George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum

Mama was very excited when she learned the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum would be open in time for her to visit while in Dallas.  The folks have a goal to visit all the Presidential libraries and museums.  They have been to the Dwight D. Eisenhower library in  Abilene, KS and the George Bush library in College Station, TX.  George W. Bush's library opened on May 1st of this year.

Mama read that it was best if she bought the tickets ahead of time, so after a struggle to get those because many times were sold out already, she secured them for May 25th at noon.  The folks expected it to be crowded because they allow 350 people an hour inside.  Mama said it was packed!

They waited in line for 15 minutes to go through security and then a few minutes to get their "43" stickers to show they belonged in the museum. 

People leaving the library

It was so crowded that the folks were not able to really enjoy it.  They could not get close to many things to read them.  :-(

Quilt with front pages of newspapers showing headlines while we waited to find out if George W. Bush was the new President.

Florida Ballot - remember all the hanging chads?

President and Mrs. Bush

Baseball collection of the President

Dress Mrs. Bush wore at a State dinner just days before 9/11

 After seeing the display with Mrs. Bush's dress, you enter a room that is darkened and it is all about 9/11.

Beams from the twin towers.

This lady wouldn't move as she was playing with her phone, so after waiting several moments, Mama just took the picture and now she is part of our blog.  BOL!

These walls have the names of those killed on 9/11.

Screen showing different things that happened the week of 9/11.

Close up of some of the 9/11 victims.

Pens used by the President to sign documents.

Statues of Barney and Miss Beasley.  They were dogs owned by the Bush Family

Painting of Mrs. Bush and her pups

Statue of Spot - another dog of the Bush family

The folks stood line line for 45 minutes to tour the Oval Office. The Oval Office is supposed to be an exact replica of how it looked when President Bush was in office. They were able to see other things along the way, but it was still a long wait.

Items from the Oval office

Rug in the Oval Office

The Oval Office

Ceiling in the Oval Office

Dog dish that was a gift to the Bush dogs.  Mama thought we would like to see it.

This museum does not show anything about President Bush's childhood which Mama found odd.  Maybe the President figured there was enough about his childhood in his Dad's museum.  BOL!


Mama saw a statue that she meant to take a photo of when she went outside, but she forgot and they didn't pass by it when leaving.  It was President Bush and his father, President Bush.  She is still upset that she missed that photo opportunity.

There were several short films to watch, but the lines were just too long.  The folks said they would like to go back in a few years when it is not so crowded.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Wonders Why Museums Don't Allow Dogs

The Purple Invasion Continues

Friday, was the folks wedding anniversary.  They have been married 27 years.  Mama said it makes her feel old.  BOL!

They didn't celebrate much because Dad doesn't get home until after 7 p.m.  They went grocery shopping and bought a cake.  Saturday, they went out to dinner and then they went shopping for their present.  What did they buy?  Well, it is purple.  Mama didn't think about it being purple until she got home and then she laughed.

Shark Navigator

Yep, it is a vacuum.  BOL!   Mama is happy about it even though women are not supposed to be given these things as gifts.  Our old vacuum was a broom stick type and Mama had to empty it 3-4 times every time she cleaned.  She complained every time she used it and even though she emptied it that much, it still didn't do a good job.  She loves this one, so far.  It has attachments and a cord that is long enough to cover the whole place.  It also is very easy to change it from carpet to hardwood cleaning. She just pushes a button on the handle. She really likes that feature.  She has emptied it twice, but it wasn't even half full each time.  She just emptied it for the fun of it.

Scout and I do not like it.  Scout almost when through the roof when Mama turned it on the first time.

We hope all our American friends had a nice three day weekend.  We enjoyed spending time with the folks.  We will write more about that later in the week. 

We are sad to read that things are rough right now at Genji's Corner.  Our thoughts are with them.

Mama is also very sad to hear that a childhood friend's husband died suddenly this morning. Mama will not be able to go home for the funeral, but she is sending many prayers and thoughts for the family.

Joey,
The Greyhound Whose House Continues To Be Invaded With Purple Things

Memorial Day 2013

We are spending a relaxing day with our folks.  We will update you on our weekend activities on Tuesday.

Joey and Scout
The Greyhounds Who Are Celebrating Memorial Day In The Lone Star State For The Second Year In A Row

Squirrels Are Nuts Here!

I have decided that squirrels are more fun to watch than bunnies.  Do bunnies climb trees and fly from branch to branch?  Nope, but squirrels do.  The other day, I was just laying in "my" yard and two squirrels almost ran over me.  Mama said they have a death wish.  I chased one up a tree and it started yelling at me. They are nuts, I say.

Here is one of those nutty creatures.

The campground keeps getting prettier and prettier.  These people love their flowers.

Mama loves this rock garden. The lady spent all afternoon working on it.

 

The pansies won't make it long in the Texas heat, but they are pretty right now.

Scout says this is great picture of her, but I stuck my nose in it and ruined it.

 We really like this park. The employees are very nice.  They do something here that we have not experienced at other parks.  If the electric goes out, they call to let you know.  Okay, so you don't need to be called if you are at home, but if the folks are out sightseeing they will get a call and know that we are at home without air conditioning and they can rush home.  We think it is a nice service.

I love my life!

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Loves His Life On The Road

Almost Wordless Wednesday - 5/22/2013

"You can't hide from me, Mr. Squirrel!"

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Almost Got Run Over By Two Squirrels While Taking A Siesta

Goodwill Shopping

When we were in Denver, Mama dropped a lid to a cooking pot that she has.  The handle on the lid broke.  Mama has been using it, but it is difficult to remove the lid from the pot when it is hot.  Mama even burned her arm doing so. We were going to show you a photo of her arm, but decided that was not in good taste.  She started out looking for a new lid, but no luck.  She then decided to replace the pot and the lid.  She really didn't want to spend $15, which is the price of a cheaper pot.  Yes, Mama can be frugal.  She asked Dad if a furniture knob would work.  He said it probably would.  Saturday night, they went to Goodwill and Mama found a lid.  She knew the lid was going to be too small, but the handle would probably work. 

Here is our old lid with a new handle.

 How much did the new handle cost?  $.50.  Yep, just $.50.  Mama is pretty proud of herself for holding out and saving money on the lid.

The folks also found a few other "treasures".  Dad found the RV movie.  He had mentioned that he would like to watch it again after visiting the RV museum in Amarillo.   Mama found a brand new fanny pack.  She has been wanting something to carry our things when we go hiking and this seems to be a good option right now.  Yes, it is purple.  We think Mama is developing a purple problem.  We have a purple toaster, a purple cutting board and now a purple fanny pack.  She also has two purple shirts. 

All items were bought for $7.

Mama likes shopping at Goodwill because you never know what you will find.  The one here is nice and the prices are good.  The ones she found in Houston were really nice, but the prices are quite a bit more than at home.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Benefits From Mama Being Frugal On HER Things

Six Floor Museum - JFK

The folks visited the Six Floor Museum in Dallas.  It was formerly known as the Texas School Book Depository and is where Lee Harvey Oswald fired the shots that killed President John F. Kennedy.  There is still speculation that another shooter on the ground was involved.

Mama decided to arrive at 10 a.m. on Sunday when the museum opened thinking that it would not be crowded.  She was wrong.  They had to wait in line for about 15 minutes for tickets.  There was also a very large group, so that added to the crowd.  If they would have arrived an hour later, they would not have had to wait.

Every visitor is given an audio tour which Mama said made the visit very enjoyable.  It directed you to each exhibit which was mainly photos and videos.  It was narrated by a reporter that was there when the President was shot.   The audio also provided audio from witnesses and other reporters. It was an excellent way to see the museum.

No photography was allowed in the museum which seems a little odd because there was nothing that could be damaged by a flash.  The museum is different because you are actually in the room where the shots were fired.  You cannot step in that spot because it is glassed off.  They have put the book boxes where they would have been during the day of the shooting.  You can stand at the next window and get almost the same view as the shooting.  Visitors are allowed to visit the seventh floor and there you can stand at the window that is directly under the window where the shots were fired.  Mama said when she looked out the window and saw where the President was shot (that is marked on the street), a police car went by.  She said it was eerie to hear the sirens at the same time she was looking at the shooting site.  Here is a link to a live camera that is in the shooter's perch. 

The seventh floor has a large photos of JFK and Jackie Kennedy.  Photography was allowed here.

This photo is made up of 50,000 small photos of Jackie.

Photos of Jackie on JFK's photo.

Jackie's photo is made up of 50,000 photos of JFK

This is from the seventh floor - one floor above where the shots were fired.  The President was shot after he rounded this corner.

The Grassy Knoll where it is thought another shot was fired.

We placed a red dot next to the window where the shots were fired.

The "X" shows where one of the shots hit the President.

The folks really enjoyed seeing the museum, but it was sad.  Mama highly recommends it to anyone who is planning a visit to Dallas.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Didn't Get To Go To The Museum

Strange Sighting At Home Depot

As some of you may know, dogs are allowed at some Home Depot.  Mama has never taken us because she really doesn't think it is appropriate, but that is her own opinion.   I think it would be fun to walk around and pee on the lumber.  Yesterday, she was quite shocked to see these two dogs.

She spoke to the owner and he said they have been coming in since they were puppies.  They are nine now.  They had their comforter and water dish rolling around with them.  It didn't look like the owner was actually shopping.  He was just rolling them around the store and people think I am spoiled.  BOL!

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Thinks He Needs To Check Out Home Depot

Late Night Adventure

Texas was hit hard last night with tornadoes.  Mama is always nervous when there are bad storms.   We were out walking around 6 p.m. and all the dogs we met were very excited.  Mama said they were sensing the bad weather that was approaching.  Mama said we needed to take care of "business" early because the storms were coming.  Scout did hers, but I was too excited with all the activity in our campground.  We took Scout home and then Mama and I walked.  One of the park workers stopped us and told us a tornado had been sighted to the west of us.  Mama asked if there was a shelter for us to use.  He told us the parking garage at the mall is the safe place.  That sounds great, but without a car, we can't make it there in a storm.  Mama said Dad better get home soon.  When we got home, there was a message from him saying he was running late.  The storm was still an hour away.   Dad finally got home and Mama told him where the safe place was if a tornado warning was issued.

We were watching Modern Family and were excited because they were going to take a trip in a motor home.  The show was interrupted due to the storms.  The radar was lit up with red all over.  We found our city on the map and it looked like we would be okay.  Mama had her tablet out and watched the radar from there.  A tornado warning came out for Tarrant county but it was to the south of us.  Dad said it looked like we would be okay.  He got on the phone with a friend and Mama went into the bedroom to watch the radar.  They said a hook echo was showing up on the radar.  Mama looked up the location on her tablet and it was near us.  She showed Dad while he was on the phone and he hung up.  He had never seen a hook echo that looked that bad.  He said "Get the dogs dressed!"  We had to put our collars and leashes on.  Mama grabbed her purse.  Dad grabbed the tablet and our WI-FI and we ran to the car.  The sirens were going off then. We drove the few blocks to the parking garage and saw lots of people we knew there.  Everyone had their dogs and cats.  It was almost like a party.  Miss Woe was there with her people.  We stayed until the warning ended around 9:15 p.m.

We say it was late night, but it was only 8:30 p.m. when we left home.  Our bedtime is 9 p.m., so that is late night for us.  BOL   We were up until about midnight because more storms came through.  It rained really hard.  Our windshield leaked big time.  We were fine though and a tornado never showed up here. 

Today, we sat on our patio, but it was a mess.  It was wet and lots of leaves had piled up.  It looks like it must have flooded last night.  I insisted we go out and I even laid in the wet grass for a while.  Scout wasn't pleased about being outside.

Scout: "Maybe I should change my name to Miss Woe."

Dad is going to a ballgame tonight.  Can you believe that?  We are pretty bummed, so Mama ordered a pizza.  Yum!  That helped a little, but we still don't know what makes a ballgame more special than us.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Evacuated The Campground Last Night

Pictures Of Our Campground

We really like our campground.  We would like it better if there was a dog run, but we have a nice yard that we hang out in most mornings.  Mama brings out her Kindle and reads while Scout sleeps and I defend our motor home from those squirrels. 

We see Miss Woe, the other greyhound, just about every day.  She isn't sure about us.  We sometimes sniff each other, but she prefers to walk alone.   Her Mom wishes she liked us more.  Her Mom loves to talk about greyhounds with Mama.  Miss Woe is a white and brindle greyhound.  Everyone says we are "HUGE" compared to her. 

Mama tried to take photos of the campground last night, but we didn't cooperate much with her.  We knew Dad was home and we wanted to get home.  Here are the photos that turned out:

This is one of the Presidential sites.  We are not allowed to walk around in there.

This is the bridge we take that connects our part of the campground to the rest.  It has lights all along it as well as flowers.

This is the view from our side of the campground.

Our campground has a lot of flowers.   There are flowers in common areas, but a lot of the residences have flowers at their sites.  It is really a nice place.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is A Happy Camper In Texas

Almost Wordless Wednesday - 5/15/13

"Mr. Squirrel, you are so lucky I am on a short cable!"

Ever eat kangaroo?  My Dad has.  Check out Mama's blog.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Would Love To Chase A Squirrel

Small Project - COMPLETED!

Mama has been wanting to buy some glass jars for her spices and finally took the plunge yesterday after she saw a photo of her friend's spice drawer.

The before photo.

Mama's biggest concern was how she was going to make the labels look nice.  Dad reminded her that she has a Dymo label maker.  He told her that the clear labels would look nice.  She didn't have any, so the first stop was Staples.  They had the labels, so the next stop was Bed, Bath and Beyond.  Mama planned on getting the jars that were $.99, but Dad thought the $1.99 jars would be better.  They have a flip top and one side is a shaker and the other side is for pouring.  He also thought it would look a little nicer with our stainless steel kitchen.  Mama debated the cost, but decided it was worth it.

Mama washed the jars last night and after our 1.5 hour time of sitting in the yard with us this morning, she got to work.  This is the result.

After photo  Much prettier.

View without the light on.

We have a very small cabinet that used to house a Dust Buster that didn't work. There is an electric outlet in the cabinet, but it looks like the Dust Buster almost caught on fire once, so it was decided it might not be safe for another one.  It is very narrow and is a bottom cabinet.  Mama houses spices and large bottles that she doesn't have room for elsewhere.  She keeps things in it that she doesn't use very often.  The bottles stay in place while we are traveling, so it works really well for us. 

Mama took photos of me this morning on her tablet, but needs to figure out how to get them off the tablet.  A squirrel was teasing me.  

I did the greyhound scream of death this morning and probably scared half the resort.  My cable wrapped around my leg and scared me. Don't worry, I am safe and am back inside now.

Our space bar seems to be okay now.  We used Super Glue.  BOL!  It isn't as bad as it sounds.  A small part fell off and we glued it to the space bar and it seems okay.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Loves Being Outside But There Is Danger Out There