Fort Stockton to Mesilla and More Family

After leaving Austin we made it to Fort Stockton just outside the rainstorm from Hurricane Hermine and just in time for a spectacular sunset in the Texas skies.


The next day we stopped in Van Horn, Texas for some lunch at Chuys an eatery in the John Madden Hall of Fame...


... an interesting and colorful...


... Mexican food place with a Courtesy Van.


I thought the mural with Jesus and the Corona Beer Neon sign was a touch of genius...


It was special that they had a U of Houston [where Sharyn and I met] but I pondered the meaning of the Negra Modelo next to that banner...


... then there was the Boston Red Sox banner where we had been on the trip and the Tampa Bay where Matt had gone during this road trip and tying it all together Boise State where our starter went out at the beginning of the trip. Wow what a mystery.


This place looks like a well visited restaurant...


... and it even had parking for the Musemobile...


... under the same mountain that Jesus stood behind in the Mural and with a V on the mountain - hey that's the initial of my last, spooky huh!

When I was a child we took vacation in this area and along Route 66 to the Painted Desert, Petrified Forest, but I do remember most Sierra Blanca and Van Horn because we had family there.

This is a modern roadside rest area just west of Sierra Blanca and the tepee picnic tables were very nostalgic reminding me of all the places along the road west we went on vacations. I can understand the insensitivity to Native Americans in today's world. At that time it was images like this that gave me an interest in the southwest and a respect for the many wonderful cultures that contribute a specialness this great country.

Sop here we are on our latest road trip with Sharyn taking a picture of me on the cell phone as I'm taking pictures of her and the Musemobile


We did make it from Fort Stockton to Mesilla, New Mexico and the Hacienda RV Resort with a full hook-ups [RV Talk] and a great Wireless Internet connection from a tower on top of their office no more that 30 feet away from our site and it was blazing fast.


We had called Dave Paul [Yes, another Paul like my Dad and I ] and Dave, Sarah his wife and their child Sadie as...



... they took us out to dinner at La Posta. It was great seeing...


...them and seeing "Old Mesilla"...


and in the Restaurant even the fishes.


and the colorful wall decorations.


The big treat was seeing Dave all grown up and a great dad with the same sense of humor as when he was young...


... and to meet his family was icing on the cake. We felt an immediate connection with Sarah and Sadie ...


... the little charmer who was shy at first but once she opened up revealed a very smart young lady with loads of charm.


After one of the and maybe the best Mexican food I've ever had...


... it was time to head back to the Musemobile, after an irresistible cactus shot


Where Sadie modeled a cute Halloween Outfit Sharyn had purchased for her in Crackerbarrel.


Dave just got a new Camera similar to mine and insisted on taking a picture of the motley crew before they left for home.

This was another in a series of very special family visits. Thank you Dave and Sarah and Sadie for a most special time.

No Scrabble - we watched a movie on Matt's new Netflix account on his big screen TV - Too Cool

Quote of the Day ~

"Rugby is great. The players don't wear helmets or padding; they just beat the living daylights out of each other and then go for a beer. I love that." Joe Theismann

Joe Theismann's career ended on November 18, 1985 when he suffered a gruesome comminuted compound fracture of his leg while being sacked by New York Giants linebackers Lawrence Taylor and Harry Carson during a Monday Night Football game telecast. The injury was voted the NFL's "Most Shocking Moment in History" by viewers in an ESPN poll, and the tackle was dubbed "The Hit That No One Who Saw It Can Ever Forget" by The Washington Post."