Fireworks....Yeee haa

The elusive green jays.....or what ever.

Holy crap, there was explosions everwhere last night. I ain't talk'n bout wait'n round for midnight to roll in a new year, I'm talk'n  bout soon the sun go down an' git dark. There was big ol' explosions, shoot'n stars, bottle rockets, colorful displays, shotguns, 30 round clips, pistols, assault rifles, some even sounded like a sticks of dynamite. Poor Sadie Mae cuddled up next to me shak'n in her boots.

Falcon Heights, Texas ain't a big place (Population in 2010: 53. Population change since 2000: -84.2%), so where the hell they get all these explosives? These people ain't got no money to be spend'n on fireworks. They need pinto beans an' tortillas. Then I got to think'n......have ya ever been to a fireworks stand an' see who buys the big stuff? It sure ain't the women folk I can bet ya a dollar on that. It's men....macho redneck men. "Hey, watch this" kind of guys. Ain't no little pixie dust sparkle thingys what ya hold in your hand for these guys, I'm talk'n mortar rounds....TNT, napalm, hand held missile launchers...stuff like that.

I had me a neighbor one time what love his fireworks. Go to the fireworks sell'n place and buy big ol' boxes of 'em. Spend a whole paycheck. Take 'em home and start sort'n 'em out on the kitchen table. Carefully examining each and every piece with loving care.....eyes all a glow. That's what ya call "hands on" experience. He have sparkles in his eyes....a big grin on his face. By the time it was dark enough, he was all syked up, ready to blow stuff to kingdom come, sending chills and hysteria throughout the neighborhood. My kind a guy!!!!

What does a guy do when go'n outside is out of the question. I'm talk'n a travel'n man. A boondocker. No electricity or modern day conveniences.....an' it's freez'n cold. Well I'll tell ya what the old Billy Bob do. He sits on his ass over there on the couch. Sometimes think'n, day dream'n, sometimes writ'n stuff down in a notebook and other times read'n western paperback books. I got me bout 300 of 'em if'n ya didn't know. Good 'uns too. With a shortage of electricity there ain't a whole bunch you can do. Ya gotta conserve. Watch'n TV is questionable unless you are proficient in the Mexican dialect, as all the stations are broadcast in Mexican in the area. So, until there is some decent weather, Billy Bob is destined to spend his days "do'n nuttin".....inside. But shoot, I ain't got nuttin else to do. Fish ain't bite'n.

Well shoot, the OFM Barney rolled out early this morning. Headed north of all places. Barney don't stay around much when he gets bored. Always on the go....."hav'n tooo much fun".  See ya down the road a piece Barney. Keep them golf'n sticks tuned up. Buy ya a boat like the "bubba boat".

Ok....I lied. It's gonna be freak'n super cold here in south Texas. Down to freez'n in a couple days. I'm think'n something ain't right. I made me special plans to be at Falcon Lake for the winter 'cause it don't get cold here. Where I get that idea from??? If'n I could, I would move farther south, but then I would be in Mexico. An' everbody know, I can't go to Mexico (red tagged ya know).  "Hey Billy Bob, ya could move over to the State Park....all the electricity ya could ever want....stay nice an' warm". Maybe I just might do that. Gotta think bout it.  

Life is good when you're hav'n fun......an' other times too.

Liv' it up in south Texas

Pssssst.....don't tell Billy Bob I tole ya, but yesterday he tore into that solar charge controller again. Had that sucker lay'n all over the table in pieces. Said something bout he was gonna modify it. I did see some sparks fly'n a couple times, but I didn't wanna say nuttin......he was in a foul mood....cuss'n an' stuff...tools all over the floor. What he did was to put some modified terminal lugs on the ends of all them wires. Of course he done broke something install'n them. That was when the controller was all in parts on the table.....resolder'n what ever it was he broke. Then he hook it all back up an' the little red light comes on. Then he starts beat'n hisself on the back...great big ol' grin on his face. When I asked him if'n it was fix, he says..."hell, I don't know".

I'm think'n somewheres in my wording bout me being cold and miserable, everbody got the impression that it's super cold here in south Texas. That's what the comments led me to believe anyhows. Well, it ain't an' I ain't. Speak'n of comments, yes, I read 'em all....an' I think bout them too. Now about the cold. I ain't never live nowhere that 40 degs outside was really that cold. Oh sure, it's a bit uncomfortable, but '0' degs is cold. Most my life I lived in places where the temp seldom got under 40 degs...."cept for 10 miserable years in West Virginia and the first 10 years of my life in Missouri.....couple other places too. So don't be worry'n none bout old Billy Bob freez'n to death in 40 degrees temp.....he ain't gonna do it. Just something to moan an' groan bout ya know. An' I'll keep it up till the day I die.

MsB done told me "don't ever change Billy Bob". Well, I ain't never had no intention of chang'n, but the older I get, I got to make some changes to fit my abilities an' what time I got left. I got to take it easy, rest a bit, don't do'n nuttin....take me a nap. I 'member one time when I were all "antsy". Couldn't sit still for a minute....had to be do'n something. Well, you older folks know what I'm talk'n bout. But that ain't what she was mean'n. She was talk'n bout my sense of humor an' the way I talk. All my life I been a humorous kind a guy....do a bunch of stupit stuff too. I could always put a smile on somebodys face just by walk'n in the room. I try to convey that in my blog writing. But like everthing else, that is gradually slip'n away too. Fore ya know it I'm gonna be just a sour grouchy old man.

That reminds me the time....my daughter Angela was spend'n the summer with me on the boat. (The boat was a 41 foot Formosa Ketch...a big ol' sail'n boat.) She was at the age of "boys" hang'n round. I come in from work one day an' there a bicycle sit'n on the dock....right behind the boat. Angela was sit'n in the cockpit with a swim suit on. I says "what's go'n on" "Oh just swimm'n daddy". I hears a splish slpash in the water....what the hell is that? I looks over the side an' there this "boy" hang'n onto the boarding ladder. I tells him..."git up here".....real mean like. I gits him up in the cockpit and commence to read that boy some rules. Told him I knowed where he lived an' what his dogs name was. Ya git what I'm talk'n bout....right??? Anyhows, that boy got hisself so skeered he done turn all white an' wet his drawers.....right there in front of Angela. Never did see that boy no more.Word got around too.

Life is good.....rather ya like it or not.

Sit'n in the cold

Oh my God....I survived another night. It's get'n to the point where I don't know if'n I'm gonna wake up dead or alive. Mostly from freez'n to death ya know. I know that that old "Mother Nature" is a awesome lady an' all that. An' pretty much knows what she's do'n, but damn..... There ain't no reason at all that I can see for the need of cold weather in south Texas. None what-so-ever. If'n she wants to make somebody miserable, let it be somewhere's up north where people are used to it.

Ok.....some ya don't know how we rough an' ready RV'ers conduct our lives when we ain't got no electricity an' stuff like that when we out boondock'n. The first and foremost is stay'n warm when it's colder 'n hell outside. Ya don't just set a thermostat on 80 degs and forget it. Ya use heat only during the day time when you're awake. When ya go to bed, ya turn the heat slap OFF. Bout 4am, I'm gonna guarantee ya, it's cold in "da house". Some people is gonna say 65 degs is good sleep'n weather. I guess I could agree with that. But when ya wake up to 50 degs, don't ya suppose that would be considered a mite cold? So why don't "boondockers" leave the heaters on when they go to bed? Simple....it's a waste of precious propane. You're heating a space where you ain't at. That's why God invented piles of heavy blankets an' thermal long johns.

Sure do thank everbody what left a comment and suggestions bout my electricity problem. As far as the controller goes, I'm think'n that it's work'n just fine. Crank'n out bout 12 amps right bout noon time....when there's sunshine. Tilting the solar panels would give a few more amps (bout 2), but my panels only tilt one way (modification on the draw'n board), an' the way I got "Sally da house" parked (pointed west), a tilt wouldn't do no good. And I ain't gonna move "da house". I'll let my battery problem rest for a while until I have good news to post. I'm get'n tired of hear'n bout batteries, batteries, batteries too.

As of news around the campground, State Park and Falcon Lake, there ain't a thing to say. As you know, the old Billy Bob don't go outside when it's cold. Gonna sit right there on that couch and do some think'n.

Ok....I got things to do....like nuttin....laters

Fart for a hour

Yup....that ol' weather thingy got it right. It's nasty outside again today. Weren't that cold last night, but it ain't come up much all morn'n. A chilly 61 degs out there.

Before anybody asks, I'm late this morn'n afternoon with my post 'cause I slept in again. When I look at the clock, it was 10am. I ain't never sleep that late since I got drunk one time and stay up all night chas'n little bikini clad wimmins down the beach. Dang, they sure did run fast....never catched a one. I rekon the old body is in need of some rest or just some extra beauty sleep. Didn't need that when I was a young cuss. I were one handsome dude ya know. Wavy almost black hair slicked back in a DA. Tight fit'n jeans an' a black tee with the sleeves roll up. Winnins chas'n me round the block....stuff like that. Now I cain't even get a old granny to look in my direction, much less chase me round the block. Times do change when ya get a little older.

Old Billy Bob has had a hard life, but it was a good life. Ain't many things what I would want to change....even if'n I could. But there are a few, just like everbody else. I 'member a time there weren't no milk in the frige for the babies. Didn't know what day they was gonna turn the electric off. I didn't have no money....not even pocket change. But I can sit here an' look back on them days and rejoice in the closeness we had as a family. Little smil'n faces around the table. A wife stand'n tall beside me. Yup....life is good.

Well, as you can see, the old Billy Bob ain't took no pics. The header photo sneeked up on me last night. I look outside an' there it were....a beautiful sunset. Them freak'n green birds was back this morn'n look'n for some free food. Bout half a dozen of 'em. And one the purtiest cardinals I ever did see. I'm talk'n fire engine red he was.

Speak'n of photos, I done forgot to take one of the brew'n Billy Bob South Texas Chili. Now I ain't say'n I'm the best cook in the world, but that chili come out just bout right. Got a little tang to it and tastes something like chili. Ate me up a big ol' bowl with a hand full of nacho chips, lay back on the couch....and fart for a hour. LOLOLOLOL....I thought that was funny. Make me smile anyhows.

Had a great visit with OFM Barney yesterday afternoon. He come by to help me do the track'n round "Sally da house". Look'n for bear tracks ya know. There weren't none....only little Sadie Mae tracks.

I been hav'n a hard time try'n to post stuff what might be of interest to my wimmin followers. That's a hard thing to do for an old "do nuttin" fart like me. I don't crochet, knit, make dresses and stuff like that. Most the stuff I do and talk bout is "man" related. But hang in there girls. Ya never know what Billy Bob gonna write about.

Speak'n of man related....Houston, we have a problem. It's an ongoing problem what I ain't been able to pinpoint yet. Yup, you guessed it, batteries. It ain't that the batteries get critically low at night, it's that they don't get charged during the day. I have 270 watts (14 plus amps) of solar panels, 4 brand spank'n new deep cycle golf cart batteries (over 450 amp hours). Enough power to run Tim Taylor's "Tool Man" shop with. Somebody explain to my how comes my batteries use almost half that ever night with just a couple 12 volt light bubs on. Of course, we've had a bunch of days without much or any sunshine, but damn....

Ok, I done said way more than what I intended......laters.

Beautiful south Texas windy day

Vitamin 'C'.....yup I'm here to tell ya. Loaded up on that stuff yesterday and I weren't a bit cold last night like I was the night before. But then again, it weren't as cold last night as it was the night before by bout 8 degs. That just shows the power of miracle drugs....can even control the weather.

Yesterday I drawed me up a little grocery list. Not that I needed anything, but I needed to get out the house.....go somewheres. Down the road a piece, bout 14 mile, is a little town right on the border with Mexico. I'm gonna call it a little Mexican town since there ain't many anglo people out and about. My quest was to buy up some bird seed for the starv'n birds. Nope.....there weren't no bird seed. I rekon they gonna have to be satisfied with old stale bread.

Anyhows, in the little Mexican town of Roma, Texas, is this really nice grocery store...."Where's your camera Billy Bob"? Nuttin compared to the Walmart right down the road a piece, but still nice. Start load'n up my cart with stuff. Some of it I probly never gonna eat, but I got it anyhows. But the main attraction in the store was the meat market section. Cut up what ever ya want right there in front of you. You remember the old timey meat markets, right? Dang, wished I had room in the freezer for them big ol' steaks an' super thick pork chops.

Well shoot, here come the high wind again. It's a beautiful sunshiny day, but the wind is blow'n way too much to do anything outside. A quick look see at the weather forecast thingy and, it's ain't look'n too good for this part of the country. More cold is headed this way for the next week or so (low 40's at night an' 60's day time)....with scream'n north winds (bout 20 miles a hour). Cain't play golf ball swak'n in this kind of weather.

Shhhhhhsh!!! There's a woodpecker out there in my tree. Hold still there little feller, Billy Bob gonna take your picture. "I said HOLD STILL".....poooof, he's gone, just like that.

Speak'n of bears....did ya read OFM Barney's blog. Bear warning over there in the State Park. Anyhows, me an' Sadie Mae had just settled down for a good nights sleep last night an' I hears this loud "bump bump" on "da house". Sadie Mae start bark'n up a storm. Now what the hell could that be? I grabs holt my trusty .357 an' go take me a look. Any times I grab holt to my .357, something ain't right. Didn't see a thing. Since I read western books, I'm think'n there should be some tracks left behind by some intruder. I'm a tracker ya know. 

With more cold weather in the forecast, I rekon I'll brew me up another pot of Billy Bob South Texas chili. What's "Billy Bob South Texas Chili" ya might ask. Well, it's regular ol' chili brewed up by Billy Bob in South Texas. But any times I brews up a pot of "regular" chili, I add me some special stuff to it. You know, like a hand full of chop up onions, extra comino, a big ol' spoon of Gebhearts chili powder, a gob of garlic an' a quarter cup chop up canned jalapenos.....to taste. Little sweat beads....stuff like that. It don't set ya a fire like some them "macho" chilis do, but it sure do tastes mighty fine.

"So what's for breakfast Billy Bob"? Breakfast??? I'm think'n more along the lines of lunch. Damn, it's almost 11:30am. Slept in ya know.

What am I gonna do for the rest of the day??? Tune in tomorrow for a full recap. Laters!!!

Cold sucks....

Ok, what's so bad bout it be'n 45 degs.???? I done tole everbody that I could handle 40 degs with no problem. So last night I were sit'n there on the couch read'n a book and the temp outside went down to 45 degs. But I were cold. Had little chill bumps all over my body....my feet were cold. The Mr Heater propane heater was crank'n out btu's all over the place. Like bout 18,000 of 'em.

Then I went to bed.....Mr Heater off of course. Drag a ton of blankets up over my head. I were still cold. Freez'n cold. By the time my first "pee" alarm went off at 4am, I was figger'n I was gonna die if'n it got any colder. There weren't nuttin special bout last night what would make me feel colder than usual. It were just cold. The wind weren't even blow'n. Maybe I'll drag out the bottle of vitimin 'C' again and overdose. By the way, it only got down to 44 last night.

I moved the bird feeder the other day. Fill it up with some old squished up bread. This morn'n there must a been a hunnert birds out there peck'n round in that feeder. It were too late for pics. Them birds done eat all the bread and flew slap off. One set of birds in particular was need'n a photo took of 'em. Some people call 'em green jays, and that probly what they are.....accord'n to Google. Will try again tomorrow morn'n for a pic and you can decide for yourself. Maybe I oughter run down to Walmart an' get me some bird seed an' a few donuts since I gonna be here a while.

Went off to the lake yesterday. Stop by OFM Barney's house, but he were feel'n bad. Hav'n him one them nasty migraine headache thingys. Didn't stay long 'cause I knowed he was in pain. I 'member one time I had me a split'n headache like that. Thought I were gonna die. Ya see, I were sit'n in this bar mind'n my own business....sip'n up a cold one an' talk'n to this motorcycle dude. Some other guy walks up behind me an smak me with a beer bottle/pool cue/baseball bat....or something like that....right up side my head. Knock me slap out cold. I rekon it was this guys what I was talk'n to boyfriend or something like that an' he thought I was cut'n in on him. Anyhows, I had this big ol' lump on my head bout the size a agg. Hurt like all bloody hell. I had me a migraine.....pooof, just like that. 

Ok....what the hell??? This morn'n I crank up the generator to brew my morn'n coffee. The 40 amps battery charger is hook up to the generator.....come on automatic. The voltage go all the ways up to 14.2 volts and beyond....just like it suppose to do. So's I let the generator run for bout 30 or 45 minutes. Ok, so now I got charged batteries. I scratch my head think'n bout all this. Why all a sudden my batteries take a charge? It's cloudy today so there ain't no way to check if'n the solar panels will hold the charge. Life is hard....but life is good.

One more week....

Boy howdy am I ever so glad that stuff is behind me. It's not a new year yet, but that's just around the corner. One more week of holidays......yeee haaa, can't wait.

Dang, and I thought I was the only one that didn't do holidays and stuff like that. Thanks for the comments to set my mind at ease. I'll never feel guilty the next time I says "bah hum bug". Actually, holidays are a good thing. Perks the economy up a bit with all the stuff people go out and charge on their credit cards. Banks get a big boost from interest. Grocery stores make a kill'n. Oil company stocks skyrocket from fuel sold for travel to "grandma's house". Your local Walmart appreciates your business.

Holy crap. I thought I were gonna freeze to death last night. But when I take a close look at other people around the country, I ain't got it so bad. It got down to a whoop'n 40 degs last night. Wind was blow'n a hunnert mile a hour. This is gonna be one bad winter I mean to tell ya. What's next....snow? Ok, so I have a big advantage over most people in the US. Me an' Sadie Mae can jump in "Sally da house" an' go somewheres where it's nice and warm. Lay out in the sunshine if'n we want to, while everbody else is all wrap up in blankets in front a roar'n fireplace blow'n "winter smoke" out their lips. Boy howdy I sure don't miss that one bit. That's why God invented the deep south.

Now there was a time.....I lived in West Virgina for 10 years. Right on the mighty Ohio river....an' that sucker would freeze over in dead of winter. I'm think'n WV is bout the coldest god forsaken place on the planet Earth. I like to freeze to death. There sure weren't no fish'n I can tell ya that right now. Golf balls had to be spray painted black just to get a glimpse of them before they buried in 2 foots of fresh fallen snow. What the hell was I think'n when I moved to West by God Virginia?

I was read'n a book. A western book. The guy says to the other...."I thought you said you was from California" The other guy says...."when I'm in Texas, I'm a Texan".  Now I ain't never though of it like that. I don't rekon it matter where ya come from, but where you're at. I was borned in Missouri, raised in Missouri, California, Idaho, Nevada an' Texas. So what am I??? I'm think'n Texan....'cause that where my heart lives. Texans, whether borned there or not, are a different breed of people. Proud people. Give ya the shirt right off'n their back......for a dollar. Stop to help ya change a tire out in the middle nowhere. Yup....ya gotta love Texas.

I were think'n.....when did I come to Falcon lake last year when I catched up a hunnert fish. So I went back in my blog. Dang!!! It were February 16th, not December like what I was think'n. So in other words, I'm here way too early. "So now what ya gonna do Billy Bob"??? I got me some choices ya know. I could pack up an' go somewheres else until the bass start their spawn and then come back. I could go to the gulf coast somewheres around Brownsville....be nice an' warm there. Maybe a trip up to Del Rio for a week or so. Or....I could just lay back an' wait right here for free.

Ya know what??? My batteries still ain't got fully charged after fix'n the charge controller the other day. Somewheres in the system is a problem. Somewheres I am losing voltage. So's I make me up a list of stuff what uses battery power. Even stuff ya wouldn't think bout....like the little circuits what run the refrigerator, furnace, amplified tv antenna, propane monitor, system monitor, water heater.....ghost circuits....stuff like that. And that damn porch light what was left on. Yesterday, I turn off the tv antenna and the outside mirror heater. Next I gonna be pull'n fuses....until I find the problem. Then fix it....maybe. Wish me luck, 'cause that all I got left.