Back in The Rio Grande Valley

We got back to the Rio Grande Valley yesterday and boy is it hot. 

Having spent a month in the Vancouver BC area we weren't ready for the 33C (90+F) weather we hit yesterday when we arrived in the valley.  I'll take it.  It beats the cold and snow they're still fighting with at home.

March was fun.  We had great times with our kids and grandchildren getting to enjoy dance competitions, hockey games, movies, dinners and more.  The cookies made just for Grandpa were a special treat, thank you.  We got to spend time with many of our friends enjoying dinners, visits, coffee at Tim's and more.  For our US friends Tim's is a Canadian coffee shop chain that most Canadians are addicted to. 

I got to have an evening with my motorcycle friends planning our ride for late June of this year when we will ride out of BC to the Napa Valley.  Having spent countless hours riding all over N. America with these guys it's always a special time when we get together.  We now have a number of our sons riding with us so the Dirty Dogs (our motorcycle group) seems likely to carry on with a second generation.

I did find out that I had missed mentioning a friend's name in the "Can Tab Social" post.  I was so afraid I would do that and despite trying really hard not to, I forgot to mention Elwood J. who had sent me a pound or more of tabs last fall before we left Winnipeg.  So - Elwood, please accept my apology, and Thank You for your help.  He also presented me with a close to a half pound when we were there, getting the 2013 effort underway.

The trip back to Texas was long.  The flight from Vancouver to Houston seemed to go on forever, then United Airlines decided they should leave my bag in Houston while we flew off to Austin.  To their credit they were as helpful as they could be and did get it in to Austin by 8:30 AM.  After a short 5.5 HRS drive to  Pharr we were back in our RV.  Home sweet home, :-)  glad to be here.

The RV seems to have survived very well.  Thanks to Ken and Doreen for babysitting it while we were away.  You can tell it was hot here because one of Bernie's candles candles, a taper, was partially bent over.  It had obviously softened up from being warm and was laying over quite a bit.  Kind of funny until you think how hot it must have been in the RV. 

We have some maintenance things to do before we head back North in 10 days or so.  The weather is just beginning to break up there so we aren't in any particular rush to get back to the cold and snow.  Not to mention the flood that's likely going to cover a huge swath of the Red River Valley again this year. If you're interested there is a short video at this link that tells the story.  For those who are reading this from anywhere warm, you might find it especially interesting.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2013/03/31/mb-flood-preps.html

For now, I have to run to the store to get some white stuff for morning coffee.  Have a super day and thanks for stopping by.

Neal and Bernie