Day 44, We Have Air!

I want to thank everyone for their comments concerning the one year anniversary of loosing Jack.  Writing the post was very difficult for me and it actually took me two days. I wrote it last week because I didn't think I could do it on the actual anniversary.  I cried and cried as I wrote it.  I realized through the comments that some of you started reading the blog after Jack died.  Here is the link to the post I wrote when he died explaining what happened to him, if you are interested.  There were no tears yesterday, but Jack was on my mind all day.  I can remember in detail everything that happened that day and I am happy that we are on the road because I think it was a little easier. It would have been very hard to be at home where the accident happened. Something strange did happen yesterday.  After the air conditioning repairmen left, I went into the bedroom to get my tennis shoes. I had placed them in a big drawer.  I noticed my purse in the drawer.  It is a purse that I have not used at all since I have been here.  Something told me to look in it.  I pulled out a wallet and a few quarters.  Quarters are like gold to me since I need them for laundry.  LOL  The next thing I found was Jack's name collar. He was wearing it the day he died.  I knew I had brought it, but thought I had it in another location.  I looked at the clock and it was the exact time that Jack had died. A sign?  Not sure, but it was somewhat comforting.

I found out through Deccy's Mum that Jack and Joey are related!  I did not know this.  It's not a close relation, but it's nice to know that Joey has a little of Jack in him. 

Joey is now going to take over and tell you about the air conditioning repair.

Hi everyone, it is me, Joey!  I was very excited yesterday because Dad didn't go to work until late in the day.  I love when Dad is home. He stayed home so he could be here when the air conditioning repairmen came.  They were supposed to be here at 10 a.m.  They didn't come.  Dad called them at 10:45 a.m. and asked where they were. They called back at 11:30 a.m. and said they would be there in 25 minutes.  Dad was getting aggravated because he needed to get to work.  Finally, they showed up at 1 p.m.  We thought they would need two ladders to get it up on the roof.  They just backed up their pick up truck to the RV and one guy climbed on the roof and the other pushed it up.  If Mama and Dad could have done that, they would have saved a lot of money and time.  The men then came inside to hook it up.  Guess what?  One of them had a cowboy hat on. He set it down on the counter and I sniffed it.  Mama told me to leave it because she knew I wanted to steal it.  I was so excited that we had company. I kept running through the RV. Then, Fred, the park manager came in.  He is my favorite person here because he always rubs my ears.  He calls me "Big Guy".  He knows the repairmen, so that is why he came in.  They had it hooked up in just a few minutes.  Finally, we had air and we all cheered.  Last night, we were walking through the campground and Fred asked if Scout was happy to have air in "her" bedroom again.  Mama laughed and said that Scout was a happy camper again.

The repairmen were nice enough but definitely don't have a good sense of time.  They didn't even have an excuse for why they were late. Dad said he is not sure they would have shown up if he hadn't called to check on them.  Would we use them again?  Not sure.  

Last night, Mama had another training session on how to put the awning up.  She is finally able to do it.  There is one hard part and that is probably the most important part.  She has to pull a lever and hang onto the "rope" at the same time. Once the lever is pushed, the awning goes up very quickly, so you have to hang onto the rope because you don't want it go up too fast. After all the training, Dad decided maybe we shouldn't have it out today since it might rain, so Mama doesn't have to worry about it today anyway.

Ready to see what Mama fixed for dinner last night?  She fixed Bacon Penne Alfredo.  It's not a quick meal because you have to fix the bacon and the pasta, but it's not a hard meal to make.  Mama likes to bake the bacon in the oven instead of frying it. The bacon comes out flat instead of curled up. She thinks it has a better taste to it.  Mama puts the bacon on a cookie sheet lined with non-stick foil.  She puts it in a cold oven and then sets it to 400 degrees.  She starts checking it at 10 minutes, but it normally takes about 20 minutes.  It can burn quickly, so it has to be checked often.


8 oz uncooked penne pasta
8 oz sliced bacon
4 oz sliced mushrooms (fresh are best)
(1 garlic clove, minced)
1 c milk
(½ c parmesan cheese, 1 T butter, pepper to taste)
¼ c sliced green onions

Cook pasta according to package directions, drain water. Meanwhile, cook bacon in skillet till crisp; drain on paper towels. Reserve 2 T hot drippings in skillet & sauté mushrooms & garlic, 3 min until tender. Stir in pasta, milk, parmesan cheese, butter, and pepper. Reduce heat to med-low & simmer uncovered until sauce is thickened, stirring often. Crumble bacon & add to sauce with sliced green onions.

Bacon Penne Alfredo

Mama really liked this dish.  However, she did not have parmesan cheese. She used colby Jack cheese instead.  I know, its not the same at all, but that is all she had.  It still turned out.  Dad said it was good.  She will definitely make this again, but will use parmesan cheese next time. 

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Came Close To Stealing A Cowboy Hat

A Year Ago Today

A year ago today Jack left us so suddenly. I have been dreading this day.  There is not a day that goes by that I do not think of him.  When people stop us to talk about our greys, it is rare for Jack not to be mentioned. I guess I don't want him to be excluded even though he is no longer with us.  I often think of how much Jack would have loved being on our HUGE adventure.   The boy loved camping.  He would get so excited when he knew we were getting ready for a trip.  I knew there would be a day that I would miss his excitement, but I always thought it would because he was just older and had mellowed.  I have a feeling that Jack would have never mellowed. Jack's collar is with us as well as the afghan with his photos.

As much as I miss Jack, I know that if it wasn't for him, Joey wouldn't be with us.  What would have happened to Joey?  Would Joey have landed in a wonderful group that took care of him the way that our group did?  I think not, but lucky for him, he will never know. Joey has the same enthusiasm  for life that Jack had.

Here are a few of my favorite photos of my boy.

Jack's pose for his blog.

Wearing his famous jammies.  He wore these proudly and pranced around campgrounds in them.

Here we are in one of our favorite trips - Abilene Kansas.  We met Jack's bio Daddy on that trip.

Jack showing his stuff at the fun run in Kansas.  I cried when I saw him run.  He loved it.

His final camping trip.  It was the week before he died.  This blanket appeared in so many of his photos.  His foster Mom sent this with him when we adopted him.  It is with us in the RV and is still being used by Joey and Scout.

I believe this is the last photo I took of Jack.  He is walking with his Dad at the campground.

Thank you to every one who encouraged me to keep the blog going.  My first thought was to let it die with Jack, but I am glad I didn't.  We wouldn't have been able to take you all along on our HUGE adventure without the blog. :-)

Patty,
Mama to Jack, Scout and Joey

Day 42, Houston, We Have A Problem!

Now, you knew we would have to use that line sometime, didn't you?  LOL   Friday morning, Mama, Scout and I were just sitting around when Mama said she smelled something burning.  She went into the bedroom and the smell seemed to be coming out of the air conditioning vent.  She then heard a POP POP. She immediately shut off the air conditioner and ran outside to see if there was smoke coming out of the AC unit on the roof. There was not.  She then came in and called Dad, but got his voice mail.  She just wanted to know if there was anything else she should do.  She kept checking outside to make sure there wasn't a fire because she still smelled the burning. Dad called back and told her to unplug the electric cord that the AC runs on.  He said he would probably be late coming home since the hotel was without water and he was having it brought in and things were a mess there.  So, we all settled in for a long day and hoped it wouldn't get too hot. We do have an AC in the living room, but a second one is really needed to keep it comfortable especially on 90+ degree days.  Dad ended up getting home around 6 pm which was earlier than we expected him.  He checked all the wiring to the AC and determined Mama to be nuts. He turned on the AC and Mama immediately said she smelled something burning.  Dad said he didn't. This conversation went on for about 15 minutes.  We then all went for a walk. When we came back, the RV really smelled. Dad finally agreed that something smelled.  It was then determined that the compressor was dying.  Dad started out as an AC guy, so he knows about that sort of stuff.  So, we went to bed not knowing when our AC would be fixed.  Yesterday morning, the folk set out to find a repairman.  Dad said there are guys who will come to us and that seemed to be the best option.  They went to a place that said the first appointment would be June 20th.  That was just too far away. They said we could bring the RV to them on Thursday and they could fix it. They would hook us up to electric and water, so we would be comfortable. The problem with that is that it is kind of a pain to pack up and drive there for the day.  Mama said that if that is what we needed to do, we would just have to do it.  The parts guy told Dad to ask our park manager for names of people that come to the park to do repairs, so that is what we did.  The park manager gave us the name of the guy they use, so Dad called him.  He had to leave a voice mail and Mama worried that he might not get back to us right way, but he did!  He is coming tomorrow, Monday.  Then, the folks left to buy the AC unit.  Dad had been wanting to visit this super center of RV parts and they had what we needed at a good price.  It was an hour away, but isn't everything?  Dad could install it himself, but it weighs 100 pounds.  The problem is getting it to the top of the RV.  He needs two ladders and another man to help him, so that is why we needed to hire someone.

Dad put the awning out yesterday afternoon.  It is not broke after all. He anchored it down this time.  It should help keep the RV a little cooler.  We received our electric bill yesterday and it was better than we expected.  However, it was about five days less than what Mama had been figuring. 

There is no sightseeing this weekend due to the air conditioning problem.  Mama doesn't want to leave us for too long just in case something happens to the other air conditioner.  It gets warm in here with just one, but we have a fan that is helping.  We keep the bedroom door shut during the day so that the AC can concentrate on the living room area.  Scout is not happy about that since she wants to sleep on the bed.  Hopefully, she will be able to freeze her butt off back there tomorrow afternoon.  It actually cools off nice in the evening and we shut vents off in the living room area and that forces the cool area in the bedroom. It's been fine so far.

Last night, the folks ate at Guadalajara Hacienda.  Mama was disappointed in the menu because they did not have her favorite, chimichangas.  They also did not have burritos.  That seems a little odd for a Mexican restaurant.  They had a lot of chicken and seafood dishes, but just a few beef.  Mama likes beef over chicken.  Actually, chicken is really big here in Houston.  There are chicken places all over the place.  Anyway, Mama ended up ordering  Mariachi's Plate which is a chicken fajita burrito, beef fajita enchilada and tamale. The fajitas are different than what they are used to since they do not have any peppers or cheese.  Mama really liked the beef fajita enchilada.  She also liked the green chili sauce they served with the tortilla chips.

Mariachi's Plate with a quail leg (from Dad's plate)

Dad's plate - Fajitas and Quail legs

They said it was good, but will not be going back.  We had some of the chicken from Mama's fajita and we thought it was very good.  It really wasn't seasoned, so it was fine for us to eat.  We had some last night and then a little more this morning.  Yum!  I definitely like doggy bags.

We are just going to chill today with the folks.  Mama said we may have some fried chicken for lunch.  It is either that or Chinese food.  I'm hoping for the fried chicken.

Hopefully all goes well tomorrow with the air conditioning repair.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Ready For Lunch

Day 41, Be Careful What You Wish For

We have been hoping for rain.  It has been so dry.  Yesterday afternoon it looked like it might pour.

It just sprinkled.  Around midnight, it rained hard.  We are not sure how long it rained because we were sleeping.  We saw on TV that the town we border had 3" of rain.  There are puddles all over and we were happily bouncing in and out of them this morning.  However, we then reached our trail and it was muddy.  It was still dark out and Mama was sliding all over.  She said we would have to wait until daylight to do our long walk.  Finally, 6:15 a.m. arrived and Mama and I started walking around the lake.  We then started sinking.  Mama's tennis shoes sunk down and my feet sunk.  I thought it was kind of fun.  Apparently, the dirt in Houston is different than at home.  It's more sandy. We read a review of our campground and one person said that his travel trailer sunk while he was pulling into his site.  We couldn't imagine that happening, but now we can. Mama said we will not be walking around the lake until it dries up.  It's supposed to rain more today though. 

See we have water puddles now.

Since our normal path is like quick sand, we walked along the road to the fire house this morning.  I love watching the firemen.

I really want to go inside and meet the guys!

I know you are anxious to hear what Mama fixed for dinner last night.  LOL  Last night, she fixed Creamy Chive Casserole.  The recipe was a little mixed up.  The grocery list said to buy cream of chicken soup, but the recipe called for cream of mushroom soup.  Mama figured the recipe must be wrong since there was no chicken in the recipe.  She used the cream of chicken soup.  She also added a diced chicken breast to it since she thought it needed it.   

Mama thought it was good, but maybe a little too rich.  Dad made no comment, but ate it all.  We didn't get a chance to try it.

8 oz thin egg noodles
(¼ c butter, 1 T dried chives)
½ c chive & onion cream cheese
½ pint sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
(½ sleeve buttery cracker crumbs)

Cook noodles according to package directions. Mix butter, chives, cream cheese, sour cream and cream of chicken soup together. Gradually stir in noodles until consistency is moist but not wet. Place into a casserole dish and top with cracker crumbs. Bake at 325° until hot and bubbly.

The folks will be doing tourist things tomorrow, but haven't decided for sure what yet.  It depends on the weather.  Mama doesn't want to be far from us if storms are predicted.  They thought about going to Galveston, but that is 80 miles away.  There is a Bubba Gump restaurant there and they are going to try it.  Mama loved the Forrest Gump movie and the restaurant is themed after it.  Has anyone ever eaten at one?  If so, was it good?  There are several in the U.S.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Wants To Ride In A Fire Engine

Day 40, Houston Photos

When the folks visited the Space Center last weekend, they came close to downtown Houston.  Mama took some photos of the buildings. She has seen these from miles away and thought they made a pretty skyline.

Last night, there were storms in the area.  We had some wind gusts that shook Goldie.  We were nervous.  Dad was still at work.  The rain finally came, but it was just a shower.  It barely even wet the pavement.  We are supposed to have rain today.  We hope we get something.  The lakes in our campground are getting really low.

Me sleeping on the floor with my hedgehog.

Mama thinks I am cute when I sleep.

The weather was cool this morning, so we took four long walks. Well, five walks if you count the 2 a.m. walk that I insisted on taking.  I was bored. Mama made me wait a half hour to see I really needed to go or if I was just bored.  Well, I was bored, but I made it look like I really needed to go out so that she doesn't stop taking me. I like walking in the dark because I see raccoons and cats.  Mama is not fond of the 2 a.m. walk for some reason.  We have started taking a different route and now we walk all the way the lake that is located at the far end of the campground, but only during the day, not in the middle of the night.

Mama walked to Jack In The Box for lunch today.  She has been wanting to do that , but didn't want to go on a really hot day since there is not a lot of shade.  She had to walk through a field, but there is a path that is cleared.  We can't imagine who uses the path but maybe it is the firemen that work nearby.  She could walk on the highway, but the path is much safer.  She said she may go back tomorrow and have tacos.  She likes their tacos

Last night she fixed Easy Beef Skillet.  It was easy to make.
1 lb lean ground beef
15 oz can black beans, drained
14 oz can diced tomatoes w/ chilies, undrained
Steamed white rice, desired amount
Sour cream, to taste

In non-stick skillet, brown ground beef and drain. Add black beans and tomato. Heat thru. Serve over steamed rice. Top with sour cream.

Mama mixed the rice in with the meat because Dad called and said he was going to be late and she figured that was the best way to keep the rice from getting lumpy.  She said it was good.  Dad didn't comment and she forgot to ask him, but he did eat it all.

She fixed a strawberry shortcake this week.  She used a strawberry muffin mix as the cake part because that is what she had.  It was good, but would have been better with whipped cream.   I like whipped cream.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Likes Walking At 2 AM