Sneed and I left after 2pm for the 3 hour trip home. Around 330 Sneed's cell phone rang. It was our friend John telling us we had left something behind. Turns out Marque won for the RR~Bentley class. Pic of the award when we get it from John.
Sunday, September 26
ABCD
ABCD = All British Car Day. This was the 20th ABCD at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock outside of Austin. We started out early at 6am to arrive a bit past 9. When we arrived it was a bit on the cool side but as the day progressed the wind picked up and stayed around all day.
Beautiful sunrise on the road ~ Marque's information sheet
Marque resting under the shade of the trees. This was a great location as each class was shaded. There were close to 200 cars there ~ One of my all time favorite cars a British Racing Green 1961 Jaguar XKE ~ Two Morgans ~ I snagged a ride in the white one. I asked Duncan why his car and the others already there did not have the belt on the hood. He said it damages the paint although some owners have put lamb's wool on the back which protects it. He also informed me that the belt is not a Morgan product per se. Tradition is that when a Morgan was racing at Sebring, one side of the bonnet came unlatched and the car was pulled off the course. The driver asked for the judge's belt, and the tradition of holding the bonnet down with a belt was begun.
Isn't it funny how cars can be anthropomorphic? These 2 are perfect examples.
Sneed and I left after 2pm for the 3 hour trip home. Around 330 Sneed's cell phone rang. It was our friend John telling us we had left something behind. Turns out Marque won for the RR~Bentley class. Pic of the award when we get it from John.
Sneed and I left after 2pm for the 3 hour trip home. Around 330 Sneed's cell phone rang. It was our friend John telling us we had left something behind. Turns out Marque won for the RR~Bentley class. Pic of the award when we get it from John.
Saturday, September 25
In the Swim of Things
Aedin went to a birthday party so Erika brought Dylin and Olsin over for a swim. Olsin pushed Terry in when he came after attending Gavin's soccer game (his team won!)
Dylin perfecting her handstand in the jacuzzi.
Erika and Olsin share a cuddle ~ Olsin and Dylin jump right on in ~ Olsin jumping high ~ Olsin on top of the world
Friday, September 24
Painted Churches Y Trip
Photos are courtesy of Willie, Polly's hubby, as I didn't take my camera. Additionally, Willie afforded us girls a very relaxed and well air-conditioned trip in his van rather than having to ride the Y bus. Thanks, Willie!
We stopped in downtown Shulenberg to pick up the tour guide who boarded one of the buses which we followed.
Our first stop was Sts Cyril & Methodius Catholic Church. Dubina's first church was built in 1876, but was destroyed by a 1909 hurricane. Rebuilt in 1912, it survived a fire that all but destroyed the town. Colorful spring flowers enhance the country church, but they don’t compare to the vivid hues of the interior, which is decorated with frescoes and stenciling. The artistry was common in Germany in the 1800s. The original artwork, which was painted over for the 1952 diamond jubilee of the church, was restored in the early 1980s.
Next up was St John the Baptist Catholic Church in Ammannsville. It opened in 1890. Destroyed by the hurricane of 1909, the church was rebuilt. It burned shortly thereafter and had to be rebuilt a second time. The present St. John the Baptist Catholic Church is the third structure in this community, and it was dedicated on December 22, 1919. Constructed in Gothic Revival style, it is listed in the “National Register of Historical Places”. The interior features stenciling, infill freehand, and marbling techniques. Early settlers said the paintings were done by a European drifter. The windows, depicting men Saints on the right, and women Saints on the left, are inscribed in Czech and are Tiffany stained glass.
The last church on our tour was St Mary's Catholic Church, High Hill. It is the third to be built at High Hill. It is listed in the “National Register of Historical Places”. Construction of the present church started in 1905 with 18 stained glass windows from the second church placed in the new church. The highest point of the spire is about 175 feet. The interior is a well crafted example of the Gothic Revival style. It displays not only late Victorian features, but the European background of the German and Czech settlers. Although the main wall has been repainted, the ceiling, and a few other parts of the church have the original decorations.
Before returning to the Y, we had a great buffet lunch at Oakridge Smokehouse. The fried catfish and fried chicken were superb. The desserts of 'right out of the oven' Peach Cobbler and Bread Pudding were delightful. We'd highly recommend this place.
We stopped in downtown Shulenberg to pick up the tour guide who boarded one of the buses which we followed.
Our first stop was Sts Cyril & Methodius Catholic Church. Dubina's first church was built in 1876, but was destroyed by a 1909 hurricane. Rebuilt in 1912, it survived a fire that all but destroyed the town. Colorful spring flowers enhance the country church, but they don’t compare to the vivid hues of the interior, which is decorated with frescoes and stenciling. The artistry was common in Germany in the 1800s. The original artwork, which was painted over for the 1952 diamond jubilee of the church, was restored in the early 1980s.
Next up was St John the Baptist Catholic Church in Ammannsville. It opened in 1890. Destroyed by the hurricane of 1909, the church was rebuilt. It burned shortly thereafter and had to be rebuilt a second time. The present St. John the Baptist Catholic Church is the third structure in this community, and it was dedicated on December 22, 1919. Constructed in Gothic Revival style, it is listed in the “National Register of Historical Places”. The interior features stenciling, infill freehand, and marbling techniques. Early settlers said the paintings were done by a European drifter. The windows, depicting men Saints on the right, and women Saints on the left, are inscribed in Czech and are Tiffany stained glass.
The last church on our tour was St Mary's Catholic Church, High Hill. It is the third to be built at High Hill. It is listed in the “National Register of Historical Places”. Construction of the present church started in 1905 with 18 stained glass windows from the second church placed in the new church. The highest point of the spire is about 175 feet. The interior is a well crafted example of the Gothic Revival style. It displays not only late Victorian features, but the European background of the German and Czech settlers. Although the main wall has been repainted, the ceiling, and a few other parts of the church have the original decorations.
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| Willie at Sts Cyril & Methodius Church ~ St John the Baptist Church ~ St Mary's Church |
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| The girls ~ L>R Polly, Anne, Carolyn in back, Peggy, Beth |
Thursday, September 23
Dylin Cheers for the Longhorns
The George Ranch High School Longhorns, that is. And guess what their colors are. Yep, equal representation for A & M (maroon) and UT (Longhorns), so their blood bleeds Maroon.
Dylin called me this afternoon and told me today is the day she is cheering for the Longhorns and asked me to come. She said you'd better come early or you'll miss me. Well, you don't want to tell me that cause I'll get there early...and I did. I arrived at the school at 530pm - the game activities started at 6.
Dylin waits in the stands for her 1st grade group to be called to the field. She and Aedin sit on the rails to watch the game.
The Mascots appeared. Dylin had fun posing with both of them and then with her First Grade group.
Here she is in action!! She really rocks on the 'uh oh' cheer. = )
Dylin called me this afternoon and told me today is the day she is cheering for the Longhorns and asked me to come. She said you'd better come early or you'll miss me. Well, you don't want to tell me that cause I'll get there early...and I did. I arrived at the school at 530pm - the game activities started at 6.
Here she is in action!! She really rocks on the 'uh oh' cheer. = )
Wednesday, September 22
Oops! Shame on the Poofreader (sic)
Ah, what a beautiful and scrumptious-looking caramel cake in the Flavor section of the Chronicle today. A lovely photograph of a 2 layer cake smothered in caramel frosting. I just had to check out the recipe.
This is a recipe from The Southern Foodways Alliance Community Cookbook courtesy of Ann Cashion. I wonder if this is the way it is printed in the cookbook. How can one fit a 38-inch cake pan in the oven...let alone more than one as the recipe says "pans".
Is this coincidence or what? Kroger has a 2 layer caramel cake featured in its weekly ad that looks very similar to the one highlighted in the paper.
Tuesday, September 21
Atlanta Braves v Tampa Bay Rays
Nope, we didn't travel down to St Pete to watch the Rays. They were playing right here in Richmond, outside of Sugar Land, at a fantastic Little League complex in George Park. Olsin plays for the Tampa Bay Rays T-ball team. He was thrilled when Terry told him the Rays were Devil Rays. I didn't have the heart to tell Olsin but I did mention to Terry that the major league team had dropped the 'Devil' from the team name. Tonight was his first game on Field 9.
One inning out of the three had already been played by the time we got there (the traffic coming into the Little League park was terribly slow). The first two parking areas were overflowing. Erika with Aedin and Dylin had just gotten there and showed us where she had parked. We soon joined them for the fun and action, well, some action.
Whenever a nice hit was made, there were several little boys scrambling to get the ball. Whoever got it, turned toward first base, and threw the ball regardless of whether there was someone there to catch it. At least they got the idea. Olsin knows how to hit and hits well. However, playing in the outfield where no balls come can get tiresome. In the photos of Olsin alone standing near third base, you can ascertain his level of boredom by his different stances. At one point, I questioned Erika, "Why is the third baseman coming to the dugout?" Olsin was tired of waiting for someone to hit the ball his way. Erika set him straight and he finished out the inning.
Dylin had fun climbing the fence and Aedin helped the lady get the icee drinks the boys got after the game. She got one for her efforts which caused a minor stink with Dylin as she didn't get one. C'est la vie.
The T-ball game was great entertainment, although Papa Sneed, like Olsin, was easily distracted so he played catch with a young fellow with a football.
One inning out of the three had already been played by the time we got there (the traffic coming into the Little League park was terribly slow). The first two parking areas were overflowing. Erika with Aedin and Dylin had just gotten there and showed us where she had parked. We soon joined them for the fun and action, well, some action.
Whenever a nice hit was made, there were several little boys scrambling to get the ball. Whoever got it, turned toward first base, and threw the ball regardless of whether there was someone there to catch it. At least they got the idea. Olsin knows how to hit and hits well. However, playing in the outfield where no balls come can get tiresome. In the photos of Olsin alone standing near third base, you can ascertain his level of boredom by his different stances. At one point, I questioned Erika, "Why is the third baseman coming to the dugout?" Olsin was tired of waiting for someone to hit the ball his way. Erika set him straight and he finished out the inning.
Dylin had fun climbing the fence and Aedin helped the lady get the icee drinks the boys got after the game. She got one for her efforts which caused a minor stink with Dylin as she didn't get one. C'est la vie.
The T-ball game was great entertainment, although Papa Sneed, like Olsin, was easily distracted so he played catch with a young fellow with a football.
Monday, September 20
Hallelujah!! Hallelujah!!
This news makes me want to shout, "clap your hands now". Annemarie and Brett couldn't keep the secret to themselves any longer...Baby Bollman is due the end of April 2011.
Hee, Hee, do you think I should let the Santa Barabra (sic) Medical Clinic know that it misspelled 'Barbara'?
Sunday, September 19
On the Katy Prairie
I have a confession to make. As we were tooling around Oil Field Road in Katy, I asked Sneed to stop so I could take a photo of a flag that was waving gently against a gorgeous blue sky. He went a bit further down the road, turned around and pulled off to where I could get a good shot. Imagine my embarrassment and dismay when I turned on the camera and realized that the photo chip was still in the computer from when I downloaded last night's photos. So the following photos are all Sneed's and ones I would have taken but blew the chance. Bummer!
L>R...Gray Vervain ~ Purple Gerardia
The Gray Vervain was blowing in the breeze where we had stopped. I don't think I would have been able to capture anything without it being blurred. Sneed did a superb job. ~ We saw Purple Gerardia last week but I wanted another photo of it. Sneed didn't realize that there was a spider resting on the petal until we got home and looked at the pictures. He loves to take flower photos with bees or other insects on the flower.
This farmer was actually piling up his bales of hay to remove them from the field. We have had so much rain that there is an overabundance of hay this year and most hay bales just sit in the field and rot. Sneed thought that the tractor had broken down in the first photo as it sat still for some time. Once again when we got home we realized that modern technology had intervened and the farmer was talking on his cell phone.
I spotted this Crested Caracara, a bird of prey, while it was sitting high up in some trees. When Sneed backed the truck up, it flew away but we followed it and it lit on a telephone pole. Not the best backdrop for the bird but it was interesting to see it at close range.
L>R...Gray Vervain ~ Purple Gerardia
The Gray Vervain was blowing in the breeze where we had stopped. I don't think I would have been able to capture anything without it being blurred. Sneed did a superb job. ~ We saw Purple Gerardia last week but I wanted another photo of it. Sneed didn't realize that there was a spider resting on the petal until we got home and looked at the pictures. He loves to take flower photos with bees or other insects on the flower.
This farmer was actually piling up his bales of hay to remove them from the field. We have had so much rain that there is an overabundance of hay this year and most hay bales just sit in the field and rot. Sneed thought that the tractor had broken down in the first photo as it sat still for some time. Once again when we got home we realized that modern technology had intervened and the farmer was talking on his cell phone.
I spotted this Crested Caracara, a bird of prey, while it was sitting high up in some trees. When Sneed backed the truck up, it flew away but we followed it and it lit on a telephone pole. Not the best backdrop for the bird but it was interesting to see it at close range.
Saturday, September 18
Crapitto's - W O Bentley Birthday Celebration
Aside from monthly get-togethers for breakfast the second Saturday of the month, we haven't had any car events since May when we had a picnic in Brazos Bend Park. As the weather has been getting a mite milder (low 90s rather than high 90s), the time was nigh.
September 16 is W O Bentley's birthday so in honour of the event, Sneed arranged a dinner party at which we were to dress as if we were coming to a party after Bentley won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924. As the 16th was a Thursday, the party was arranged for Saturday, the 18th.
Funny story. On the 16th, Thursday, Sneed got a call from Crapitto's verifying that the party was on Saturday. A few hours later, he got a call from one of our members who rather embarrassingly confessed that he and his wife and their guests had dressed and gone to the restaurant to have a good time. They enjoyed dinner then but didn't join us on Saturday. It pays to thoroughly read the invitation.
Swish, swish went the wipers after Sneed had so expertly washed and shined Marque earlier in the day. The rain kept falling as we traveled down to Sugar Land to pick up Karen and Danny. By the time we reached the restaurant, the rain had ceased.
L>R...Carolyn & Richard, Stan ~ John & Evie, Mike & John ~ Beryal & John, Betty & Carl ~ Shari, Merwin & Mai, Wim
L>R...Beryal & John ~ Andrew & Dana ~ Shari & Wim ~ Bea & Joy ~ Roger & Mirelle
L>R...Karen & Danny, Anne ~ Cathie & Dan, Sharon & David ~ Karen & Danny, Anne & Sneed
The 'dressed' ladies L>R...Shari, Dana, Beryal, Joy, Bea, Anne, Karen, Mirelle ~ Dana went all out with her Cuban foot back seam stockings.
Our menu. I and the others who decided to have the Cappellini di Mare were gastronomically delighted. Not only were the four grilled shrimp as good as or better than pre-oil spill days, but the jumbo lump crab meat was pure perfection. The angel hair pasta with sauce was prepared expertly and the amount of crab meat in the sauce exceeded anyone's expectations.
A fun night was had by all. We hope W O was looking down from above and reveling vicariously with us.
September 16 is W O Bentley's birthday so in honour of the event, Sneed arranged a dinner party at which we were to dress as if we were coming to a party after Bentley won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1924. As the 16th was a Thursday, the party was arranged for Saturday, the 18th.
Funny story. On the 16th, Thursday, Sneed got a call from Crapitto's verifying that the party was on Saturday. A few hours later, he got a call from one of our members who rather embarrassingly confessed that he and his wife and their guests had dressed and gone to the restaurant to have a good time. They enjoyed dinner then but didn't join us on Saturday. It pays to thoroughly read the invitation.
Swish, swish went the wipers after Sneed had so expertly washed and shined Marque earlier in the day. The rain kept falling as we traveled down to Sugar Land to pick up Karen and Danny. By the time we reached the restaurant, the rain had ceased.
L>R...Carolyn & Richard, Stan ~ John & Evie, Mike & John ~ Beryal & John, Betty & Carl ~ Shari, Merwin & Mai, Wim
L>R...Beryal & John ~ Andrew & Dana ~ Shari & Wim ~ Bea & Joy ~ Roger & Mirelle
L>R...Karen & Danny, Anne ~ Cathie & Dan, Sharon & David ~ Karen & Danny, Anne & Sneed
The 'dressed' ladies L>R...Shari, Dana, Beryal, Joy, Bea, Anne, Karen, Mirelle ~ Dana went all out with her Cuban foot back seam stockings.
Our menu. I and the others who decided to have the Cappellini di Mare were gastronomically delighted. Not only were the four grilled shrimp as good as or better than pre-oil spill days, but the jumbo lump crab meat was pure perfection. The angel hair pasta with sauce was prepared expertly and the amount of crab meat in the sauce exceeded anyone's expectations.
A fun night was had by all. We hope W O was looking down from above and reveling vicariously with us.
Sunday, September 12
Another Day, Another Loop
This loop, even though we had to backtrack quite a bit as there was no way to know that we would be driving on dirt roads which is a huge NO-NO in the classic car world, seems to be doable. It's on some roads we've never been on before today and has lots of open pastures for wildflowers to flourish. We're excited about this new route.
Now for some scenes along the way.
The requisite flower photos ~ Purple Gerardia (I know it's pink but the color ranges from pink to purple) ~ Erect Dayflower ~ ?
We came over a hill and saw something in the road ahead. What a pleasant surprise. I asked if they were out for a Sunday drive and they said yes. Sneed thinks they may have been camping and were coming home. Why else take along your own Port-A-Potty?
Snow on the Prairie really does look like snow on the prairie ~ And it's even prettier with a cow, or is that a steer since it has horns?, among the flowers.
Now for some scenes along the way.
The requisite flower photos ~ Purple Gerardia (I know it's pink but the color ranges from pink to purple) ~ Erect Dayflower ~ ?
We came over a hill and saw something in the road ahead. What a pleasant surprise. I asked if they were out for a Sunday drive and they said yes. Sneed thinks they may have been camping and were coming home. Why else take along your own Port-A-Potty?
Snow on the Prairie really does look like snow on the prairie ~ And it's even prettier with a cow, or is that a steer since it has horns?, among the flowers.
Friday, September 10
Grandparents' Day at Dickinson Elementary
Sneed was able to make it to Grandparents' Day but couldn't stay to get the picture taken with Aedin. Through his computer wizardry he was able to put himself there.
We visited Aedin, Dylin and Olsin at their lunch periods. The object being that the grandparents' hit up all the fast food places near the school to bring lunch for their grandchildren and then sit at the teeny tiny tables with them as they eat. Olsin's lunch was first at 1055, then Dylin's at 1110, and Aedin's at 1120. The school takes the photos, prints them, and then gives them to the children to bring home. Pretty nice memory of the year.
After Aedin's lunch, she showed me her classroom and the bulletin board outside on which she used the first letters of her name to write memories of her trip to California. In case you were wondering about the letter D - Doing my best not to lick the yummy cupcakes...that's in reference to Annemarie and Brett's wedding. They had cupcakes instead of a cake. The last letter is W for her last name. Watching the gulls fly by as they were looking for fish to eat.
We visited Aedin, Dylin and Olsin at their lunch periods. The object being that the grandparents' hit up all the fast food places near the school to bring lunch for their grandchildren and then sit at the teeny tiny tables with them as they eat. Olsin's lunch was first at 1055, then Dylin's at 1110, and Aedin's at 1120. The school takes the photos, prints them, and then gives them to the children to bring home. Pretty nice memory of the year.
After Aedin's lunch, she showed me her classroom and the bulletin board outside on which she used the first letters of her name to write memories of her trip to California. In case you were wondering about the letter D - Doing my best not to lick the yummy cupcakes...that's in reference to Annemarie and Brett's wedding. They had cupcakes instead of a cake. The last letter is W for her last name. Watching the gulls fly by as they were looking for fish to eat.
Tuesday, September 7
Dylin loves her Mommy
Today I picked up Dylin and Olsin from school. Dylin came out reading a paperback book. How like me at her age. I had to call her name for her to bring her nose out of the book. I didn't have the camera at the ready then, so recreated the scene at home.
I love playing with long hair and Dylin was a willing subject. It's definitely not perfectly centered and she has a lot of short wisps that wouldn't stay put, but she liked the end result too.
I love playing with long hair and Dylin was a willing subject. It's definitely not perfectly centered and she has a lot of short wisps that wouldn't stay put, but she liked the end result too.
Sunday, September 5
Time for a Picnic
It was so nice this morning, we decided to take a picnic lunch to Brazos Bend Park. Seems like everyone else had the same idea as there was a long line to get into the park. Once inside, we found a picnic table across from Elm Lake. It was cool sitting in the shade of a pecan tree and quiet even though there were a lot of people there.
Afterward, we took a short, very short, walk. The temperature zoomed up to 90+ and it wasn't so nice anymore.
A posing immature heron and some Tropical Sage
Afterward, we took a short, very short, walk. The temperature zoomed up to 90+ and it wasn't so nice anymore.
A posing immature heron and some Tropical Sage
Saturday, September 4
The Loop de Loop
OMG! We're having a clement day in K-town. Decided to take advantage of the cooler than usual weather and take a trial run of the proposed loop tour for the Austin RROC Inter-regional Meet planned for next spring.
We found our retirement home on one of the back ranch roads. It even has a welcoming wreath on the door - barely seen in the photo but I know it's there. And a bit further on, we found our new mode of transportation fully equipped with the American flag on one side and the Texas flag on the other.
You may ask why are we driving the route 6 months in advance. Well, the best laid plans don't always come to fruition. First of all, the area we planned to drive was mostly treed with no open fields which negated the real reason to have the run...that is to showcase Texas Bluebonnets gracing field after field. Secondly, it took us over 3 1/2 hours to negotiate said back roads which at times crossed cattle guards through working ranches and one lane bridges some wet and slippery. That 3 1/2 hours was just to get us to the venue for lunch. So, we now know we have our work cut out for us to plan a new route through different territory.
We stopped in Blanco for lunch at the Redbud Cafe. Sneed had his "usual", a tuna fish sandwich, which he said was every bit as good as the one at Panera Bread. I opted for a bowl of Hatch Green Chili (according to the gal behind the counter that's a mild chili) Potato and Corn chowder with a chunk of great tasting bread. Yum.
Across the street from the Redbud was the old Blanco County Courthouse first used in 1886. It was only used for four years as an election moved the county seat to Johnson City where the new courthouse, bottom photo, was built.
According to the itinerary, lunch was to be at the Oasis with views of Lake Austin enhancing the dining experience. Perhaps we can still route the tour there as the scenery was breathtaking. The houses built into the hills rival those on San Francisco's and Santa Barbara's hillsides.
Since we had already stopped for lunch, we limped back to the Austin Marriott from whence we came amere tired duo 5 1/2 hours later.
On the way back to Katy, I was looking for a beautiful bush of very white Snow on the Prairie I had seen on the way up to Austin. Believe it or not, I spied it on the other side of the divided highway and asked Sneed if he would turn around at the next available opening. Much to my chagrin, the next crossover was right there - less than a football field from where I had asked and he managed to get into the left lane, braking to get into the opening from 70mph. The crossover was rather gravelly and I thought we would be going into the ditch. His adept handling of the truck was evident but I could have waited for the next opening. These flowers when viewed from a distance and spread across a vast area do look like snow.
Returning to Katy, Sneed suggested we try the Indian vegetarian restaurant, Udipi Cafe. Glancing through the window before entering we knew we had made a good choice - the place was chock full of Indians. Our selections were quite tasty but more than either of us could finish so we brought home lots of leftovers. We now know that one meal would suffice for the two of us.
Thus ends the tale of our 13 hour round trip. Good night = ) And yes, *sigh*, I haven't finished the NV/CA trip yet. Having to sort through 1000 photos (can you believe that? yes I can) has me bogged down. Ha ha, it's bogged my blogging...but I shall prevail
We found our retirement home on one of the back ranch roads. It even has a welcoming wreath on the door - barely seen in the photo but I know it's there. And a bit further on, we found our new mode of transportation fully equipped with the American flag on one side and the Texas flag on the other.
You may ask why are we driving the route 6 months in advance. Well, the best laid plans don't always come to fruition. First of all, the area we planned to drive was mostly treed with no open fields which negated the real reason to have the run...that is to showcase Texas Bluebonnets gracing field after field. Secondly, it took us over 3 1/2 hours to negotiate said back roads which at times crossed cattle guards through working ranches and one lane bridges some wet and slippery. That 3 1/2 hours was just to get us to the venue for lunch. So, we now know we have our work cut out for us to plan a new route through different territory.
We stopped in Blanco for lunch at the Redbud Cafe. Sneed had his "usual", a tuna fish sandwich, which he said was every bit as good as the one at Panera Bread. I opted for a bowl of Hatch Green Chili (according to the gal behind the counter that's a mild chili) Potato and Corn chowder with a chunk of great tasting bread. Yum.
Across the street from the Redbud was the old Blanco County Courthouse first used in 1886. It was only used for four years as an election moved the county seat to Johnson City where the new courthouse, bottom photo, was built.
According to the itinerary, lunch was to be at the Oasis with views of Lake Austin enhancing the dining experience. Perhaps we can still route the tour there as the scenery was breathtaking. The houses built into the hills rival those on San Francisco's and Santa Barbara's hillsides.
Since we had already stopped for lunch, we limped back to the Austin Marriott from whence we came a
On the way back to Katy, I was looking for a beautiful bush of very white Snow on the Prairie I had seen on the way up to Austin. Believe it or not, I spied it on the other side of the divided highway and asked Sneed if he would turn around at the next available opening. Much to my chagrin, the next crossover was right there - less than a football field from where I had asked and he managed to get into the left lane, braking to get into the opening from 70mph. The crossover was rather gravelly and I thought we would be going into the ditch. His adept handling of the truck was evident but I could have waited for the next opening. These flowers when viewed from a distance and spread across a vast area do look like snow.
Returning to Katy, Sneed suggested we try the Indian vegetarian restaurant, Udipi Cafe. Glancing through the window before entering we knew we had made a good choice - the place was chock full of Indians. Our selections were quite tasty but more than either of us could finish so we brought home lots of leftovers. We now know that one meal would suffice for the two of us.
Thus ends the tale of our 13 hour round trip. Good night = ) And yes, *sigh*, I haven't finished the NV/CA trip yet. Having to sort through 1000 photos (can you believe that? yes I can) has me bogged down. Ha ha, it's bogged my blogging...but I shall prevail
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