print-out to file away.

It was just past 11 when we rolled out of the shop. They were very professional but also very kind, charging us only for two hours of labor and no parts. We tend to seek out these smaller Detroit/Allison distributors for precisely the reason that they always seem to have more time for us, and go out of their way to accommodate us --the power cord for our overnight digs being a case in point.

Before I turned in last night, it somehow came to my attention that the Texas International Boat Show opened today at the Corpus Christi Marina. Since we rolled out of the shop so early in the day, we decided to head downtown and take it in. Parking was convenient in the Coliseum lot just a few blocks from the pier, and we toured through all half dozen or so boats of the "trawler" genre that were in this show (out of 100 or more boats both in and out of the water). Not really the right show for us, but definitely convenient since we were already in town.

That put us on the road well into the afternoon, and this Wal-Mart was really the first decent stopping point west of the city. Not really the most comfortable stop, especially since temperatures pushing 90 had us running the A/C for several hours after we stopped, but between an early start at the Allison shop, and wandering around the boat show all afternoon, we were beat, and we really didn't want to chance not finding anything better in the next hour.

Tomorrow we will continue west on TX44 till it joins US59, which will take us all the way to Laredo.

Happy Earth Day

Courtesy: NASA / Goddard Space Flight Center

Today is Earth Day. I've been meaning for several days now to post again about our lifestyle here aboard Odyssey and how full-timing has permanently changed some of our habits, and today is a perfect day to do it, in keeping with the day's theme.

As I write this, I am looking out over the Gulf of Mexico, and I am seated perhaps 30 yards from the water. If this little plot of land could be bought (it can't), then surely there would be a half-million dollar house upon it. No doubt that house would be air conditioned, with unending supplies of hot and cold running water, perhaps even a swimming pool.

There is no running water, sewer system, or electricity in our little plot of paradise here, yet we give up virtually none of the modern comforts of that beach-front home (well, OK, no swimming pool). How comfortable we are, and how long we can remain in one place, are largely a matter of timing, and, to a lesser extent, some changes in our habits.

When we first arrive at a new location, we generally come with full batteries, plenty of hot water, and even some "thermal mass" for household heat when needed. That's because our batteries are very efficiently charged by our main engine, and we capture the waste heat from the engine in our hydronic system to heat water and, if needed, the living space.

One of the habits we've developed is to shower and do dishes at the end of the day when we've been driving. The water remains hot for many hours, and we have plenty for those purposes in the evening, but if we wait until morning, there will not be enough heat left.

Another habit, which conserves both hot water and our limited supply of water altogether, is the "navy shower." With the way our shower is designed, this is not a hardship of any kind, and does not feel to us like any kind of sacrifice, yet it goes a long way toward making us utility-independent. (For the uninitiated, a "navy shower" involves turning the water on, adjusting the temperature, getting thoroughly wet, then turning the water off while soaping up, scrubbing, shampooing, etc.. The water is turned back on one or more times as needed to rinse off. Our shower valve, which is the turn-to-adjust, pull-on, push-off type, allows us to turn the water on and off at will without having to readjust the temperature setting.)

While our shower will easily accommodate a "standard" overhead shower head of any design, we use one of those handheld units on a hose. A bracket holds it in the overhead position, handy for washing hair, but we find that grabbing it and moving it around as needed means we use less rinse water than with a fixed head. I find that it just feels better, too, and the one we have has two massage settings as well for those times when my bad back acts up.

Single-handle faucets in the kitchen and bath allow the same adjust-once, on-off action for washing up or doing dishes. Brushing teeth is done with the dedicated drinking-water supply system, which uses a spring-loaded lever-operated spigot.

I've recently started shaving again, after fifteen years of a full beard that required only trimming and periodic adjustment. I alternate between a rechargeable electric and a regular blade, for which I use a small dish filled with water I heat in the microwave. A far cry from the way I did it in my callow youth, wherein I ran the hot water until I was done.

Now that we've been parked for over a day, the water is ambient temperature. The dishes will accumulate in the sink now until we need to shower tonight. Since we don't need any heat here on the temperate gulf coast, we'll start the generator this evening and run it for 30-45 minutes. The 12-gallon electric water heater will make enough hot water in that time for both of us to shower and for me to do all the day's dishes, with enough left over to rinse out the coffee pot in the morning.

While running the massive generator for that long will burn half a gallon or so of diesel fuel, which seems like a lot to heat water, the fact is that we've also depleted around four kWh out of our battery system, and so the generator will also be working hard to replace that energy. The limits of the battery charger mean that we will only replace about half that amount in the short run time -- if we stay parked for many days on end, we would eventually need to run the generator for a few hours to catch up. Often, we pack up and start driving before we get to that point.

To make more efficient use of the generator while it's running, we might run it before dinner and use our electric cooktop rather than the propane stove. We can also run an air conditioner or two during that time to dry out from the 95% humidity we are experiencing here along the gulf.

When we are parked in colder climes, perhaps 50° or below, we will run the diesel-fired boiler for heat. Again, we'll use the waste heat from driving for as long as it lasts, but that may only be a few hours in really cold weather. The boiler uses about a quart of diesel every hour to heat the same hydronic fluid that the main engine would heat, which then circulates through the coach for home heating. This also heats the water heater, so we have hot water on demand when the heaters are on. Of course, all of that depletes the batteries faster, and we need to run the generator even more often in the cold weather unless we are driving.

As I wrote in this extensive post for Blog Action Day last year, our overall water consumption here aboard Odyssey works out to about ten gallons a day. That compares extremely favorably to the average American, and yet we no longer think about it, nor do we feel in any way inconvenienced. I had occasion to reflect on this a few days ago at Mustang Island, which prompted me to write today's essay.

I showered before bed particularly late one night, and was thinking to myself that, even though we really did not need a power hookup in this climate, it was nice to have fully hot water any time of the day or night. That caused me to "pay more attention" while I was showering, and I realized that, right in that place, we could go hog-wild with the water, but we didn't. We had a 50-amp electrical hookup, AND a dedicated water spigot, and so only the size of our gray tank would be a limit, and, even so, there was a dump station right in the park, so we could easily rid ourselves of our 20-gallon-apiece showers on our way out, if need be.

The simple fact is, though, that we don't even hook up to water when it's available. We'll look at our tank level, and maybe connect the hose for 15 minutes to fill up if we need to, but we don't ever leave the hose connected. Navy showers and hot-water management are just such an ingrained part of our lives now that we don't even think about it. Even if I think about it consciously, I just can't bring myself to leave the faucet running while I wash the dishes, or shave.

Likewise, when we are connected to a power outlet, even the 50-amp ones, we don't change our habits to, for example, leave more lights on. About the only luxury we ever indulge when on full power is to run the air conditioners even if it's only 80 degrees out, and, even then, if there is a breeze we prefer the fresh air.



I'm not sure where I'm going with all this, other than to reiterate my Blog Action Day theme, that it's possible to live in a giant diesel-guzzling bus and still have some sense of stewardship of the environment. It's easy to look out our window here at the four families staying in tents and think that they are communing more deeply with nature than we, but we then remember that they will soon return to their 2,000 square-foot house (where the water heater, and maybe the air conditioning, has likely been running the whole time they've been here) and all the hustle and bustle and consumerism of the average American lifestyle. We feel truly blessed to be allowed here in this sacred place, and we feel good about treading lightly.

Sticky on Padre Island

We're at the Malaquite Campground in the Padre Island National Seashore (map).

This is the same campground we stayed in three years ago on our first visit. What a difference. First off, the place is nearly empty, with perhaps a half dozen sites occupied out of 50 total. Last visit, we got the very last available site at the end of the day. Also, they have rearranged the place -- on our last visit, there were angled back-ins on the inland side, but the gulf side parking was parallel. We recall it being a tight squeeze to get Odyssey into the parallel site that was only inches longer than the coach, with rigs already parked on either end. The beach-side parking has been rearranged into angled back-ins with tables and ramadas between sites, we presume to increase total capacity of the campground. (At this writing, the aerial image still shows the older layout.)



Knowing the campground had plenty of room, we took some time to drive down to the beach to see if we could find ourselves a nicer spot right on the sand. As a bonus, beach camping is free (as opposed to $8 per night here in the primitive campground). While Odyssey could make it onto the beach without trouble, and we could probably drive unimpeded for a mile or so, the sand just inland from the drivable portion of the beach was quite soft. It would have been a challenge to find a spot firm enough to support us yet far enough from the "road" to be out of the way. The beach was also liberally strewn with thick seaweed, and Louise spotted at least one Portuguese Man-of-War, which lessened the appeal. The fact that the water is 70°, not really warm enough for comfortable swimming, was the last straw, convincing us to just come back here to the campground for a few nights.



The beach road is plenty firm for these trucks to drive on, but the parking area immediately off the road is too soft for Odyssey.

On our way in to the park, we also drove over to the bay side and scoped out the Bird Island campground. This area, extremely popular with windsurfers, allows camping up to the maximum stay of 14 days just for the cost of an annual Bird Island permit, $10. As a consequence, the three dozen or so camp sites there were nearly full when we drove through, and the crowded conditions made the place less appealing to us. We're happier here, where, for a few dollars more, we have a gulf view and empty sites for hundreds of feet in either direction.

Although temperatures have been in the very pleasant 70s for the last several days, the onshore breeze has been steadily increasing the humidity, which is now running at 95%. Our last day at Mustang Island we ran an air conditioner all day, just to dry things out. Here, without power hookups, we're sticking with all-natural ventilation, and we're very damp, although otherwise very comfortable.

Now that we're hitting some of our "old haunts," places we'd been on our first circuit of the country over three years ago, I am finding myself consulting our blog posts from back then to jog my memory. (It is one of our dirty little secrets that the blog is as much for our own memory and reference as it is for the benefit of friends, family, and the following of readers we've developed, which is why I appear, at times, to go into mundane details that are of little interest to anyone but us.) Now that I've been blogging here for over three years, the changes in the blog over that time, as we've learned and refined our techniques, is rather striking. (We just surpassed the 1,000-post milestone a few days ago.)

For example, in the post I referenced above, there is no title, no bolding every few paragraphs, a less useful (IMO) map link, and no photos. There are labels, but only because Louise painstakingly went back through the entire blog when we started labeling, and assigned labels to all of our old posts. We started adding photos to the blog perhaps two years ago, but generally in separate posts. Nowadays, we try to insert a photo of each interesting stop right in the relevant post, although often, as today, we add the photo a day or so after I've posted the text.

I'm not sure how long we'll stay here. We've paid for two nights, but might well extend that until our supplies run out, perhaps another two days. From here, we'll then head into Corpus to see if the Allison dealer can fit us in for a transmission diagnostic.

Egrets. I've had a few.

We are at Mustang Island State Park, near Corpus Christi (map).

We had an uneventful ferry crossing yesterday, especially since, this time, we were prepared for the fact that Odyssey's 24 tons would tilt the whole boat as we drove on board. Our first clue that things would be crowded here on the island was the fact that we waited in a 45 minute line to board the ferry, and that was with four boats running.

As it turns out, the Texas Sandfest is going on at the beach in Port Aransas. We did not even try to get out to that part of the island, where beach camping is available after buying a permit in town or from a ranger. Now that we know the Sandfest is running, we're glad we did not fight our way through the traffic, as I am certain the beach was cheek-by-jowl with campers.

We instead headed directly here, hoping to get a nice primitive spot on the beach. After flashing our state park pass at the gate, we were somewhat relieved to find several spaces in the developed campground still available as a backup. We parked in the day use area and walked to the beach camping.

OMG, the beach was packed. Primitive camping ($8 per night) is allowed for a 1.5 mile stretch, and from the north end, the beach was chockablock with campers for literally as far as the eye could see. While it looked like Odyssey could easily make it onto the firm beach sand, it was not the secluded camping experience for which we were hoping. On top of that, the beach is, at this moment, absolutely covered with seaweed (although the Portugese Man-of-War count is low, according to the sign in the office).

Knowing our other camping options for a weekend night would be fading fast, we hustled back to the office and snagged one of the last remaining spots in the developed campground, where $16 gets you 50 amps and a water spigot, along with a little ramada over the picnic table and a charcoal grill (no wood fires in this campground, although they are allowed on the beach). We paid for two nights, reasoning that we'll have many more options come Monday.

While we're a good 75 yards from the beach here (although a much longer walk, since one must walk around the campground and to the day use area on the paved road), we can see the gulf over the dunes from our deck. The seagulls have unionized here, and have staked out various regions of the campground to hunt for the wily camper-droppings (or the occasional unlawful handout). There's no shortage of other birds here, either, and an egret was strutting around outside the window when I started typing.

Apparently my post here yesterday struck some nerves, causing me to clarify some of the remarks in the comments. Not to beat it to death, but perhaps some further clarification here is warranted:

I tend to look at every situation as different, and I don't like to use absolutes like "never" and "always" when it comes to appropriate boondocking behavior. What's appropriate back by the loading dock is different from what's appropriate by the main entrance, and what may work in rural Texas may not fly in suburban Chicago. The keys are discretion and judgment, and my issue yesterday is that the three rigs I discussed exercised neither, given the particular location and circumstances.

In over three and a half years of full-timing, I can say we've now easily been in a dozen or more places where overnight stays were once allowed but are no longer permitted. In some cases, the decision to prohibit the stays was made by the property owner, and in other cases it came down to ordinances passed by municipalities, counties, or even a whole state. And while some of these closures can, no doubt, be traced to activism or lobbying on the part of one or more commercial campground owners who saw it as a revenue opportunity, the vast majority of cases can be traced directly to the behavior of certain RVers (read about two such spots, here and here).

I can't say that I blame them -- in our travels, we've seen holes in asphalt several inches deep from leveling jacks, pet waste where people walk, trash strewn about, and, yes, I've even had the displeasure to see where some RV's chose to dump their gray or even black water tanks (yuck). I know in my heart that this represents a small minority of RV owners, most of whom are very responsible. Yet these are the folks who cause these overnight opportunities to be lost forever.

So please don't take what I wrote to mean that you shouldn't ever put your slides out, or that you should never take up more spaces than the absolute minimum, or whatever. Just that you should consider carefully how everything you do will look to the business's regular customers, or passers-by on the street. It really does not take many customer complaints (one or two might be sufficient) for a store to prohibit overnights, or many calls to city hall (or police blotter entries) for a municipality to ban it.

Tomorrow we might head down to the Padre Island National Recreation Area, to see if the beach camping is any more appealing there.

Photo by CatDancing

Small Space Saturday: The Out Box

On Saturdays I write about strategies for living in 300 square feet

The way we keep stuff from creeping into Odyssey and making our small living space cluttered is a firm adherence to the One In/One Out Rule. Simply stated, for everything that comes into the bus something else must go out. A pair of new shoes? An old pair goes to charity. The latest magazine edition? An old one gets recycled. Purchased a part for a project that doesn't work right? Return it for a refund.

The problem with this system is the time delay. The charity drop off is rarely right next to the new shoe store. We don't usually start the project while still sitting at the hardware store. And don't get me started on how limited the recycling opportunities are in some states!

For a while, we had plastic bags floating around the living area half full of things that needed to leave the bus, sometime. One bag for Home Depot returns. Another for the Salvation Army. They usually collected on the couch and became, well, clutter. Even if they were small and tucked in a corner, decorating with used WalMart bags wasn't looking too chic.

So we dedicated a niche near the front door to serve as the staging area for Stuff That Must Leave. I measured the space and found this nice box at Target:




Approximately one cubic foot in volume, it easily holds those random bags of things waiting for their final destination. The faux black leather blends nicely with the industrial look of our cockpit. When we finally find another Home Depot to return a bag of screws, we know exactly where to look for them.

If you'd like to see clever examples of storage containers that might work for an Out Box, visit Jeri's Organizing & Decluttering News. She does a fantastic job of finding interesting organizing products in a huge variety of decorating styles.

Camp Wal-Mart

We are at yet another Wal-Mart, this one in Rockport (map).

Our plan for yesterday afternoon was to stop either at one of the picnic areas that showed on our map, or Goose Island State Park. The first picnic area was unappealing, and the second one, which would have been perfect, was clearly posted "No Overnight Camping." That's unusual for Texas, but when it does happen, it's usually a sign that one is very close to heavily-used recreation areas. Additional "No Overnight Camping" signs at various other potential turn-outs and fishing spots along the road confirmed that we were, indeed, in just such an area.

We decided to head on to Goose Island State Park, reasoning that, even though it was Friday, we would be early enough to still snag a space. Unfortunately, we had to turn back on the approach road, which was covered by a canopy of old oak trees with ever-decreasing clearance. We made it part of the way down the road by swerving back and forth across the oncoming lane, doing what we like to call the low-branch slalom. But we could see up ahead the road becoming divided, with one lane in each direction and oaks not only to either side, but also in the median. If we encountered a low branch on the divided section, there'd be no place to dodge it, and we'd have to back out. With occasional traffic behind us, that seemed like a recipe for disaster, so, reluctantly, we made a three-point turn at a fortuitously placed intersection just before the divide, and headed back out to the highway.

At this point we more or less resigned ourselves to having to hunt for a spot on the beach after crossing the ferry. Without having pre-scoped the beach for hardness and the ability to support all of Odyssey's 47,000 lbs on less than 500 square inches, we were a little bit nervous about starting such a search at what would likely be 5pm by the time we arrived, but sometimes that's just how things work out.

When we arrived here in Rockport, another Wal-Mart stay was not really on our minds, but the dog was asking for a walk, and a Wal-Mart parking lot is usually a pretty safe bet for getting Odyssey off the road. Frankly, given all the "No Overnight" signs we'd seen in the region, we did not imagine that this store would allow it either. So we were somewhat surprised to find signs in the lot directing us to "RV Parking."

This store has striped ten spaces for RV or boat trailer parking. The spaces are extra wide and a good 100' long, allowing for rigs of almost any size, and even two rigs per space in a pinch. They are angled pull-throughs on heavy concrete, presumably to protect the lot from heavy-weight traffic or maybe the ravages of jacks that some RV'ers just can't seem to resist deploying (we've seen some extensive jack damage in asphalt lots). It was clearly a good stopping point, relieving us of having to hunt on the beach at the end of the day, and there was a Chili's restaurant in the same lot, so we decided to just call it a day here.

I applaud Wal-Mart for providing such an area for in-transit RVers to shop in the store and spend a night. But I worry, as I sometimes do, that the actions of an ungrateful and obnoxious few will end up closing this option to the rest of us, with either the store itself or perhaps the city government finally deciding they've had enough. (I discussed one such store in this post.)

When we arrived here mid-afternoon yesterday, this rig was well-established:




This couple is not "spending the night." They are camping. (The distinction, as now promulgated by many RV-rights advocacy groups, can be found in this "overnight etiquette" document.) Note that:

• Their tow vehicle is disconnected, uncharacteristic for a fiver "passing through."
  
• Their jacks are fully deployed. Thankfully, this particular location has concrete which will likely withstand this.
• There are items "stored" under the rig, including their dog and his kennel.
• They are taking up not one, but two of the 100' spaces that Wal-Mart has graciously provided. If more than ten rigs were here (probably not an uncommon occurrence at this store), that would force someone out into another part of the lot, whereas clearly the store wants us all here. In addition to being positioned (unnecessarily so) in the space such that their slide-out protrudes several feet into the next space, they've parked their truck in the adjacent space as well, rather than in the ample space either in front of or behind their rig.
• Of course, I can't be certain of this, but it looks to me that they've been here longer than a day. At this writing, they've loaded themselves into their truck and headed out someplace.

While not an RV-overnight etiquette issue, per se, they also have one of those annoying contractor generators in the back of the truck that they ran for several hours.

As if one rig ignoring established etiquette was not enough, this rig pulled in later in the day:



These folks immediately set up their chairs and table in an adjacent space, poured themselves several glasses of wine, and sat out smoking and jawboning for hours. They've also got their hydraulic jacks down.

Lastly, the rig on the other side of us looks to have done the dishes with their gray water valve open -- disgusting. (You're probably thankful that I don't have a picture of that one.)

Now, I'm no goody-two-shoes in this regard. We once spent two nights in a row in a Wal-Mart. (Well, Odyssey did -- we were visiting friends who whisked us away for a day. And we got permission first.) And I spent a week stealthily parked in a mostly-unused lot behind a strip mall in Austin. And, in the heat, we will usually put an awning out a foot or two to keep the sun off the glass. But I was (or we were, as the case may be) very sensitive to the appearance of the whole affair, as we always are. We try to take up the minimum amount of space that will fit us, and we always strive to look like we are parking, not camping. We always ask ourselves if we appear to be doing something that will attract the attention of the store manager, or some neighborhood busybody, or the constabulary.

Maybe it's just me, but I really wish these folks would exercise a bit more discretion and judgment. I understand the desire to save a few bucks and take advantage of these opportunities when they present themselves. But it's a parking lot, fer cryin' out loud -- look like you're parked. Of course, the last time I railed on about this subject, we got some nasty comments on the blog. (Too nasty, actually, for our family-friendly format, so I deleted them.) So my opinion is not universally shared. But, hey, it's my blog, and I can rant if I want to.

In a few minutes, we will head south to Port Aransas and the ferry.

Bay City Rollers

We are at the Wal-Mart in Bay City, Texas (map).

Our friends in Beaumont were available Wednesday evening, and so we extended our stay at Galveston Island State Park by another day. They were gracious enough to drive all the way down to Galveston to visit, and we had a lovely dinner at local favorite Rudy And Pacos, downtown on the strand.

We were unable to connect with our friends in Channelview, as one of them is under the weather right now, and so we decided to wrap up our stay on the island and head back out the way we came in -- south over the San Luis Pass and through Brazoria county, thus completely avoiding the traffic nightmare that is the greater Houston area.

We are en route to the Corpus Christi area, where the beaches should be somewhat warmer, for a bit of relaxation, but, more importantly, where there is also a branch of Detroit/Allison distributor Stewart & Stevenson. S&S also has a branch in Houston, but Corpus is smaller, less busy, and had a friendlier feel last time we were there three years ago. Our transmission is still giving us Code 12 on a daily basis, and I'd like another professional opinion on it. I might also have them run a quick engine diagnosis, although the low power issue seems to have been mostly rectified by replacing the air filter.

Last night we were inundated with rain, a torrential downpour accompanied by 60MPH winds. This is the first rainfall we've encountered in many months. It all lasted only an hour or so, but with that amount of water all our leaks paid us a visit. Fortunately, Louise's new super-technogeek Midland Weather Radio alerted her in the middle of the night, and she jumped up to batten down the hatches and stow the satellite dish as a precaution.

From here we will continue southwest through Port Lavaca and then angle down to the coast at Port Aransas, where the wobbly ferry will take us across to the barrier islands. I have my sights set on Mustang Island State Park, but advance intelligence suggests that the campground may be full until Sunday night. They also have some primitive sites which might be available, or we may stop for a night or two between here and there.

Flying Scooters

I found a short video of the Sand Blast Scooter Rally Gymkhana and added it to this post. I think it captures perfectly the spirit of the event.

Odyssey's IT department

Nearly a month ago, reader Blackeagle asked what we use here aboard Odyssey when we need to print something from our computers. I'm finally getting around to answering that question here, and, while I am at it, I thought I would share with you what our whole "information technology" (IT) setup looks like, and how we use it on a daily basis to simplify our lives. I'll try to keep the geek-speak to a minimum, since I know many of our readers are thinking about hitting the road and might find the information useful.

First, to answer the question as asked: we use a Cannon i80 ink-jet printer (what Cannon calls a "Bubble-Jet"), shown in this photo printing a shipping label:



We chose this printer simply because it was very compact, and space is at a premium on board. We don't print very much, so cost-per-page was not a big issue, nor the fact that the ink cartridges are harder to find than the more common desktop printers. Here's what the printer looks like folded up for storage:



I'd be willing to bet that this model is no longer available. And, if I were doing it over again today, I think I would look for something with built-in wireless networking. As it stands now, we have to set the printer up near whatever computer is doing the printing, since it's hard-wired, and "sharing" the printer means unplugging it from one computer and into the other.

Speaking of computers, we now have identical Gateway MX6930 laptop computers. Heaven forfend that we would have to share a computer -- most mornings we both spend well over an hour reading the morning news, answering email, and checking in with the various forums we each follow on-line. Geek that I am, I'd love to tell you that I arrived at this particular selection after exhaustive research, culminating in these being the pinnacle in price/performance for our usage, but the truth is somewhat more mundane.

Rather than rehash it all here, I will instead point you to this post, wherein I described how we ended up with the Gateways because we absoluteley would not buy new computers pre-loaded with Windows Vista. Also in that post, I describe why we need to run Windows, rather than changing over to my preference, Linux, or even to Macintosh. That's one of the Gateways, by the way, in the first photo above.

Window's dominance of the third-party application software market means we have little choice but to run a Microsoft operating system. However, I am now officially fed up with the proprietary software market, Microsoft chief among them, and have moved our software environment almost entirely to open source software whenever possible, and free software where open source is lacking. The only fee-for-license software we now use, besides Windows itself, are the mapping packages from DeLorme (Street Atlas USA 8, and Topo USA 6), and the stuff that came with hardware, such as the control software for the satellite system and the synchronization software for our cell phones and my MP3 player.

Because we run an open wireless network (more on that in a moment), and, moreover, often use our laptops on other wireless networks such as those in campgrounds, truck stops, or hotels, we have secured our laptops themselves rather than relying on external network security or firewalls. We use AVG Free Antivirus 7.5, which I find every bit as good as, if not superior to, the big fee-based products like Norton (Symantec) and McAfee, and Checkpoint's ZoneAlarm Free Version firewall. [Side note: Since Checkpoint bought out Zone Labs, nags about upgrading to the paid version have been creeping in to this product. Also, I understand that some of the other excellent free firewalls are easier to configure for novice users. We may switch firewall allegiance in the future, and I will try to update this post if that happens.]

Between these two products, and setting Windows Update to alert us of all critical security patches released by Microsoft, I have a great deal of confidence in the security of our setup. On the privacy front, we have taken some extra precautions with our browsers, which I will get to in a moment, and we also use Spybot Search and Destroy, and AdAware 2007 Free, both free products which will scan your computer for privacy-invading threats and offer to remove them.

Far and away the majority of our time on the computer is spent in a web browser, and for this we use Mozilla Firefox. In addition to being free, it's also open source, which means not only that security threats are detected and addressed quickly, but also that there is a huge community of developers working on extending the functionality, security, and appearance of the product. If you do only one thing to enhance your privacy and security on-line, it should be to move away from Microsoft Internet Explorer, perhaps the most dangerous browser ever made. Firefox is an excellent choice of replacement.

Once you've switched to Firefox, there are literally hundreds of extensions and themes that can be downloaded and added in. I use several myself, but one must-have is AdBlock Plus. Once you've installed this extension and subscribed to one of several "filter lists," advertisements on your web pages will virtually be a thing of the past. In addition to simply not having to look at those annoying graphics in otherwise useful web sites like Yahoo and CNN, your browser also will not spend any time downloading them, either, which will speed up your web experience, and, if you are watching your usage as we are, they won't use up your valuable bandwidth or download limits.

Speaking of download limits, our HughesNet satellite-based internet service (more on that later) has one. In order to allow users to be able to download important software updates and the like without exceeding the daily limit, HughesNet has set a "free" window, where usage does not count against your limit, from 3am to 6am Eastern (midnight to 3 Pacific) Time. To take advantage of this without having to stay up all night, I use a download manager called FlashGet (and its companion Firefox extension, FlashGot).

In addition to allowing the bandwidth-challenged to download at night, download managers can also speed up certain downloads by opening multiple streams and downloading multiple parts of the same file in parallel. Perhaps more importantly, depending on the download site, they can resume a download that has been interrupted (due to a system crash, or temporary loss of internet connectivity) without having to start the whole download over from the beginning.

I also use another download manager that is a Firefox extension called DownThemAll. In addition to the traditional benefits of download managers in general, this extension can look at all the links on a web page simultaneously, and offer to download any or all of them. This is handy when you visit, say, a photo gallery, and you'd like to download all the photos at once, or the index page of a collection of PDF documents that you'd like to download en masse.

To wrap up on Firefox extensions, I also use CookieCuller (cookie manager) and NoScript (script blocker) to further manage my privacy on line, ScribeFire occasionally to post to the blog, and FEBE to back up all my other extensions. The stand-alone tool MozBackup is useful for backing up other Firefox settings or transferring them to a different computer.

After web browsing, the next most common thing we do on our computers is email. In spite of my best efforts, I have not yet been able to wean Louise from Microsoft's Outlook Express, the chief benefit of which is that it is bundled with Windows. I myself am wary of the many security vulnerabilities that have turned up in OE over the years, and so I now use Mozilla Thunderbird for my email, another open source effort.

In addition to being a very competent mail and News client, Thunderbird includes a built-in RSS reader, and benefits from the same extensibility as Mozilla's other efforts. The MozBackup tool that I already mentioned will also back up, transfer, or restore your Thunderbird settings.

While I am on the subject of email, I will also tell you that we ditched all our fee-based email services some time ago, in favor of Google's free Gmail system. (We still have the POP accounts we are entitled to from, for example, HughesNet, but we don't use them.) Gmail allows us to receive, read, and send mail from a local client such as Thunderbird, while at the same time providing a powerful web-based interface as well as virtually unlimited message storage. We no longer have to worry about changing email addresses if we change service providers, and we can get our mail anywhere we can find web access, even without our computers.

Google does not exactly have the best track record when it comes to privacy, but nothing we do with our email gives me pause when I think about Google storing it all. Google also stores our blog, of course, having bought Blogger some time ago. One consequence of this is that our blog now shows up in the very top of Google searches for some pretty weird things (try "removing quickwire holes" or "disassemble MotoSat").

As I mentioned, we mostly access the internet via satellite. We have a MotoSat DataStorm F1 motorized, self-aligning dish (since superseded by the G74 model), which we bought third-hand and installed on Odyssey during construction. This system works in concert with the HughesNet satellite internet network, and we have a Hughes DW7000 satellite modem (since superseded by the HNS7000) that allows us to access the service. A MotoSat D2 controller (since superseded by the D3 -- do you detect a theme here?) communicates with the modem to align the dish automatically.

Both the modem and the controller are hard-wired Ethernet devices. To make productive use of the network throughout the coach and even outside in our lawn chairs or up on our deck, we use a NetGear WRG614 wireless ("WiFi") router to connect all the wired devices together, and propagate an 802.3B/G wireless network throughout the coach and extending perhaps a dozen yards or so in all directions. The router manages IP addresses for us and allows us to use any number of workstations on the single internet connection and address provided to us by HughesNet.

Aside from one time when some overzealous neighbor used so much of our bandwidth that we got restricted due to exceeding our limit (which prompted us to immediately lock the network down), our policy has been to keep our WiFi "hot spot" open, and allow our campground neighbors to use our service to check their email or surf the web. Amusingly, after the "tail gunner" on our Mexico caravan last year figured this out, we noticed that he always parked us in such a way that his rig would be within our signal footprint.

So far this open-access policy has stood us in good stead, netting us free booze, home-cooked meals, and, on the Mexico caravan, premium parking spots. I've used my share of other people's open networks over the years, so this also amounts to "giving back" to the open-access community.

In addition to the two computers, the printer, and the hardware associated with the satellite/WiFi networks, we also have a half-terabyte file server, also hard-wired to the router. (For the geeks, it's a Buffalo LinkStation, which is really a small embedded Linux box not much larger than the 500GB hard drive it contains.) This lets us back up our laptops conveniently, provides additional storage for videos or MP3's without eating up our hard drives, and lets us share files between our two computers easily and seamlessly.

As I alluded earlier, we use our computers to get all our news (cnn.com, and myriad sites from local papers and TV stations all over the country), pay all our bills (paytrust.com, for not only those bills that arrive on-line, but also those that insist on sending paper statements or getting paper checks), check on weather (wunderground.com), get help with the bus and its systems (busconversions.com and busnut online), look up restaurants, parks, campgrounds, dump stations, and myriad other resources (many links already listed in previous posts, with more to come). We even use the computer to make phone calls, using Skype, when cell phone service is unavailable.

A good part of my time in front of the screen is spent doing trip planning. For general route guidance, I use DeLorme's Street Atlas USA. The user interface, IMO, is total crap, but it is really the best tool out there in the consumer market for off-line use. After working out the overall route, I will use Google Earth to check up on aerial imagery of any roads that are a concern, destinations, waypoints, and stopovers. DeLorme's Topo USA comes into play for elevation profiles of routes, or terrain mapping for excursions off the paved roads.

For stopovers, in addition to the printed guides that Louise has already covered extensively in a previous post (and which have the advantage of being usable even while we are under way), I get collections of "overlay" files for Street Atlas USA that show locations of Elks lodges and Wal-Marts that allow overnight stays from on-line groups dedicated to those topics. Other on-line resources, such as Casino Camper, have locator maps and the coordinates can be transferred to Street Atlas or Google Earth. Web sites for all the major truck stop chains also provide location information as well as fuel pricing and availability of other services such as dump stations.

It is seldom necessary to do so -- once I know the route from the computer, it's easy to enter it on the GPS -- but I do also have the ability to take waypoints such as stopovers or major turns and transfer them from my computer to the Garmin 7200 GPS that lives in the cockpit and serves as our under-way route guidance. The GPS's internal database seems to always be out of date on Wal-Mart locations, so we often look those up on the Wal-Mart web site or in a printed directory and enter them by address.

Lastly, before I conclude, I'd like to mention the package I use for "office productivity" tools -- mostly spreadsheets and word-processing documents, but it also includes a relational database, presentation tool, drawing and graphics package, and even a scientific and mathematical equation package. That would be Open Office 2.4, another free, open source suite. The tools in this suite will open most of those pesky files made in Microsoft Office, such as Word documents, Excel workbooks, and PowerPoint presentations, and can even save to those formats, without having to send over $500 to Microsoft. The tools also write Adobe PDF files in native format. We happen to also have a Microsoft Office 2003 license that we inherited, which is handy since the American Red Cross uses that suite exclusively (a donation from Microsoft), and it's good to have the same tools that we use on a disaster response. But for my personal needs, I use OpenOffice.

I hope you have gotten something useful out of this quick (honestly!) tour of Odyssey's IT infrastructure.

Familiar surroundings

We are at Galveston Island State Park (map), just a couple dozen yards from where we stayed back in October. On that stay, we sprang the extra $5 per night for a "premium" space, meaning in the row closest to the beach. We parked backwards so that we would have a gulf view from our front windows. Somewhere in the middle of that stay, we realized that parking in the second row would mean we wouldn't have to dos-si-dos the bus to get the view (or haul out the giant 50-amp extension cord to plug in), it would save us $5 a night, and we'd have mostly the same view, just with some other rigs in the picture.

The scooter rally ended mid-day Sunday. But after some of our new friends invited us for a delicious lunch at their ultra-cute Airstream "Basecamp" toy hauler and then plied us with wine, we decided that driving the bus over to the state park was not in our best interests. Instead we bargained with the proprietors of the Jamaica Beach RV Park for another night in the grass, which set us back $15. At least, for that, I got to use the pool and hot tub one more time.

Yesterday we trundled down here, all of about a mile or so. It's been relatively cool, in the 70's, and very windy, so swimming in the gulf is out of the question. Still, it is beautiful and serene here. We had a pleasant dinner last night at Nate's Steak and Seafood, on the other side of Jamaica Beach, and Sunday Night we were at Waterman's, at Pirate's Cove. Both very different atmospheres than the hustle and bustle of the Galveston strand.

Today we are lining up visits with friends in Beaumont and Channelview, which will dictate our departure schedule. At this writing, we are booked here in the park only until tomorrow.

When we are done here in southeast Texas, we will head south to Corpus Christi for some maintenance as well as some relaxation in somewhat warmer climes, then head west to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico for more cheap diesel before heading north through the rockies, en route to the Escapade in Gillette, Wyoming in late June.

Thursday/Tuesday Tips: Tax Mailing Edition

Thursday is tip day.

Today's tip: Use the smallest post office you can find for your mailing needs.

I know, it isn't Thursday yet. But I just had to write about my great visit to the post office. Believe it or not, I just had a fantastic postal experience while mailing our tax payments.

The closest full-service post office to Galveston Island State Park is in downtown Galveston, about 12 miles away. However, in the tiny burg of Jamaica Beach, TX, about a mile from here, there is a contract postal annex, run by the same people who operate the local business center. Contract offices have limited services; for instance, they cannot receive General Delivery mail at this one.

However, they can provide what I needed for mailing our tax payment: First Class mail, certified and return receipt. As all our U.S. readers know, going to the post office on April 15th can be a frustrating nightmare of long lines, overworked employees and grouchy customers. Everyone hates mailing their taxes. The larger the post office, the longer the lines.

So I headed to Jamaica Beach. It was noon, so I expected there would be a line of maybe a dozen people. The tiny office was completely empty, except for the two extremely pleasant ladies working the counter. One was training the other (on tax day!) and they asked for my patience while she learned for the first time how to fill out the forms for certified and return receipt mail. Because of that, the transaction took about 7-8 minutes, but the two women were so nice that I didn't mind at all. At one point, a man came in and dropped off a letter. No other person even walked by the hallway.

When I remarked that they were the best kept secret on the island, they laughed and said it was always like this. "Last Christmas, maybe five people mailed their packages from here," said the more experienced clerk. We chatted about the weather and the island and full-time RVing and I left with a big smile on my face. From the post office. On tax day.

While this was a truly exceptional experience, in general the smallest post offices are usually willing to go the extra mile to help. Last month when our general delivery package was delayed in Somerton, AZ, Sean called the post office several times trying to track it down. The next day the postmistress called us to update the status. In another very small town, when I stepped out of the bus, the clerk had the box on the counter before I could say a word. "How did you know this was mine?" I asked. "Because I know everyone in town, and I don't know you. So it must be yours," she replied.

It is less likely that your stuff will get lost in a small post office. It is also less likely that the clerks will be overworked and hostile. They might be downright friendly and willing to chat about local happenings. The lines will be shorter and the smiles bigger.

Even on tax day.

Big Scooter Fun

The Second Annual Sandblast Scooter Rally is officially over. We had a great time, met some really fun people, and saw lots of cool scoots.

Things I learned:

• While I love the looks of vintage Vespas, I really don't want a bike with no electric starter, no battery and that burns more oil than Odyssey.
• A 150cc Italian scooter without a muffler is just as obnoxious as the largest American motorcycle. Add a high-pitched cutesy "beep beep" horn at 7:30am and the scooter wins the annoying contest, hands down.
• Above mentioned scooter plus constant 20mph winds remind me why I'm glad we don't tent camp anymore.
• Scooter rallies have at least three times as many women as motorcycle rallies. These are women riding their own bikes.
• Fat women prefer big, ugly scooters.
• Muttonchop sideburns are making a comeback, at least among the under-30 scooter-riding crowd.
  
• Scooters' low top speeds and cute good looks tempt their riders to wear shorts and flipflops. Those same attributes attract low skill beginner riders, who are the ones who most need protective riding gear.
• Beer, plus scooters, plus competitive obstacle course, plus testosterone equals crashing. No women dropped their bikes during the Gymkhana course. Fortunately, the events were low speed and held on sand and grass, so no one was injured. Several bikes lost parts, though.

Gymkhana video taken by "Emily is Strange," one of the rally organizers:

I still hear your sea winds blowin'

We are at the Jamaica Beach RV Park, on Galveston Island (map).

We passed a mostly quiet night on the side of US77A last night. It was a dark and quiet spot, other than being punctuated occasionally by the scream of a passing car or truck. As with most rural two-lane roads in Texas, the speed limit is 70mph, except after dark when it drops to 65. (If that sounds fast, the four-lane divided roads are posted at 75, with some stretches of the Interstate posted at 80). There was little traffic after about 8pm or so, so we were not really bothered by it.

After a pleasant drive along some of the back roads of Brazoria county, we turned onto the barrier islands, crossed San Luis Pass, and arrived here around 3:30 in the afternoon. That turned out to be before any of the rally organizers arrived, so we walked into the campground office to see about parking. They did not have an RV space that was available for all three nights, which was fine with us: our rally registration, which was billed as "camping included," would only buy us a $10 nightly discount off the $38 rate. The "included" camping was on the grass in the tent area, so that's where we are. Well, actually, we parked in the grass across a drainage pond from the tent area, so our genny won't bother anyone. $28 per day will buy us a lot of genny run time at $4.50 an hour, and in the fairly temperate weather at the moment, we haven't had to fire it up yet.

As a side note, I never can understand why places like this will fill up completely, when a perfectly nice state park (with hookups) is just half a mile away and is 2/3 empty. The state park is also right on the beach, whereas this place is across the street, necessitating a quarter mile walk to access the gulf. To each his own -- I suppose that the pool and hot tub constitute at least a couple of checkmarks on the RV park side of the ledger.

There were perhaps a couple dozen rally participants here by yesterday evening, and we rode into town with some for dinner at "The Spot." A contingent went over to "The Poop Deck" afterwards for drinks, but we opted instead to return home and unwind a bit. Tonight's activity is dinner at "The Balinese Room." I understand that well over 100 people are expected for the event.

We will be here through Sunday afternoon, when the rally ends. After that, I suspect we will move over to the state park, or perhaps down to San Luis Pass county park in the other direction, to take in some more of the gulf on our own terms. By my reckoning, we can visit Galveston four more times before I run out of Glen Campbell lyrics to title the posts.

Endangered species: Texas picnic areas

We are at what used to be a roadside picnic area on US 77A, just west of Halletsville (map). The little turnout for parking is still here, but the area where any picnicking might have happened is now closed off with barbed wire (pronounced "bob whar" in these parts), and there is a giant "No littering -- $1,000 fine" sign instead of a trash barrel. By the time we got here, we were past done for the day, and, since the parking area is still here, we decided to stay. Hopefully, the constabulary does not have a contrary position on the status of this spot.

One of the great things about Texas is that they have put these roadside picnic areas, or, in some cases, just a turnout with a trash barrel, throughout the state highway system. Stays of up to 24 hours are generally permitted in self-contained rigs, with notable exceptions that are usually well marked. We have availed ourselves of many of these picnic areas, some of which are in spectacularly beautiful settings, and have written several of them up here in the blog.

So today, after a very beautiful drive from Del Rio through San Antonio, we set our sights on three picnic areas that were indicated on our maps -- one just west of Gonzales, and two more somewhat east of Gonzales, all along Alternate US 90. We knew also that there was an Elks Lodge in Gonzales as a possible fall-back option.

As we approached the first mark, we discovered only a small turnout. It certainly looked like it might have been a picnic area at one time, but it was completely dismantled and devoid of any fixtures. Since it was also right in the middle of a road construction zone, we thought it might have been a temporary victim of the construction. Between that and it being only a few feet from busy Alt 90, we passed it by.

The Elks lodge in Gonzales was equally unappealing -- a dirt lot in front of the building, also next to 90. Knowing there were two more picnic areas marked, we pressed on.

These next two areas were nowhere to be found. Despite both of us keeping a careful eye out, since we were both ready to stop, there was nary a trace of either. It could be that our maps were just plain wrong, or else these areas have been removed completely.

When we got to the junction with 77A, east of Shiner (home of the brewery of the same name), we decided to turn southwest towards Yoakum. Our map showed one more picnic area along 77A, but we also had information that there is a city park in Yoakum that could accommodate us. Even though it was a bit out of our way, we were running short on options.

That led us here to this spot, which is clearly now an ex picnic area. We have no clue what had led to its closure (or the other closures) -- there is no evidence of any problems here other than some trash and graffiti underneath the nearby bridge over Rocky Creek. We're just glad that there is no posting here prohibiting overnight parking, and we are assuming that, as a formerly legitimate rest area, that they would have posted it thus if they did not want us staying here.

We are now very much in east Texas. There is a very palpable dividing line, and, along US 90, that line is the western limit of San Antonio. West of there the road passes through wide open spaces, with little trace of civilization for miles at a time. While some property is, no doubt, privately held, much is state or federal open space, a sort of "no man's land". From San Antonio eastward, it is an unbroken landscape of private property, with all the trappings, to include fences, mailboxes, buildings, and what-not. Moving east the city melts into suburbs, then into agricultural and ranch land punctuated by towns of a few thousand people. We have left "the west,"at least for now.

Tomorrow we will continue east on Alt 90 until just west of Rosenberg (about 35 miles southwest of Houston), then turn southeast for the gulf coast and Freeport, where we will pick up the "Blue Water Highway" which will take us over the San Luis Pass to Galveston Island.