Tuesday, October 20, 2015

The Road Goes On Forever

I had a different post planned for this past weekend. It's only half-written at this point, and with a little luck, I'll have it done by next weekend. Ever since we moved back to Texas from Malaysia, I've felt sooooo busy. I'm convinced it's because I now spend all my time in my car driving around. It's something that my friend who repatriated at the same time I did also commented on when we first returned. At least we have great music on the radio!


In Malaysia, I could sometimes go days without driving. Restaurants, food markets, and friends were within walking distance there. All my kids went to the same school which was a quick, 8-minute walk from our home. Now, I just drive, drive, drive. My teen also misses his independence at being able to get to and from school by himself. Now, he has to call me and then wait 20 minutes for me to arrive. We've also done a lot more roadtrips. Thank goodness my car here has cruise control unlike the one we leased in Malaysia.

Hubby just returned from being in Hungary for two weeks. I had to keep reminding myself that he was on a business trip and not on a solo vacation. He had time to tour Budapest over the weekend. This is my favorite photo that he sent me.

"Study of a Female Head" by Jenő Gyárfás 

Taken at the Hungarian National Gallery, there's a whole story about why this lady looks this way. I prefer not to tell you and let you draw your own conclusion. (For those of you who absolutely must know, it's a practice for "The Ordeal of the Bier."


How did Glamping go?

Remember that Girl Scout glamping campout I told you about? That's what I was doing while hubby was getting his art education in Hungary. The campground was on the shores of Lake Travis, about an hour drive from my house. After all my worrying, it turned out well. A burn ban prevented us from doing all the outdoor cooking that I was excited to teach them. A huge wildfire started on the other side of Austin the day after we returned, so it's a real threat. Instead, we did slow cooker cooking which I'm going to have to tell  you is not nearly as interesting. I learned that my troop cannot properly read a map and would rather run around pell mell looking for our cabin as if it were a game of Hide-and-Seek than take a moment to orient themselves on the map.


Sunset over Lake Travis during Girl Scout glamping

At the end of a full day, the other Girl Scout leaders and I slipped away for a few minutes to catch the sun set over the lake. The girls were busy sorting out a "campfire" skit and had no interest in catching the view. They missed a beautiful one. It was a blessedly quiet, tranquil moment in an otherwise hectic but fun day.

Whenever you see an airplane crossing the sky, do you also wonder where they are headed?


More Texas country back roads

The next weekend, my son had a Boy Scout campout with a Hunger Games theme. While I think there was no mad dash to the Cornucopia, there was plenty of archery and tomahawk throwing. This campsite was also an hour drive away from home on someone's cattle ranch. My driving directions included instructions like "be sure to lock gate behind you so the cows don't escape." After dropping him off, I pulled over on the country lane to take a photo of this quintessential Texas country back roads scene.

Lampasas farmhouse

I must have looked mighty suspicious, because a woman stopped to ask if I was having car trouble. I said, "No, just taking a photo. It's so beautiful here." I don't think she believed me because she waited until I drove off and then followed me all the way to the highway before turning around. Never trust a person in mom jeans and a minivan.

So, that's what I've been up to. Thanks for reading this brain dump. I hope to have a cohesive, organized post up about Disney Cruiselines Kids Clubs next.

That's all folks.

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