Trippin with the Stumpster

You know how they say everything is bigger in Texas?  Well, I'm not one to disagree, especially after our road trip the other day to find the biggest taco in Texas. Shortly after our arrival in Corpus Christi, a friend from back home sent us a text, encouraging us to to check out Recio's Smokehouse Restaurant and Catering in Corpus Christi.  Turns out, Recio's claims to have bragging rights on serving the largest taco in Texas.  Weighing in just short of five pounds, (yes - I said FIVE POUNDS) this monstrous taco is an amazing homemade tortilla stuffed with refried beans, potatoes, breakfast sausage, chizo, eggs, brisket, and cheese.  And it's a real bargain, priced at a mere $12.99!  Better yet, if you happen to have a big appetite, it's free if you can eat the entire thing in under thirteen minutes! So of course we had to check this bad boy out. Jer and I hopped in the car and the road trip was on!  We were off to see THE TACO!  The largest taco ...

If you ever would happen to glance at my personal calendar, one of the first things you might notice is that the last Tuesday of every month is blocked out.  Well, there's a very special reason for this.  The last Tuesday of every month I have a very  important lunch date with all my retired SCSB friends.  We all meet at the Pizza Ranch at noon so we can chit, chat, and of course eat. We've been doing this for the past three years and it's always guaranteed to be a good time. So as I sit here today, this last Tuesday of January, in Corpus Christi, Texas, I'm thinking about my retired bank friends back in Iowa.  Did they remember the day?  (Usually, I send an e-mail to remind them.)  Did Denise and Mary join them?  This would be their first official "Old Timer Tuesday" as retirees.  Did they all celebrate with an extra piece of dessert pizza?  And was everyone able to attend or did the nasty Iowa weather keep anyone away? Well as you ...

You know you’re officially old when you’re on vacation and you’re most visited tourist spot is not really a tourist spot at all.  Oh no, it's much better than that.  It’s our local H-E-B! So what's H-E-B, you Iowans ask?  Well I wish I could say it’s the Health, Exercise, and Balance gym but think again. Heavens!  You know you wouldn’t find me there!   H-E-B is to Texans, what HyVee and Fareway is to Iowans.  You see,  H-E-B is a premier grocery store and oh my, what a sight it is!  Imagine our Avoca Flower Shop, Avoca Foodland, Carley Drug, Casey’s,and Dollar General all in one. That’s H-E-B! And let me tell ya, you better know what you want when you go in there, or you’re going to come out with twice as much as you need! I know!  How does that happen!?!  lol! Anyway, as you can imagine, our trips to H-E-B have become quite frequent and with each visit I  find something new. If you ever go to H-E-B, let me give you some ad...

What a fun, interesting day!   Our new friend, Phyllis, so graciously took us to the Texas State Aquarium during the first week of our stay.  Just a short distance from our condo, the aquarium is where Phyllis has been volunteering for over the last 25 years.  Wow!  Are they lucky to have her!  That little lady holds so much information about every species in the place!  You name it, turtles, sharks, fish, birds, etc. - she's a book of knowledge! Upon entering the aquarium, we took an immediate left where we started our tour viewing a multitude of fish. How fascinating!  There were fish of all sizes and all colors.  I personally was attracted to the seahorses, as I had never ever seen one in real life.  It was interesting to watch the little guys swim around their tank,  just like a child on a stick horse, bouncing up and down.  And when they needed to rest, they just wrapped their tails around the stalks of weeds that blan...

As I said before, the swimming pool is the happening place here at Villa Del Sol.  If the sun's out, and you've got a swimming suit, that's where you go to hang out. The pool's heated to a luxious 90 degrees and it's a great place to meet people.  Need I say more?  I'm in! But I must admit, I was a bit timid about making my first trip to the pool.  I knew no one.  And then, the thought of meeting everyone for the first time in a swimming suit!?!  I know!  I doesn't get much scarier than that! But some how I gathered up the courage, and within a day or two, Jer and I ventured down the two flights to check it out for the first time.  The pool gate was a little bit tricky.  Wouldn't you know, my nervous fidgeting caused the noisy gate bar to clumsily introduce us with a few "cling" and "clangs"!  Sure!  Just what I wanted - more attention!  And why is it that everything is made for right handers?  (Well at least that's wh...

You know how it's always so good to see familiar people when your miles away from home?  Well just two days after we checked in, we had Iowa guests - and they're family!  My cousin Carolyn and her husband John stopped by late morning to check out our condo and compare road trips.  Since they were on their way to South Padre, we knew they would be stopping, and with the help of cell phones, it was easy to direct them to our location.  We were so excited to see them and show them our cute little condo! John and Carolyn had actually left one day before us, but here they were arriving two days after us, due to different travel plans. They had stopped in Arkansas for a couple of days to visit John's sister. Luckily for them, they didn't experience any ice or snow like we did.  Instead they were hit with a few tornado warnings!  Thank goodness they missed them! So being the lovely hostess I am (cough! cough!) I had the coffee pot on and even a plate of donuts...

Monday, January 13, 2020 It was a short trip from Victoria to Corpus Christi so we were totally excited when we reached our destination around noon.  We were greeted with blue skies, beautiful beach waves, and a humid 67 degree temperature. So much more pleasant than the windy, snowy and icy 27 degree weather reported back home! We checked into the office, knowing we were around four hours early, but thankfully a quick call to our condo owner allowed us early entry.  We’re at the gated community known as Villa Del Soul condos- condo #1209- first bldg., second floor, 9th condo.  As we travel to the second floor, we notice a crystal clear pool on the ground level (which we later learn is heated to a luxurious 90 degrees).  Little did we know that here is where the action is.  Everyone who is anyone goes here to meet and great, and plan and party.  It’s the “hub” of the community. Looks like we’ll be seeing a lot of this place! So we carry our luggage to...

Sunday, January 12, 2020 Well, we’re getting closer!  Knowing that we can’t check in until tomorrow at 4:00, we decided to take our time and savor our travels. So we got up late, had breakfast, and headed down highway 77, arriving at Victoria, Texas in early afternoon. In Victoria, we stopped and had an awesome lunch at a little place called, “The Dockside”.  I think it was obvious we were out of towners, but the staff was great and made us feel welcome.  We both played it safe and ordered something we’d generally order in Iowa. I ordered the chicken strip platter and Jer ordered a shrimp platter.  Both platters were delish but when the party of 15 next to us got their orders of crab legs, lobster and shrimp ordered by the pound, we second guessed our order. Wow!  Did that look good! Maybe we can come again on our way home. So it was around 2p.m. When we checked into a Baymont Hotel. Very clean and very nice! So first things first - we turn on the televisi...

Saturday January 11, 2020 We were slow to rise this morning.  Last night’s news warned of snow and ice, so we hibernated like a couple of old grizzly bears until mid morning. And of course, old man weather delivered! Jer spent a half an hour scraping ice and warming up the engine before we were ready to depart, but not before we ate a lucious breakfast served by the hotel. So around 10:30 we again headed south, and believe me, we never once doubted our decision to delay our start.  Ice frosted the highways and several cars lined the roadways due to accidents.  We experienced ice all the way to Dallas/Fort Worth.  It was reported that this was the first snow Dallas/Fort Worth had received in the last three years.  No wonder people didn't know how to drive!  However, I remained calm and never questioned the skill of my ice trucker Jerry.  We just took our time and avoided as many ice spots as possible. So around 3:30 we arrived in Waco, Texas, the...

January 10, 2020 Well, were off!  It's 8 a.m. and were getting the heck out of dodge!  There's a snow storm brewing and we don't want any part of it!  So we're headed south in our trusty 2014 Chevy Equinox and head for warmer climates.  Shades?  Check!  Swimsuit?  Check!  Suntan lotion?  Check!  Were' all set.  Let's get the heck outta here! So it doesn't take long and our ride turns a bit interesting.  We hit ice and drizzle already near Nebraska City.  Aw - what's a little ice?  And Kansas!  Where in the heck does all that wind come from?  No wonder Dorothy's house landed a million miles away!  I'm just surprised she was able to hang on to her little dog Toto!  Heck I could hardly hang on to my hot dog as we exited the truck stop on the Kansas turnpike!  Holy frankfurters! Well, neither ice, nor snow, nor wind, nor rain is going to stop us hell ben...