Spring Break '04

It was all a matter of timing. 

We were able to vacation for 24 days as I am on leave for the spring. 
Our itinerary: MN,IA,NE,KS,OK,TX,NM and back with most of the time
in warm TX and rainy (!) NM. 

We saw a lot of relatives - including some I hadn't seen before. 
Our first stop was for lunch with my sister Irene in Lakefield on the way to a 
wedding in Omaha. About halfway to Lakefield we discovered that
we had left all of our wedding duds hanging in a wardrobe behind the front door
at home. No problem; we stopped in a consignment shop in Lakefield where I got 
a navy blue blazer for $5 in better shape than the one left behind and a clip
-on tie for $1 and Sharol bought a black velvet dress for about $10.

In Omaha, we saw Sharol's brothers Bob and Dick, and their families, at Bob's 
daughter Lesley's wedding. Also between the wedding and reception (both in time 
and in location) we were able to  old friends Jean-Francois and Monique who had 
returned from France the previous evening. We were to see Dick and Lin again at
their condo in Santa Fe where we spent a few days.

But before then we saw half-brother Harold (and wife Madonna) wintering in 
Alamo, TX, fortunately nearby our friends Carl and Carol  in Westlaco.
I had never met Harold before. All the snowbirds were about to fly north so we 
were lucky to catch them there. In fact we didn't know if they would still be there
so we called Alamo as soon as we got to Westlaco. It was a good thing we did because
they were leaving the next day. Furthermore, it was good that we called early enough
to rush over there and join them and the some of their friends for the early bird senior
special at the Golden Corral.

"Winter Texans" seem to be quite content with their two or three months in "the Valley".
They have have plenty of activities, seem to develop good friendships, and get along well
with the locals. I don't get as good as an impression from those who winter in Florida or 
Arizona.

Camping: Huntsville, Galveston Island and Mustang Island State Parks, N. Padre Island, three 
campgrounds in Big Bend Nat'l Park and Davis Mountain SP - all in TX. Good sites. Good ranger 
programs. Plenty to see and do.

Birding: The above and Santa Ana Nature Preserve. Our spottings included black-crowned night 
herons, vermillion flycatchers and acorn woodpeckers. Also ravens, turkey 
vultures and scaled quail. No big deal to the old birds - but of intersest to
us hatchlings.

Museums, etc.: Omaha Historical Museum (just two blocks from where Sharol lived)
and the Joslin; the OK City Nat'l Memorial; Museum of the Big Bend at Sul Ross 
State Univ which had a tacky exhibit (i.e. an exhibit of very elaborate and 
expensive horse gear); the UFO Museum, Art Museum and a Memorial concert 
("Beyond Courage", a moving tribute to a New Mexico regiment that  got trapped
in Bataan) - all in Roswell; Carlsbad Caverns (still a thrill); Georgia O'Keefe 
Museum and her Ghost Ranch in Santa Fe. And the McDonald Observatory including 
a "star party".

And the Van Gogh/Van Horn/Ran Horn museum/gift shop/used bookstore in Van Horn TX. We took
an unscheduled stop in Van Horn to replace a tire which had been losing a few pounds per day.
It was just in time because the steel belting was showing through and rough roads were ahead.
While I was getting it replaced ($50 new + $10 labor!), Sharol wandered off to the museum/gift shop/
used bookstore. The artist/owner, Ran Horn, paints in the style the of Van Gogh
quite impressively. The curator/shopkeeper is a Popeye-looking character with 
many yarns to spin. Well worth the stop.

Hiking: We tried to hike at least four miles per day - up and down the beach flying a kite and picking
up trash, to the "window" at Cisnos, up the Pecos Valley in the Santa Fe Nat'l Forest, to chimney rocks
near Ghost Ranch, to Tent Rocks, etc. On Good Friday we took joined thousands, including Dick and Lin, 
in a pilgrimage  to Chimayo. There was a large variety of pilgrims, many teenages, many Hipanics, 
but very few who had any obvious physical problem - although they were the ones that made the evening 
news. Most pilgrims walked at least 15 miles or so; many walked for days; we parked a few blocks from 
the sanctuary. 

Biking: We had our cross-over bikes along but didn't use them as often as we intended. 

Weather: Pleasantly warm to hot in TX; record rainfalls in NM - 4 inches in 2
days at Carlsbad = one-half as much as they had all of last year.