We bought the house with the large tree in 1981. This is in Mustang, OK. We planted that little tree, trimmed it until there was 3 small shoots coming up. Had to be careful not to run over it with the lawn mower...I think it grew well. That house has a huge back yard and garden. And Peach trees. This is right where the Chisholm Trail went through, so all that old cow poop really made things grow good!



Frank's ribs! This was only platter #1.. There was more to follow, with all the good trimmings that go with a rib dinner.



Frank built this elegator, a platform on small wheels, that rolls up the flight of stairs to the second floor of his "barn". He uses a 1500 pound winch with a cable to lift it. Very cool way to move things.



One of my favorite lunch places when we lived in OKC. The quantity is smaller, the prices are higher, but the food is still good, and the place looks the same inside and out. Not bad after 23 years.



A sheplers fix, for a new pair of Wranglers!



The place is full of fun stuff! And some high dollar boots too..........



Tommy Endsley. A Master Engine Builder. He's worked for Buddy Rice Engineering for 25 years. He builds performance engines for hot rods and race cars. And, one of the best neighbors we ever have had!




A German Bakery and Cafe in Fredericksburg. Sunday morning.



A little after 8 AM. A soft drizzel of rain and fog, but the people are already out and about in Fredericksburg. We went to see the War of the Pacific Museum. I've been there 3 other times, and enjoyed the displays a lot. Well, the directors felt they should cater to the younger generation, and also be more politically correct, so the removed a lot of the best exhibits, added a lot of "Star Wars" electronic displays, and changed the whole atmosphere. And tripled the price. Active duty and retired military used to get a good discount, but not anymore. Oh, Well, if you've never seen the way it was, you'd probably think it was all right. For me, it was a disappointment and a waste of $20 bucks...




Bluebonnets and Indian paintbrushes on Hwy 79 heading East. It was overcast and damp, with a LOT of traffic until we got East of I-35.



Julie growled at the bouquet, she had to sniff to make sure they were a danger to her :-)


Al's diner and truck stop. The food was good and cheap!



Glad we didn't check the rest room until after we ate!



Rusty old condom machines...A classy place...



A pretty thistle blossom.



Dark red Indian Clover blooms.



The little orange flowers were only about a quarter inch in diameter. The camera was only a couple inches away for this picture.



Frank and Nina's barn. Built like a fortress! It will eventually be a fully furnished 3 bedroom apartment for guests on the upper floor. It now houses cars, the RV, and a multitude of tools and things.



Lots of Dogwood, now in full bloom.. Very beautiful.



The front of the Johnson Casa. Their bathroom is 12 x 72 feet, and the only door is to the laundry room, where they have "his" and "hers" washer and dryers. It' pretty amazing, as is the whole house.



Frank's garden. So far this year, he has a good crop of Onions, some asparagus, cantaloupe, potatoes, and maybe other things I can't remember.



The entry from the circle drive to the house.



Nina, Mike, and Pat visiting on the front porch.



Frank's toy. He's done an amazing amount of work with this tractor.



I think this is a Johnson relative.:-)



Frank rebuilt the stove to meet their needs. They will soon be doing a remodel of the kitchen, putting in all granite counter tops among other things.



The house is hard to explain, but there are several areas to sit and visit, and 4 different eating areas, not counting the main dining room.



Mike is a beauty! He likes cats and other small wild animals. :-)



The dining room. Well, part of it.



Near the Tyler Rose garden. We stopped to stretch and check out the flowers.



Teddy bears in a children's park in Tyler.



The "Spyder". This is Frank and Nina's "tow car". They took us on a tour of the Azalea Trail today. Everything is is full bloom, and beyond words to describe. At least my words.


There are some many beautiful huge home, it just boggles your mind.



The "trail" goes through may city blocks in the old historic part of Tyler.



More.......


I was going to stop taking pictures, then I saw this one at a stop sign...



Nina showing off her favorite drink. Well, maybe she doesn't drink it, but she uses it on her very pretty face. A "high dollar" remedy for a perfect complexion!



Franks is a chef! He's putting the finishing touches on dinner.



They have a small gym in their home. And, they really use it!



Nina and Pat are solving the World's problems.



They have a pet Angora Goat in the living room.



Milepost 0. The Arizona/New Mexico border.



When most people think of the Continental Divide, there are visions of mountain passes, with easily visible watersheds on either side...well, this is where the Divide crosses I-10 in New Mexico. Not much to get excited about. There was a little tourist trap a couple miles back.



In Deming, this has been a regular stop for many years. Excellent lunch buffet. But they changed owners, remodeled, and won't be open for 3 more days...so we had to pass this time.



It's almost 900 miles across Texas, from when you enter West of El Paso, to which ever place you exit on the East side of the State. At 80 mph, you can make it through pretty fast.



Old "Ready Indian" as the truckers call him. This is just before the I-10/I-20 Split, around milepost 186.



Pretty yellow weeds along the highway.



We were almost to Ozona, TX, before we started seeing real Blue Bonnets.



This year has been good to the flowers. More different kinds of wild flowers than I've ever seen along the roads.



Blue Bonnets and Indian paintbrushes are prevalent, but there are lots of other kinds and colors too.



It's too hard to explain the beauty of the Hill Country during this time of year! Miles and miles of rolling hills, Huge Live Oaks, some nice rocky mountains, and hundreds of fields of flowers.



Typical road in the Hill Country. There are some nice curvy ones too.



Stopped for a photo op. :-). It's a lot easier to take pictures when you on a motorcycle. Not always easy to find turn outs on these narrow roads.



The line at Coopers in Llano goes the whole length of the front, then around the side clear to the back of the parking lot. It took an hour to get in, but was worth it.



Beef, pork and goat ribs. Prime Rib, Sirloin, and Brisket. Pork loin and 2" think chops. Jalapeno and regular hot links, Chicken, and some other cuts I didn'[t recognize. This is the serving pit.
You point, they poke and cut.


Coals are carried to these grills. They are all full of various meat being cooked.



Red hot Mesquite coals. Early mornings, this is an inferno, then, when the coals are right they are scooped out with shovels with 12' long handles to wheel barrows, then they are placed into the cooking pits.



Never been disappointed at Coopers! There are 3 of them, but we like the one in Llano the best.



I was too busy eating to get a picture when the food was all there, but this is getting on to the end. Hot blackberry cobbler topped it off. For Pat, anyway. I passed on that to have more low carb items.



Side entry to the Landmark Cafe, in Sierra Vista, AZ.



Johnny Bencomo. He's just getting set up. We've seen him before, and enjoy his music.



One of his "song books"



Johnny's famous 18 string guitar. He can may it sound a little like a harp.



The Special tonight was Ribs..I had to eat half of them for lunch today. They were good.



The crowd has arrived, every table in the place is reserved.



Mostly ballads, old "real" Cowboy songs..'cause he's a real Cowboy.



Bob is here with his family tonight. He made Johnny's 6 string guitar that he's using now.



will finish later, my hour is over at the Pilot!