There’s a beautifully written book entitled, Housekeeping, in which author Marilynne Robinson’s radical hero, a vagrant, estranged aunt, moves into a rural house to be the guardian of two teen girls. What could be seen as her neglect of housekeeping allows nature to slowly take over the old house. What’s really happening is a breakdown of the […]
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El Morro and El Malpais
These are national monuments in western New Mexico: off the beaten path, managed by the National Park Service. There are 138 national monuments in the United States and 63 national parks. El Morro Roughly, this means “The Headland.” El Morro is a giant sandstone outcropping with a life-saving pool of water at its base (created […]
Camping and Hiking along the Gila River
We’ve spent a week boondocking in a horse corral between the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument visitor’s center and the trailhead to the cliff dwellings hike; in short, along the Gila River in western New Mexico. The Gila is one of the longest rivers in the West, with a gigantic watershed. People have lived along […]
“Cliff” Being the Operative Word in Gila Cliff Dwellings
I’ve never had a problem with heights, so all I was thinking about as we climbed the 180-foot ascent to see this archaeological find was my knee when it was time to go back down. Jeez Louise though, the second we approached the caves in the side of the cliff and I saw that there […]
Hitch Quasi-Update and How Wild It Is that RVers Live in Different Ways
I’m always the wise-ass with my son when I give him my version of science-related advice: no matter how frustrating it feels to hit dead-ends in research, you are making progress when things fall apart in that you’re ruling out options. It feels like no progress at all, though, I know that. And it’s the […]
The Feel of India in the RGV
On a weekend morning when the wind isn’t up, Tracy hits the local university to bird. No one’s around because there’s no on-student housing, but don’t let that fool you. This Brownsville campus of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is part of, according to Wikipedia, “the ninth-largest university in the state of Texas […]
For Us Winter Texans
I was reading about the first act at an outdoor music venue we go to sometimes down here in Brownsville, and the post said the artist would be on from 6-8 pm, “for you Winter Texans.” Aka, old people who like to go to bed early. I’m in! So, we stood in the chilly evening […]
On Hearing the Palm Fronds Rustle
I ride my bike to the RV park’s fitness room each morning, and then I park it against the trunk of a palm tree. To get it situated just right so it won’t blow over in the wind while I’m in the gym, I have to duck under the fronds. Palm fronds rubbing together in […]
On the Beach, the Crowded, Chilly, Still-It’s-a-Beach Beach
We finally made it to camp right on the beach! Man, have we spoiled ourselves with previous years doing this, though, because this beach location kinda sucks. Okay, it doesn’t truly suck. No beach does, right? And here all the elements are in place: the trailer is parked on the sand with not a thing […]
Crowded Beach Spots vs. Empty Campground
I’m lying on my folding sofa with my iPad on my lap, looking out over water, and there’s a bit of wind, so the water’s choppy and hitting the bulkhead in a splishy-sounding, fast rhythm. In the distance, the sun is rising over the water, and I am all alone out here. So right now, […]
