Greetings of the Season

Here's proof that Molly opened her own presents.

Christmas morning at our house.

Annie and Molly in their play yard.

We were hoping for ripe tomatoes by Christmas, but didn't quite make it.

What we are missing back in WA, photo courtesy our former neighbors.

Sand drifts on the beach. The city plows them!

Our hostess, Erlinda, cutting Dave's birthday cake (at Christmas dinner).

Rita and Jim from Kettle Falls WA.

Christmas dinner at Tropic Island RV Resort with new friends.

It's that time of year when we have Christmas, Dave's birthday, and then New Year's to celebrate. For the last ten years we've been mostly away from family at this time of year, but not every year. This year is somewhat different in that we are away from family, familiar neighbors, and winter. But we do have some new neighbors, and it is not necessary to be "alone" if you don't want to. The Christmas dinner is sponsored by the resort, but is mostly a cooperative effort in that everyone brings something to the table. We miss the family, and old friends, but we don't miss winter.

We are escaping the snow and cold, and that's a big reason for us being here. Pat got a feeling for winter a week ago as she flew to Spokane and stayed with our former neighbors, Dan & Shirley Christman. She got to shovel a lot of snow and endure temps as low as -22. When we got up this morning the temp was 70, and is now up to 80. That's why we are here.

Yesterday was Dave's 69th birthday, and our next-door neighbors, Jack and Bernie (from Illinois) took us to Corpus Christi for some shopping and dinner. We don't know yet what we'll be doing to celebrate New Year's, but I'm going to be checking around to see where there might be a fireworks display.

So, blessings to all, and our best wishes for a great 2009.

Dave & Pat

Winter break

Pat in the Tropic Island Resort hot tub
Brown Pelican greeting ferries to and from Mustang Island.

What, you've never seen a Christmas Palm Tree?

Part of the Christmas Boat Parade in Port Aransas Harbor.

Today is Saturday, December 13. Pat is in Washington for some dental appointments and a visit with former neighbors and I remain in Texas. Pat reported last night that there is already over a foot of snow on the ground with yet another foot or more yet to come. They expect a low temp this weekend of -22F! I woke up this morning to blue sky, fluffy clouds and 65 degrees. Now you know why we are here for the winter instead of back in WA, or even MN. Pat will be back next Tuesday.

The photos are just some catch-up to events in our life. Here at Tropic Island Resort there is a year-round swimming pool and hot tub. Christmas is done a little differently in that they decorate palm trees with Christmas lights, and have a parade with decorated boats. We have our own little (about 2' high) indoor tree, and have run several strings of colored lights outside, so we at least look slightly traditional for the season. But lights and decorations are only the external manifestation of the season. The real spirit of Christmas is always internal.

Let us hear from you.

Dave & Pat

Dollar Day at Texas Aquarium

Thousands of people lined up to enter Texas Aquarium on $1 day.
Some kids with Sea Turtle mascot.

Pat watching the dolphins play underwater.

The finale of the dolphin show.

450 pound dolphin leaps 12' out of water.

Touch tank for manta and sting rays.

Dave with sea turtle sculpture. USS Lexington in background.

Dollar day was a day well-spent at the Texas Aquarium on the west side of Corpus Christi Bay. The unversity has a campus on the west side, the USS Lexington is docked there, and the Texas Aquarium rounds out the area attractions. We needed the whole day at the aquarium so will have to make a second visit to tour the Lexington a/c carrier.

The aquarium is quite large and has a lot of hands-on displays that are particularly geared to school children. Of course, it's pretty neat for adults as well. As you might expect, and can see from the photo, the crowd was quite massive. After all, only a dollar for admission is quite a bargain.

Click on individual photos to make them larger. Please leave a comment, or email us direct at dwink@supersat2.net.

One Month Down, Five to Go

Tri-colored Heron found on bird walk.
Example of native plants and labeling in Bird Park.

Our rig at Tropic Island RV Resort.

Scene on the south jetty.

Our girls waiting for mom to get out of the loo.

Looking south along Mustang Island beach.

Some of the migrating ducks near the bird walk. Oil derrick on barge in background.

Some of our Wednesday morning birding group.

Well, we've been on Mustang Island for one month. Having no first-hand knowledge of what to expect before we got here I have to say that we are anything but disappointed and except for a couple of days when the humidity was pretty high, wholly pleased. This is a tropic paradise. Looks like we might be in for a really good winter. After a lifetime of Minnesota winters, and about ten Washington winters, it feels good to be wearing shorts and t-shirts instead of sweats and polar fleece this time of year.

The attitude of the locals towards tourists has to be mentioned. We are treated as welcomed guests. There are signs that say "Welcome Winter Texans." It's an attitude that goes a long ways toward making people feel welcome.

Perhaps the most important aspect of tourism is to have sufficient infrastructure to handle the crowds. Here you will find plenty of RV resorts, motels, restaurants, and fishing accommodations. Even if your town only has a (full-time) population of 2,000 somehow that governing entity has to enable the building of facilities to handle 20,000 or more visitors. They have made it happen on Mustang Island.

Check back often. We're keeping busy.

King Ranch Ranch Hand Breakfast

Click on any photo you want to see larger. Use back arrow to return.
The breakfast is prepared and served by volunteers.

Pretty decent breakfast. Notice the refried beans. It's a Texas thing.

It takes a small army to prepare such a large breakfast.

Some of the several thousand who came for breakfast.

King Ranch has lots of longhorn cattle.

These guys are stuck in an 1880's time warp.

Rug weaver demonstrating his loom work.

Baking biscuits in a cast iron dutch oven.

Pretty good biscuits.

Pat found a new friend.

The King Ranch is located about 30 miles south of Corpus Christi, and is the site of our most recent outing. The annual Ranch Hand Breakfast attracts thousands, locals and tourists, each year. It's a fun and educational outing, and inexpensive as well. The ranch is huge beyond mortal reasoning. Over 825,000 acres, which they say is about the same area as the entire state of Rhode Island. Obviously, in one less-than-a-day visit, one can only see a small part of the ranch. The breakfast event is staffed by local volunteers, and there are hundreds of them. Funds raised go for community organizations and projects.

The day was cool. For us that meant carry and/or wear a light jacket. For the locals that meant parkas, long pants, and stand close to the campfire. All in all, it was a pretty nice day.

Saint Jo Island

The two of us, alone on San Jose Island.
One lucky fisherman we met on the beach.

This is steel, but it washed here during Hurricane Ike.

The Jetty boat makes hourly trips from Mustang Island.

Is this a great place to be, or what?

One of the full-time residents on San Jose Island.

A lone crane just hanging out on the dunes.

Brown Pelican meets the jetty boat every trip.

Another barrier island, just north of Mustang Island, is San Jose Island. The island is uninhabited and undeveloped. The only way to get there is by boat or helicopter. We rode over on the Jetty boat and spent about 6 hours wandering on a nearly deserted beach. The beach was well-littered by hurricane Ike. In fact, it was really messy which made it a lot more interesting than the more traveled beaches on Mustang and Padre Islands. The pick-up boat didn't come to get us until after dark so that made for a very full day of fun in the sun. We want to go back to Saint Jo for a longer visit. The island is over 30 miles long, so we've only seen a small part of the south end.

Marine Science Institute, Mustang Island

This is a marine research facility located on Mustang Island.
On the self-guided tour of dunes and salt-water marsh habitat.

An abundance of wildlife on the dunes, birds everywhere, and fish and turtles in the water.

Pat with part of the skull of a whale that was found in the gulf.

In our quest to see and experience as much as we have time for, we recently visited the University of Texas' marine research facility here on Mustang Island. It's located adjacent to the ship canal along the south jetty. They recently completed an outdoor interpretive area for dune and salt-marsh habitat. The paths and walkways protect the fragile landscape from the feet of many visitors while still allowing the very close observation of nature. Inside the headquarters building are exhibits of marine life present in the Gulf of Mexico. A visit here is a good way to spend an afternoon.