Saturday cont'd:
4:10 – Hit the beach for the afternoon/evening.
***Disclaimer: I have made a pact to not post the beach photos. Wouldn't want to start a scandal.***
4:11 – Gretchen discovers that the ocean really is salty and it's best to close your mouth when the waves hit.
5:22 – Sandcastle under construction. Kathleen shapes the perfect tower in the center but then it falls apart. She rebuilds.
8:20 – Tired. A quick Taco Bell run.
8:50 – Still waiting on the bean burrito with no onions.
9:11 – Chill time at the hotel. Rachel finds My Best Friend's Wedding on TV. I lunge for my headphones and journal.
Sunday
6:30 – Rachel and I head to the beach to catch the sunrise. She takes pictures and goes back to bed. I head out on an 8 mile run up the coast.
8:30 – Mad dash #1. I return to wake everyone up. Rachel and I shower and pack up our stuff. Biscuits and peanut butter are eaten at some point.
9:30 – Kathleen and Amber head back to the beach with their books. Rachel and I drive up the road and meet Rosco and Major, our majestic steeds, minus the majestic part.
9:50 – Steve and his horse Reggie give us a tour of the beach on horseback. Since we are experienced riders, we get to do pretty much whatever we want... which entails galloping at high speeds along the shoreline.
10:42 – Rosco isn't too fond of swimming. But we manage to enjoy ourselves.
11:30 – Wrap up the ride and head back to the hotel.
11:40 – Mad dash #2. Clean up, throw things in the car, and check out of the Travelodge by noon.
12:00 – Head back to Harlingen. Random picture taking along the way.
1:30 – Chocolate shake at Whataburger. (No, DonMark, I did not eat especially healthy on this trip.)
2:01 – Check in the Sebring and get on an earlier flight.
6:25 – Arrive home. Successful trip. I check off two items on my Bucket List: first trip to the beach and riding a horse on the beach.
And to Padre we went... some chronicles of the trip...
Friday:
8:00 – Amber and I get stuck on the plane on either side of a ridiculously loud guy who yelled at his friends over my lap the entire way. Lucky for him, they made me check my knife instead of carrying it on. We move seats while stopped in Houston, only to trade the crazy guys for a screaming baby...
10:07 – Arrive in Harlingen, pick up our Sebring rental car, and drive across
to the island looking for the Travelodge...
Saturday:
7:00 – First view of the beach! Amber and I explore the east coast of the island while our compadres sleep in. On the way back, we comment on the hurricane damage of other hotels. As we walk up to the ole Travelodge, we realize that the entire roof is tarped down from damage!
8:07 – Meet Kathleen and Rachel for the continental waffle breakfast and discover that we are certainly in the minority here...
10:38 – Drive down the road to the Sea Turtle Rescue Center. Here we meet Fred, a 200 lb sea turtle who will get up to 600 lbs, and Gordita, a snapping turtle, among others. (I think Squirt was there somewhere too.) And did you know that sharks eat the flippers off of unsuspecting turtle? Cause they do.
11:42 – Embark on a mission to the far southern point of the island. Decide to park at Schlitterbahn and take a 'quick walk' down the beach to the jetty at the far end.
12:30 – Figured out that the jetty is a little further than we thought. But we are determined to make it to the end.
1:16 – Surprise! If you stand on the end where the rocks are wet, chances
are you will get soaked. 1 sea turtle siteing. And two dead sting rays.
2:12 – Back to each lunch at the Shrimp Haus. Funny, I was the only one who ate shrimp...
So my fish, Vincent Van Gogh (Vince), is on a diet. Now I realize that's a very strange thing to say, but it's true. He's looking a little chunky. Needs to either add some laps to his daily regimen or cut back on the pellets. I hear the one thing you're not supposed to do with a betta is overfeed it. After all, "if you really want to be good to your betta, don't try to reach his heart through food." (Found that on the website of some guy who is obviously way to attached to his fish; he even goes on to explain how your betta can get 'swim bladder disease'. Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure at that point, the $3.99 Petsmart purchase is getting flushed.) Now I honestly can't say that I'm trying to reach the heart of my fish. That's way more ridiculous than putting him on a diet. But let's be kind to God's creatures. Don't overfeed. Don't keep a large dog in an itty, bitty apartment. Put out your campfires. Have your pet spayed or neutered. And cut the plastic coke rings apart.
Yesterday I updated my calendar for the next few months, trying to look ahead and figure out what all I've already gotten myself into. Seems like alot. Which surprises no one. But I think I'm about to run smack into that 'too much to do, too little time' mode that I frequent with relative ease.
I hear that sometimes you need to regroup. And recharge. (And not go to another wedding.) And refocus. And rethink. And re-whatever else.
And so, I'm headed home tomorrow. Some time at the 4N Ranch ought to be good.
Happy Labor Day weekend. Do something fun on Monday.
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Completely unrelated... check out Donald Miller's new blog. He's the guy that wrote Blue Like Jazz and other fantastic (in my humble opinion) books. His first post here is H-Y-S-T-E-R-I-C-A-L. Again, opinion, and no reflection or relation to my political beliefs or agendas. I just thought it was a pretty funny response to Obama's identical email campaign. Let me know what you think...
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Also completely unrelated, I would like to make note that a week from Sunday, at 10:00 am, I will be riding a horse on the beach. More on that later.
Yes, I'm a day late... I know, I know. BUT my beautiful sister-in-law Emily celebrated a birthday yesterday. Hope it was a good one! Love ya!
