Artic Blast Reaches South Texas Gulf Coast; Panic spreads rampant!

The Four P’s are broadcast on all media outlets and a continious scroll crawls across the TV screen warning to protect “People, pipes, pets and plants” It may very well reach freezing tonight and with this wind, the wind chill will reach the low 20’s. In some areas, there could even be isolated areas of sleet. (The definition was given as falling rain that turns to ice crystals as it falls to the ground) Schools in the area will not start until 10 am in most areas due to the cold conditions.

I have sought shelter from this Artic blast cozied up in Moonbeam with a bold Merlot and a movie. Since I’m in my ‘winter quarters’, I have access to electricty and enjoy the comfort of a small electric heater. Hang on a sec…. my glass is only 1/2 full, brb. Anyway, I share this strange bit of pandimonium with you because it strikes me as being rather strange when 80% of the Country is experiencing deadly winter conditions. Seriously…..sleet?

To my friends and relatives that are truly going through harsh and dangerious conditions, be careful and be safe.

Photos…Maybe?

I think I have this figured out. With luck pictures of Progresso Mexico will follow. If not, well I guess this won’t be much of a post huh?

Welcome to Mexico, We hope you enjoy our beautiful city

Serious dudes

Main street chaos on steroids

“sidewalk’ cafe? Drinks, danger and dancing, what can go wrong?

Street food is everywhere

This roasted corn is delish! And like the taco stand, just don’t ask…eat

Hungry? I was and I wasn’t dissapointed, even the next day

Hummmm, thirsty? Why not

Hi handsome… you from around here?

Time to start looking for a Dentist. Where to start….

here?

Nope

Maybe this one… nope, no habla englas

Maybe there is one here…or not

Ok, now we’re gettin somewhere! I think I like this Doc.

My final choice, I mean how wrong could it go, A Texas Dentist in Mexico!

What a day and what a place.

Survived first experience with Mexico’s Dental offerings

The alarm rang at some un-gawdly hour of darkness Saturday morning with a shrillness that would crack the paint off a wall. I don’t even own a time device and have lived outside the confines of being a slave to the hour for so long, I feel vialated by such an intrusion.
Yesterdays microwaved coffee will have to do and away I go to meet my transportation at the WalMart paqrking lot. I’m early and it gives me time to think of possible alternatives to what unknown lies ahead for me. I could dash inside and buy a bottle of gorillia glue and fix my tooth myself! Save who knows how much money! Flash forward to the glaring frown of some unknown Dentist who may or may not speak English as he/she strains to understand my attempt through clenched teeth to describe just how it happened they got glued together! Hey! Isn’t that my bus? Hola Mexico!
Once there, I started my search for a Dentist that I was comfortable with. First three were huge not only no but hell no’s. I was ready to call it off and bag it. I did find one that at least had assistants that could translate from Doctor to me and back what was going on. Total cost for a complete cleaning, X-rays, porcilin crown and one cavity filled, $220 US green backs. I go back this Friday to have the temporary removed and the final fitted.
I hope you enjoy the pictures.
Up date; I cant figure out how to do it. Insert instead of really cool pictures, about ten of the worst swear words of your choice. It won’t let me post mine!

Not looking forward to tomorrow

Yesterday morning as I was using my water-pic, I blasted a crown off that I have had for nearly half a century. I quickly assessed the situation and came up with a quick solution; a long and colorful string of “Sailor Talk”. After exhausting that, it was clear I needed the help of a Dentist. My first and only choice was….. Mexico!
From previous trips across the border to barter for stuff, I remember every third business down each side of the street was a tooth doctor. I mean. what could be better? Right? Well a couple of phone calls later and I am booked on a short bus leaving at 6 in the morning for Mexico. Don’t you wish you could have your own adventure like this? Holy crap…pray for me!

Good times and stories from Silverton Colorado

I’ve been here since early July and have had the opportunity to experience some wonderful moments. I’ve taken notes and photos and will be sharing these experiences with you soon. In a couple of days I’ll close this chapter of Silverton and open another when I find a place to settle for a couple of weeks. Thanks for being patient with me. I think you will love the story of “The Big Pot” . I think you will find “Studying With Bible John” a good read as well. Until later,

Rachael

Testing the water with my big toe… seeing if I’m ready to start writing again

The date is April 7th and the water temp in the Gulf offshore from Port Aransas Texas is 68 degrees. Far from the comfort of the soothing hot springs of my beloved Valley View Hot Springs in Colorado. But for this time of year in a late spring on the Coastal Bend, 68 isn’t too bad. That being said, to actually wade out into the 68 degree surf is to say, at the least a breath-taking experience proportional to the depth of the wade and duration of your conviction.

I have mentioned before my degree of frustration navigating my way through WordPress processes and to a lesser extent, dealing with connecting to the Web in remote and unfamiliar areas.  Part of traveling and living alone is the desire to share the excitement of exploration, consternation and exhilaration of seeing and experiencing new places and meeting new people. When pared down, it’s all about validation. Validation that I was here. I did these things and I experienced wonderous adventures and met truly beautiful people along the way. I record daily in my journals and keep a video diary but those will most likely never be seen or read. To blog is different.

Here I can write to an unknown audience and upon posting, so far, people from 17 different countries have followed my journey. Amazing, simply amazing. I’m about a month away from leaving the shelter of the Southern Gulf Coast and head west back to Colorado, Utah or New Mexico. Since I don’t have constant internet connection, the opportunity to make frequent posts is impossible so, as I have done in the past, I write everything long hand and then from the drafts make posts when I feel like it or have the opportunity. Anything I might post could be real-time or it could be from last year when I hiked the arches and canyons of Utah.

If you enjoy following my trek through the autumn of my traveling days, be patient and I will bring you along with me as much as I can. maybe someday we could even share a campfire under a star filled Colorado night! I wish you all good roads and safe travels.

Rachael

Gulf Coast or Bust

The weather here in Colorado is telling me it is time to turn tail and head for warmer climes. The last couple of nights have been well below freezing and last night it snowed. I have finished the last month of this ‘Colorado Season’ with a flurry of things I want to share with those following my ramblings. Even though I can’t post regulary, I’ve got it all down so between my daily written journal and my video journal, I should be able to reconstruct my travels.
Once I get settled on the Coast, I’ll be able to spend more time writing. One of the first things I plan on doing upon arriving In Port Aransas is to meet the Polly Anna shrimp boat at her dock and buy a pound of the biggest freshest shrimp you could ever imagine and have them on the grill within minutes. Now that’s “Good Eats”!

Oh, all right! Enough already! I’ll start writing again…No more nagging though, deal?

After being away for so long, I may just be writing to myself now. But at least my sister will quit hounding me about not writing anymore! Internet connection is still a challenge and will be infrequent at best but I will start writing about my travels and adventures.

I’m callin it quits

I have been working on 4 drafts of my travels from October as I left Colorado to Moab Utah and all the wonders of the Canyon Lands up to November when I reached the Coastal Bend of Texas. Every time I work on them, they get more screwed up and now they are all pretty much trash. As much as I would like to share my adventures with you, it has become such a source of frustration and stress to me that I’m calling it quits. I don’t need the stress that dealing with computers brings me. I’ve never liked them and never will…. they win and I concede.

I will always chronicle my travels and thoughts and experiences on paper with a PEN and will capture photos and videos on places and people I meet but if you want to share in them, then I suggest finding my campsite and spending a spell with me.  How could you find me you ask? Best chance, and it’s slim, is to roam around Colorado asking if anyone has seen a slighty crazy woman driving a white van called Moonbeam that’s piled high with all kinds of stuff on top.

Thank you all for traveling along with me. It’s too bad you couldn’t have been there and experienced some of the things I have over the last few years. I had high hopes this blog thing would work out but it’s not in the cards I guess. As long as I can continue to fund my travels and both mine and Moonbeams health continues, we will wander in search of new places, new people and new adventures.

I leave you with this:

“Years from now, you will be more disappointed in the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bow lines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.   Explore, Dream, Discover.”

Mark Twain

Take care and safe travels….

Rachael Kelli Darland

Rejuvinated by Radium and moving on to ?? (Oct 1, 2011)

As I recall, I left  off in my last post as I was limping down the steep hill into my camp at Radium nursing a wounded knee. (Nothing to do with the battle in South Dakota) As I descend down the steep grade, I watch a car pull up next to Moonbeam and park. Ut- Oh, trouble I think. Watching from too great a distance to even yell a threat to leave my stuff alone, I watch helplessly as this car moves here, then there, scootching closer to my camp then repositions yet again. What the heck??? Then I see whats going on… This blonde lady gets out and starts setting up a tent! By the time I limp back into camp, she has set up her tent and is gathering firewood. I welcome her to the neighborhood and introduce myself. Her name is Leslie.  She is all of 24 years old, starting her doctorate degree at CU and is an extreme water kayaker.  Time slows to a crawl as I rewind back…and back…and back, to being 24 again. Holy crap, not much to compare to. Hell, I’m not sure I can remember being 24!! Anyway, as we stand there in a light drizzle not long before dark, she asks me about the hot springs and where it’s at. I hope my face didn’t show what my mind was thinking at the moment. Are you crazy??!! It’s raining, nearly dark and the springs are over a mile hike away! Gawd I so admire the boldness of youth!

I watched in amazement as she nearly sprinted up the steep hill to the springs as I put a bandage on my scraped knee. I told her that I would have a warm fire going and to join me if she wanted opon her return. Later we put together some things for supper and talked late into the night watching the embers of the fire dance a quiet waltz under the watchful eyes of a million stars. These are the moments that can only happen if you open your heart to people. I often see too many people in too many places that are always moving in a circle that is small and constricted by lord only knows what. Let it go…relax and expand your boundaries. Let life intrude a little!

The moon by now has made its appearance and dips behind the western mountains when we say goodnight.  Still not sleepy, I walk along the little stream in the remaining moonlight. Just me and the night…these are some of my most precious moments.  With limited sight I find my other senses are awakened. I hear more, I feel more.  The smell and feel of the dampness along the stream seeps through my skin as I open up to the night world around me. There are sounds of bats swooshing through the night so close I can feel the air move from their wings. Looking up into the near moonless sky makes me dizzy as I try to focus on the thousands of twinkling light above. As I continue to follow the stream picking my way through the darkness, I am over whelmed by how small I am in a Universe that’s so grand and diverse as the one that surrounds me here, in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere.  My answer to those who wonder why I am compelled to do what I do is to sit here with me tonight. It will be self-evident I believe.

I awake early and make breakfast for Leslie and myself. She plays her guitar for me before she packs for another day of white water rapids. Two souls meet for a moment in time and both leave richer from a chance meeting when their life circles crossed. Before leaving she tells me; “I can only hope that when I’m your age I can be just like you.”

Whow. I leave it at that. 

Leslie

"Beautiful Spirit"