Pipe Creek, Texas

At last, in Pipe Creek at Thousand Trails. We were both chomping for a restful break. We'd had RV and Towed problems in El Paso which cut our travel time short for our reservation here. On top of that was the weather the last few days in El Paso. A spring wind storm hit. They weren't kidding when they said to expect gusts up to 70 mph. I had about gotten all the sand out of the place from being in Arizona and have to start over. John had put up our tv and internet satallite dishes. He uses "The Claw" to keep it steady and secure. They held just great - we had Dish Network and Hughes Net all the way through the storms. You can get the Claw at some Harbor Freight stores if you're interested.

I think we'll find our recuperation here. It's a beautiful park with herds of deer (will eat out of your hand), birds of all kinds, squirrels (and squirrelly people), and other wildlife. The weather has been wonderful and we have enjoyed reading, visiting and catching up on some computer work. Read that "Tax Time." I'm passing along this little tidbit. It was credited to Elliot Spitzer in my email.

Tax Rebate

President George Bush said each one of us would get a $600.00 tax rebate. It was previously slated to be $800.00, but they dropped it to a $600.00 tax rebate
because of various budget problems.

Now, if we spend that money at Wal-Mart, all the money will go to China,

If we spend it on computers, most of the money will go to Korea or India.

If we spend it on gasoline it will all go to the Arabs .....
And none of these scenarios will help the American economy.

We need to keep that money here in America .....so the only way to keep that money here at home is to drink beer, gamble, or spend it on prostitution.

Currently it seems that these are the only businesses still left in the U.S.


Sad and a little scary, eh?

Our trip over was one of the most enjoyable drives I had made in a long time. Much of the road from Benson AZ was flat, smooth, wide open highway with no winds. There was a full moon so we drove until about midnight. Then we hit the hill country so it was daytime only driving. We saw wild hogs eating at the side of the road, deer and skunks along the way.

Fuel prices are definitely changing the way a lot of RVers travel. Some we have talked with are Snow Birding closer to home (Florida for the Easterners, Arizona for Western folks, etc.). Others have decided just to bite the bullet. They took up this lifestyle to travel and enjoy it and that's just what they intend to do! Our choice has been to stay longer in one place before moving on, and to drive a little slower between destinations. We boondock a little to offset fuel costs.

During our winter in Southern California and Arizona, we've talked with RV Resort managers and they have all reported a little less business this year. We noticed several new park models going into some of the parks. Their owners said it was cheaper and easier to have two places and not be pulling a house from one to the other.

I suppose what I am trying to say is that everyone is feeling a little pinch, and some more than others, but we all want to continue our lifestyle as best we can. I've found some really good hints on the Escapees Discussion forum. Nick Russell's Gypsy Journal paper and blog have a lot of ideas and places to see that don't cost an arm and a leg to visit.

I just read my latest Gypsy Journal. Don't you just love to read someone else's opinion when it matches your own? There was a great article about RVers with pets. Nick really hit the nail right on the head! A reader had written that she had a 70 pound hyper but lovable dog. She was having trouble understanding why they had been asked to leave 3 different RV parks because of the dog. Now this dog's latest was to go bounding into a neighbor's RV spot. Scared the neighbor back into his rig and soon management was asking dog and owners to leave. This is absolutely why some RV parks are refusing to allow dogs in the park.

While we were at the RV Show in Quartzite, I was walking our little 10 pound Schnauzer on her leash. I had stopped to talk to someone and the next thing I knew, Casper was trying to climb my leg to get away from an overly friendly Shar-Pei. We have had many Shar-Pei and I love them dearly. But they are big and strong and this one's owner had no control even though it was on a leash. When I said he needed to control his dog, his reply was that he was trying.

When you own a dog or drive a big rig or have any other "liability" in your life, you MUST take responsibility for the results. Why in the world anyone would allow any animal out of the RV without a leash is beyond me. Not only is it an issue with neighbors, but most places we have stayed have wild animals around, or vehicles driving through the park, etc.

And who wants to step into a nice "steamer pie" left by some uncaring dog owner? If people would take care of their pets, more places would welcome them.

Well, I'm headed to Cincinnati again on Friday. Another chance to get to know Jessica's family. It's got to be a great group when the invitation says come hungry! The wedding is sneaking up on us. You all keep sending all the good wishes and calm nerves as the plans start to come together. We appreciate it.


Safe travels & see you down the road!