Tuesday 17 September 2013 through Wednesday, 25 December, 2013

I awake at six when I hear Sarah leaving in her vehicle as the large crushed rock on the driveway causes the tires to make plenty of noise. I get up, walk up the hill and have coffee with Joe. After we take measurements of the lengths of pipe needed, we head into town to get the materials and then back to get busy installing pipe in the trenches. At about five pm, Joe and I go out to buy a couple water pipe connectors for finishing the job and then to get something to eat.

After we return to the job site, we sit at the patio table, have a beer and talk about doing some of the repairs on the Windjammer tomorrow. Afterwards, I retire early, at about eight pm to a very warm jammer.

Upon arising, I see Joe standing at the top of the hill, so I drive up to the top and see him holding two cups of coffee. I join him at the table and we talk about what will happen today. Soon after, I drive to Stagecoach Auto Repair and walk into the office. Jason begins the diagnostics and soon he tells me that he has found both the coolant leak and power steering leak. He shows me the problem, the radiator has a hole and the power steering pump is worn out. I tell him that I have a lifetime warranty on both and we then order the parts. Then he asks me if I want to replace the Power Steering high pressure hose which is also leaking and I tell him yes, especially since the part is less than thirty dollars. Next, he show me where the air conditioning condenser is has been leaking and we order a new condenser. He tells me that this may be only one of several leaks in the air conditioning system and I tell him that I understand because Joe has already told me that same thing. At noon, every one heads out for lunch and I open the back of the Windjammer to prepare a bowl of Daystart.

At one-thirty, the parts arrive and Jason goes to work installing them. While I am standing by the jammer, Mark walks out of Joe′s office and looks at me. He tells me later that he was thinking "Don′t I know this guy?" That is when I say "Hello Mark." and he replies, "Is that Thom?" He then tells me that he is going to get some medication and asks if I want to go with him. We go on a town run and then return to Joe′s office to see Tyler, his son who does not recognize me until Mark tells him who I am. We all enjoy the evening together watching a couple of movies. Then I retire to the jammer to write my journal entry for the day and afterwards get horizontal to go to sleep.

Upon arising, I see the moon setting one hand above the western horizon and the sun not yet risen making this a full moon. Getting up, I drive to the w-mart to get online and upload my latest journal entries and also check on prices for auto parts. Next, I head south to Columbia, TN to a laundry mart and the only clean clothes I have are those that were too small a few months ago but when I try them on, they fit just fine.

This shirt I have not worn for over ten years. When I put my jeans on this morning and tightened my belt, it goes to the seventh notch. That′s down from the first notch on the first of March; just short of seven months making about one belt notch a month. I haven′t weighed myselƒ for about two months but I believe that I have lost well over fifty pounds since beginning Chapter 49, The Final Countdown.

I drive back to Spring Hill, get dressed and then to the Hall for the meeting, go inside and greet all those arriving. During the meeting when raising my hand to answer and telling my last name, the brothers still have the typically hard time pronouncing it and must needs repeat it several times. I am not sure how I can say it to make it any easier for others to understand.

After the meeting, I walk up to greet John, who last Sunday came up to me and said "Hello, Thom Buras" and told me his name. However, it did not register who he was. I later thought about it and finally determined that we had met in Franklin, TN back in 1985 when I moved here as a pioneer to serve where the need was great. I ask him if his dad′s name is Ed, his brother Mike and his sister Kelly to which he says, yes, yes, yes.

I tell him that I now know who he is and that it took me a while to remember. Meanwhile, just about everyone has left and he stops one brother to ask him to collect the contributions with him, however, I tell John that I am a servant and can help him. Too, I tell him that I was the account servant in the Oak Harbor, Washington congregation before I left there. We finish the collecting and then turn off all the lights, lock the hall and step outside to continue our conversation about our lives since the last meeting.

A little after eleven pm, he gets into his truck and just before he leaves, he says, I know what you should use as your motto! ‘Everywhere is walking distance.’ He then begins his drive home and I proceed to a stealth locations to stop for the night. I suspect that I will sleep in tomorrow.

I thought about John′s suggested motto for the Wayƒarer: Everything is walking distance! Yes, that would be the perfect motto for Episode One and Episode Two, but for the current episode, it just does not fit because now everything is by way of Windjamming. Too, the second definition of a wayƒarer is A land traveler as opposed to a seafarer so the method of land travel is not the issue, as he travels on the way by what ever means is available to him, be it by car, hitchhiking, horse, or even on foot, if the need be.

I awake this morning after seven am, drive to the w-mart, upload the journal entries and then return to the road southeast to Henry Horton state park in search of the ever elusive hot shower. I drive into the park, right to the shower building and park. After grabbing my towel and shower bag, I walk inside and turn on the hot for an enjoyable shower. Then, I return to the road north in search of a few more national parks. The first park is Stones River National Battlefield where I stop at the visitors center for a map, stamp and patch. Then, I drive the short auto tour and see mostly the same rail fences, cannons, and monuments that I have been seeing at other battlefields.

Leaving the battlefield, I realize that some miles east and north of here there is the Cumberland Falls State Park which is world famous for the moonbow and tonight there will be a near full moon which is one of the three requirements needed to see the moonbow. ⁴

So, I decide head east towards the Cumberland Plateau and then north into southeastern Kentucky and arrive at the state park right at sunset around seven-thirty pm. I walk the paved path down to the observation platform just below the falls and wait for the moon to travel overhead.

By eleven, the clouds have covered the sky and it begins to rain lightly, so many of those there begin to climb the stairs up from the viewing platform and leave for home. One lady says "It is too bad that we came all this way and don′t get to see the moonbow." I tell her not to feel bad because many people have to come several times before they get to see the moonbow.

It is still pouring rain upon awaking, so I go back to sleep for an hour or so. When I get up, I go to the f-mart for a large cup of coffee and then drive into Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area to the visitors center. Most of the visitor center′s parking is blocked off for the festival and I have to park some ways away. I go in to get my map, stamp and patch but the personnel there are so nice, I even get a Junior Ranger patch and my association membership card laminated.

Next, I head south for the Obed Wild and Scenic River and stop at the visitors center which is in an old bank building. There I get the map, stamp, patch, watch the video and soon head for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park driving through Seiverville, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, TN, all three of which are virtual Zoos totally filled with turkeys: gobble, gobble, gobble.

If I live to be a hundred, never will I drive that route again as it took over an hour to drive the twenty miles along that horrendous carnival ride turkey house.

Upon arriving in the Great Smoky Mountains national park, I stop first at the visitor center for my collectibles and then up along a resplendent park drive to Clingmans Dome. The half mile path to the tower on the top is quite steep and the whole walk is in the rain and thick fog. Just before arriving at the tower, I detour on the side trail to the Appalachian Trail and take steps upon the same path I walked upon so very many years ago. This short walk becomes one down memory lane as a flood of memories rush through my thoughts. Walking north on the path, I come upon an area of the trail that looks like a lake with rock islands; oh how I remember those days of sloshing along the AT. Still further yet is an area filled with jagged rocks and the many days of constant rock hopping come clearly to my mind. The roots covering nearly every spot of the trail remind me of the several times they were the cause of me loosing my footing. Yes, Rocks and Ruts and Roots were the norm along that never ending trudge and those words became my jingle to sing each and every day.

Leaving the AT, I return to my walk to the tower and then up the circular ramp to the top. Except for the thick fog, my summit climb today is much like it was thirty-five years ago on my first ascent: windy and cold. Atop the tower, I notice that the mountain maps at the four directions have been replaced but even so, again, more memories rush through as I read the names of the many peaks previously summitted. After a long contemplative period atop this superb energy location, I walk down the circular ramp and then slowly down the paved tower path to the parking lot and being so inspired, sing verses of the Wandering Hiker, the same ones song before on this trail. Upon arriving at the jammer, I get out my computer and add words to my journal. It is now after dark and I am in the last vehicle in the parking area atop of old Smoky; the wind velocity has increased causing my car to shake, so I drive down to Newfound Gap and park in the trailhead parking. This has been a wonderful day, and it does not even matter to me that the weather has been so nasty, my memories were too profound for any negative effect by the weather.

Up shortly after the sunrise and get out to stretch my old bones and see that the sun is shining brightly, the air is crisp, the sky is dark blue and clear. I spend a few minutes walking about but soon drive back up to Old Smoky for the views but don′t stay long because I want to visit a few more places today before returning to Spring Hill this evening. Driving down on the North Carolina side is just as impressive as was the entrance to the park yesterday on the Tennessee side. Then upon reaching the park exit, turn onto the Blue Ridge Parkway and drive north from the southern terminus, an area that I have never driven. Even though there are many areas in the northern sections of the parkway that I have enjoyed, I would someday like to return and do the entire parkway in one trip. Leaving the parkway, I drive to Flat Rock, NC to visit Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site.

The parking lot is totally full and I wander what the attraction is for this park to have so many visitors. It is Sunday, I think but still, even the roadway has cars parked along it for quite a distance. Still, I drive into the parking lot and find a car backing out so have a spot close to the park entrance only to find that the visitors center is at the home and is a .3 mile climb up from the lake which is next to parking lot.

However, after the climb to the top of Old Smoky, this should be easy and soon, I am in the visitors center, get my map, stamp and patch. Next, I wander through the farm and come to the goat barn and walk through the area.

It is here when I discern the attraction this park has as there is a large group of kids in the goat field because this is a petting farm. The parents are sitting on the benches nearby with their dogs watching the kids having fun. On the walk down from the farm, I notice several families having picnics near the lake and realize that this is the perfect park for families to come and spend the day. The only fee charged is for the tour of the inside of the house.

Driving back to the mountains, I continue on the Blue Ridge Parkway and come to the realization that the parkway mostly traverses the top of the Blue Ridge mountains providing many views of the scenery from numerous vantage points. One particular outlook is of Looking Glass Rock which is an exposed pluton monolith (a body of intrusive igneous rock that is crystallized from magma slowly cooling below the surface of the Earth) which subsequently has risen from the valley floor to nearly four thousand feet.

Continuing west in southwest North Caroline, I arrive at Nantahala Gorge hoping that the general store is still there, the one that I found in the spring of 1978 which had all kinds of dried fruit and other trail foods. I find that the store is gone but the restaurant is still here so I stop for supper.

After eating, I find the AT going both north and south from the river and take photos. Then I put Spring Hill into my GPS and drive until eleven pm, park for the evening and climb into the back.

Again, like several day before, I awake after sunrise and drive to the w-mart for a cup of hot and to work on and upload my journal. I work on both the gallery menu as well as on individual pages in the new multiple section menu and correct some problems with the photo displays.

I suspect that this new menu will take much time but I have not had the needed time while I continue on tour. Maybe this winter while in Texas, I will have more of the required non-tour time to work on this upgrade.

Not getting a call from Joe, I spend the day on the computer and then finally, join Mark for a couple of movies and supper. I retire early tonight.

I awake early today, before the sunrise, get up, grab a cup of coffee and drive to Joe and Sarah′s new home site. When I arrive, Doc, there dog barks but soon quiets down. I go into the house and begin sweeping up all of the trash and debris into piles and soon after, Joe brings out two cups of coffee for us to drink and I stop and sit on one of the two chairs in the garage.

We talk about what has been going on the last few days, those that I took the drive to Cumberland Falls and the Smokies. Then I continue sweeping while Joe tends to some of his chores. Later, after I finish sweeping both the house and the garage, Joe and I make a run to bring back some parts and get a few electrical boxes to install before the brick layers get to the areas where there will be security lighting.

I help him install the electrical boxes and then I tell him that I am going to head south towards New Orleans. We exchange our good byes and I begin the next leg of my journey.

Leaving Spring Hill, I drive to interstate 65 and head to Birmingham and then transfer to Interstate 59 driving into Mississippi almost into Louisiana stopping just short at Picayune, Mississippi. I stop at a d-mart and after drinking the 100 ml bottle of Jack Whiskey that Joe gave me earlier, I go to sleep. It has been a long tiring day of driving and tomorrow, I will drive to New Orleans.

Up at sunrise and after coffee, I head into Louisiana and arrive in New Orleans soon after. I drive first to the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park and have to circle a second time before I find a parking spot, a free one at that.

I go into the visitors center to get a map, stamp and patch. I talk with the ranger for a while and get directions to the Jean Lafitte visitors center. Next, I walk around in the French Quarter, visiting Jackson Square, Cafe du Monde, and walk into the Pepper Palace, a store with every imaginable kind of hot sauce.

Upon leaving, I drive to Jean Lafitte National Historical Park, French Quarter unit, circle twice and then find a spot right in front, but one requiring putting quarters into a meter. While at the French Quarters unit, the ranger tells me how to get to the Chalmette Battlefield, another unit of the Jean Lafitte National Historic Park, to which I drive to next and get a stamp and patch.

Afterwards, I drive back to the French Quarters and soon after stop at the Jean Lafitte′s Blacksmith Shop, (built during 1722-32) to take some photos and find out what I have been wanting to know for a long time, it does have a piano bar, one which I sat at as a teenager and I did hear John Gordon play my favorite song, Piano Man when I was there in the late 1960′s. I have always wondered if I had dreamed that or not.

Leaving New Orleans, I drive along US 90 to Thibodeaux, LA and stop at the Wetlands Acadian Culture Center, (another unit of Jean Lafitte National Historic Park) to get a stamp on my map, a patch and watch a video telling the history of the Acadians.

I learn much more here than I did when at Eunice, LA on my last trip through. The ranger allows me to stay past closing to finish watching the video; such a nice park employee. (Now, this is what I am talking about when I was complaining about the rangers at Sand Creek National Historical Site on Day 185 JO) I thank him for accommodating me, then head out on my way to the next park in Lafayette, LA, and arrive at a d-mart after nine pm. I take a much needed bucket bath and then work on my Journal entry for the last two days.

The sun shining into the jammer wakens me and I get up immediately, get dressed and drive to the w-mart for some of the black bold and to upload the newest journal entries. With the upload finished, I drive to the Acadian Cultural Center a few miles away and tour the museum and displays. After purchasing a patch and stamping my map I head first north on Interstate 49 to Opelousas, LA and then west on US 190 to Eunice where I stop at the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center for the last of the units of the Jean Lafitte National Historic Park.

I continue on US 190 to Ragley where I leave the US highway to head west on state route 12 to the Sabine River and across into Texas. Once in Texas, I drive on state route 12 to Interstate 10 west and then north on US 69 to Kountze, Texas where I stop at the Big Thicket National Preserve and find out that this was the first national preserve. Also, the Big Thicket in east Texas is where I began my career as a camper in February of 1964 at Double Lake Recreation Area campsite located in the Sam Houston National Forest.

When leaving the national preserve, I see a couple of longhorns and stop to take a couple of photos, Then, I continue on my way to the southeast coast of Texas.

I drive west thought the back country on FM roads, (Farm to Market) first 105, then 321 and arrive on interstate 10 and take it west to exit 878, Lynchburg Ferry road where I get off of the interstate and drive to the ferry. I noticed a flashing yellow light as soon as I begin driving on the ferry road but I can not read the sign because it is dark now.

When I get to the ferry, I find that it is closed so I return the two miles back to the flashing light and see that the sign reads "Ferry closed when flashing." Duh! This ferry crossing use to operate twenty-four, seven but methinks that the economy has taken it′s toll even on the near and dear.

I return to the interstate, turn right and take Texas highway 330 towards Baytown, Texas right again on Texas highway 146 and cross the Baytown bridge. Then I just drive south on 146 to Kemah and stop at the world famous Texas burger f-mart for the best burger anywhere. Next, still on 146, I cross the Clear Creek bridge, (now crossing where the old draw bridge crossed Clear Creek for as far back as I can remember), turn right at the second light and arrive at the d-mart for the night. All before ten pm.

After getting up, I drive about town for most of the morning to see the changes that have come about from my four year absence and notice that there is a large group at the hall this morning.

At about noon, I stop at Susan′s home and upon knocking on the front door, the dogs bark, Susan then looks out the window, lets out a loud greeting and opens the door to give me a hug. After only being here for a little while, Chad comes home for lunch and we greet each other and he leaves again to go back to work.

Later, Susan goes to the school for work and to pick up Lauren but doesn′s return until after six. Lauren then stays home with me and we look through her Pokemon cards and my patches. Later, when Susan leaves for a few hours, Chad and I watch a movie, have drinks and popcorn, staying up quite late.

I retire to the jammer for the evening and have to deal with the high humidity and mosquitoes.

I walk inside to take a shower and Susan is up making coffee and when we both are drinking a cup, a friend of Lauren comes over because there is a volleyball game this morning; interestingly, the name of the team is the Jammers. By nine, the girls and I have left, the girls to the game and myselƒ to the hall for the ministry. At the hall, I found out that the circuit overseer is visiting the Almond Creek Congregation and he will be giving a talk tomorrow at noon. By noon today, I am on my way to the w-mart to upload more of my journal and check email. Next, I go to the d-mart to purchase two additional three-ring binders to use for all my new patches and then I drive to League City for the evening.

After working on sorting the patches into the binders, I make it into the sack by ten pm, really late for me.

Up at six-thirty to a very warm and humid morning. I walk inside to get my computer only to set the dogs to barking but they quiet down after Lucky licks my hand. Upon retrieving my computer, I head to the w-mart for a cup of hot and to work on my computer. At noon, I make it to the Almond Creek congregation meeting and find several who were in the original Clear Creek congregation.

While here in the Houston area, I will most likely only make short entries in the journal, and after first completing my 2012 tax forms will then endeavor to spend much of my time on setting up the new photo gallery pages and with it, correct the blue photo links in the text of this journal. Susan suggests that I sleep on the sofa which I do and it is much nicer not to have to deal with the humidity.

After waking up dry this morning, I begin working on my taxes, work all day and at five pm I am done with them. After the evening meal, Lauren complains that her robotic homework is not easy for her to complete. I offer to help and immediately I see that she is without an objective to the project nor is she able to see the entire playing field. Susan tells her to Google the playing field, which she does and once done she figures out the objective of each of the robotic moves and then breezes through her homework.

I sleep on the sofa again tonight but I have to wait until everyone goes to bed before I am able to get horizontal which is later that I would have gone to sleep.

Susan awakens before me because she has a daughter to get off to school and, too, she uses an alarm. I get up and find that Susan has already poured me a cup of coffee. Soon both Susan and Lauren leave for the day and I stay here with the animals. After pulling the jammer into the driveway, I gather up all of my dirty clothes and bedding to begin washing. After the first load is begun, I return to the coffee and to working on the journal. Later, there is a flash of lightning and soon after the thunder begins the downpour. While I await for the first load to be done, I format several months of journal entry dates and locate them in the upcoming chapters. This way, all I will have to do is just write my journal entry each day and upload it to the web site.

At six pm, I go with Susan and Lauren to the National Night Out gathering at the local park hosted by the home association. We have pizza and soda followed by a visit from the fire department and constable. Then back to Susan′s home for the evening and I retire to the jammer.

After sleeping in until late, I drive to the w-mart and spend the entire day here working on the photo galleries. When looking on the internet, I find that the federal government has shut down because of the government health care stalemate. I learn of the shut down when trying to access the National Park web site for information of the park in San Antonio and find the web site to be shut down.

At six-thirty, I drive to the hall in north Galveston County for the Magnolia Creek congregation meeting and see several of the friends I know that were in the original Clear Creek congregation. ⁵ After the meeting, I drive first to buy gasoline and to my amazement pay only $2.95 for regular. All of my travels across this continent have shown me that there is no other place except the Texas Gulf coast that has always had the lowest price for gasoline. Afterwards, I drive to the d-mart in the bay side city of Kemah where I know it will be quite to retire for the evening.

Up before sunglow and drive to the w-mart to work some more on the photo galleries. Interestingly, I drive by a gas station with a price of $2.82 for regular unleaded gas. After a day of formatting the photo pages, I stop about an hour before the meeting tonight at the Bay Area congregation where I look for those who were in the original Clear Creek congregation. I see only Ruby and another sister who was a child back then. I do meet many new friends in this congregation. Then, I return to the d-mart to retire for the evening.

When I awake this morning I look eastward and see not the sunglow. Then I look at the clock on my phone and see that it is six am, so I get up anyway and drive to the w-mart. I choose a different one than I have been going to for the last two days but the GPS take me to one inside of a grocery store which I do not go to because most ones that are not stand alone coffee shops do not have electrical outlets. I use the GPS to go to the next closest one which is at the corner of Texas highway 3 and FM 518 in the old section of League City.

Once I arrive there, I work on the photo pages for over six hours before I leave to go to my sister′s home for the afternoon and evening. We go out for supper to have Mexican and then back to home for a short while.

At nine pm, I leave and drive to the d-mart in Kemah, Texas for the evening and go right to sleep.

Awake to a very humid warm morning and go to the w-mart for a hot drink and WiFi. Also, I continue working on my computer and have come to realize that this is a large task which could take much longer than I had thought but when done, I know it will be much better so I keep trudging along.

At six pm, I stop for the day, get back into the jammer and travel to the southwest side of Houston to a location near the assembly hall where the Annual meeting will be held tomorrow. As I drive along a once familiar route, I find that the entire Houston surrounds have grown so much that it is totally unrecognizable to me now.

After finding the hall, I drive to a d-mart, arriving at ten and settle in for the evening. I notice that there is a strong dry wind blowing and the temperature has dropped, so sleeping should be easier tonight. During the night, it begins to rain.

It is still raining when I first awake at daybreak but go back to sleep only to get up after eight. Then, I drive to a w-mart for a hot drink and computer. There are several hours until the annual meeting so I will wait here and work on photo pages until I need to get dressed.

I arrive at the assembly hall about an hour before the meeting begins and barely am able to find a seat in the main hall. Then I walk through the hall taking photos of the many meeting rooms, dining halls and museum areas.

The meeting begins just before three pm and has a member of the governing body giving talks on different facets of the Bible and the efforts to translate it to modern English. About half way through the meeting, the release of the 2013 revised edition of the New World Translation was passed out to all in attendance. The meeting continued with explaining the different aspects of the new edition and how we can best use this new Bible.

Before the meeting, I come upon Sam and Adrian who were in the original Clear Creek congregation and get a photo of the two of them. After the meeting, I join Bill, Ruth, their adult daughter and a friend for supper. Bill and Ruth are two from the original Clear Creek congregation. Then, I drive back across town and stop at the d-mart for the evening arriving by eleven pm.

Since the cold front came in Saturday night, it has been very pleasant sleeping without the typical heat and humidity. I awake this morning during sunglow and watch the sunrise at twenty after seven am, then drive to the w-mart to work further on the photo pages.

At six, I am totally brain dead form working on the computer and stop working, pack out and drive to my sister′s home so she can order some of the weight loss product that I use. Then, I drive to the d-mart for the evening so that I can get up early for the ministry tomorrow.

It is cool and dry when I awake during sunglow and proceed directly to the w-mart, check my email and begin working of the computer. I have made progress since I have been here on the Gulf Coast, now twelve days. I suspect that I am about a forth of the way through the menu upgrade and hope to complete the entire menu by the end of this year and then begin working on the links in the text and well as the new photo sections from this years tour.

Hopefully, the government shutdown will be done by then and I will be able to visit the San Antonio Missions National Historic Park, one of the last national parks in Texas that I have not visited. I also would like to visit Padre Island National Seashore once again. It seems that time is on my side as I will not cross the border until Christmas Day like I did in 2009. There has been some reports about Mexico from some of the friends returning from Mexico and I want to check these out.

I stop work around six pm and head to the League City Hall for the meeting tonight. Normally there would not be one tonight because of the circuit assembly this weekend but the Magnolia Creek is hosting the District and Circuit overseers this week so both of the overseers will be here for the ministry. The district overseer gives a talk tonight on the need to be humble, using the example of Jesus washing the feet of his disciples.

Afterward, I drive for the d-mart for the evening, change into my shorts and get horizontal.

Up before daybreak and go into the d-mart to purchase two dress shirts and a pair of trousers, Next, I drive to the League City hall and get dressed for the ministry. Later, I meet back at one pm and continue with the ministry into the afternoon until about three pm.

Finally, I go to the w-mart and work on the photo pages which are coming along nicely. Even though many are completed, I will not upload any until all of the pages are at least created. Once they are all created, then I will work on populating the pages with the photos.

Finally, the blue links will be added into the journal text area. This has been a long process but a much needed upgrade to the web site. At eight, I stop for the evening, drive to the d-mart, park, and then greet a worker who is on his break. We talk some about the hope of the future and I am able to place a Bible Teach book with him.

Later, I take a bucket bath and before retiring for the evening a Kemah police officer dives to my location and tells me that there is an ordinance against camping in a vehicle in the city of Kemah. He says that I do not have to move tonight but that I should not come back here to stay for another night.

The temperature this morning is no longer crisp like the preceding days as I did not have need to cover myselƒ during the night with my sleeping bag. The return to the hot and humid is slowly coming back to the Gulf Coast area. It was nice to have the cooler temperatures for a change although it was short lived. Someone mentions today that there is to be another cool front coming into the area this weekend and I look forward to that coming cooler weather.

Today is a repeat of yesterday, only I work in the ministry with Gerald, a brother that was a teenager when we worked together in the 1980′s here in the Clear Creek congregation. That was nearly thirty years ago and now he has two teenage sons. Working with Gerald once again was a Jouissance to me.

Also, like yesterday, I spend the afternoon at the w-mart and later drive to a different d-mart, one in League City near the interstate. (A newly built one not in my GPS, but I noticed while in the ministry today.)

At about three am, I am awakened by an electric motor and find that there is a pressure washing operation going on near to where I am parked. The noise level is higher here than it was at the bay side location but I should get use to it. I write in my journal until I become sleepy again and set my alarm to wake me in the morning.

Up to my alarm, put my ministry clothes on, stop for a cup of hot and then head to the hall for participation in the ministry until noon. Then, I drive to my sister′s home to take a shower because she called and suggested it. I also put a load in the washer and sit down to watch a movie. About half way through the movie, Susan walks it and comments, "Good, I want to watch a movie right now." and joins me. Chad arrives home a little later and then Lauren.

At about seven pm, I leave and head south first to Alvin, Texas and then west on State Route 6 towards Rosenberg for the circuit assembly this weekend. I arrive at the d-mart at about nine pm and write for a while and then spend some time reading in my new Bible. Previously, I have read all of the front introduction and all of the back appendixes so now I have begun reading the text on the new revised translation starting at Genesis.

I get up before the sun rises and go inside to get coffee. Then I get dressed, drive to the assembly hall and go inside to look for familiar faces. The program starts at nine-fifty and there is a spiritual feast for everyone there. There is a symposium entitled Reject Strange Teachings which gives us direction to help us to reject immorality, violation, greed and materialism.

During lunch, while visiting with some of the friends, one asks about where I take a shower and when I mentioned that I take bucket baths, the subject of the danger of the stream and lake waters comes up again. Yes, since September, I have not been retrieving water for such sources, rather I have been buying bottled water or using tap water for my bucket baths because the open lakes and streams are no longer safe in these lower latitudes of North America.

After the meeting ended, I drive up the Interstate towards Houston looking for a w-mart and the GPS takes me to a shopping center but I do not see the w-mart and I am frustrated because I have not been able to find one near to the assembly hall. I stop and ask someone if there is a coffee shop nearby and the she directs me to the nearby street along the Interstate whereupon, when I drive to, I find the w-mart. I walk in and plug in my computer, buy a cup of hot and then sit down and turn my computer on. I then see a family walk into the shop who I recognize from the South Shore congregation and greet them. After they get their drinks and upon leaving the sister says "Good by brother." The person sitting at the table opposite me and doing school work looks up and smiles at me. I tell him that she calls me brother because we are in the same religion. He then discloses that he is an unbaptized publisher but life has gotten in the way and he has been missing a lot of meetings. He goes on to relate that he has two jobs to pay for his university schooling and that he is studying to be a mechanical engineer.

I take this opportunity to tell him about the new Bible release and he replies that he was not able to make it to the annual meeting. Continuing, I tell him about today′s assembly and of one particular talk that dealt with the need not to seek university knowledge but rather to seek God′s Kingdom first, which includes going to the meetings and assemblies. Also, I tell him a little about that talk and then he tells me that he had been praying earlier for help in dealing with his life situation. He even commented that he feels that God had sent me to him to share the information about the assembly part with him. He then has to leave to go to his second job and I wish him well in his spiritual endeavors. I leave the w-mart and drive to where I will park for the evening.

Awake during early sunglow, get up and drive to the assembly hall where I get dressed and arrive at the entrance to wait with a large group of the friends. At eight am, the doors open and we begin to walk into the hall to get our seats. Once I do that, I go back out to the jammer and have my breakfast. While eating, a brother greets me by name and I have to ask his name. He tells me his name is Calvin and then I remember that he was in the Golden Acres Congregation before I came to the Clear Creek Congregation. This assembly is especially encouraging for me and enjoy being here with the Texas friends.

After the assembly, I stop at the w-mart to make a journal entry for today and then up load it to the web site. Then I drive the rest of the way back to the bay area.

Due to a head cold that affects me, now for the second day, I sleep in until eight-thirty this morning. Upon awaking, I take two aspirin, go in for coffee and until my revival, have opted for a total hiatus of physical contact with my family and friends. Too, this will give me some time to work on my computer. However, in the past, I have come to learn that when feeling this way, I normally do not get much done on the keyboard.

Still, I stick it out at the w-mart until six pm and then go into the d-mart to buy some ingredients for soup, which consisted of vegetable broth, garlic, green and yellow onions, parsley, nopales, hard Parmesan cheese, hot sauce and spices. After boiling the broth, I add the fresh vegetables and continue boiling. Just before turning off the heat I add the spices and dried cheese. I am pleased with how good it tastes and decide to add the recipe to my online list calling it Nopales Soup. In bed by nine-thirty pm.

I awake before sunglow, get up and drive to the w-mart, one which is in the same complex at the d-mart, both of which are at the FM 646 exit on I 45. I have taken a temporary residence here trying to overcome the head cold that has plagued me since Saturday and will continue here for another day or so and eat soup with lots of fresh garlic because garlic contains allicin, which is known to have great anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-fungal and anti-oxidant properties.

With so many great features, allicin has many health benefits including flu and cold remedy and prevention as well as significant reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressures. I have concluded from today′s web search that along with onion, fresh garlic should be included in my meals often and even in larger quantities.

Another day with the same routine, and get much done in the work on my computer. I stop at about eight pm and have a salad before retiring for the evening.

Up late this morning long after the sunglow begins and head into the d-mart for the restroom. Upon walking out, the sun is already in the sky and I head directly to the w-mart to continue my work on my computer. It is nine-fifteen before I walk out to the jammer this evening, drive over to the d-mart and purchase a salad to eat. In the back of the jammer by ten-thirty pm.

The last few days have had very colorful sunrises and sunsets but I guess Texas always has been pretty much full of such crepuscular displays.

A cool front arrives during the night and I need to use my sleeping bag to stay warm. The people here in Texas calls this a cold front, but by any other name, how nice it is when Texas gets one, especially for a wayƒarer sleeping in a windjammer. I get up a seven-thirty am and go to the w-mart, place my coffee next to the computer and begin pounding keys.

Ten is the hour I return to the back of the Windjammer but before going to sleep, read through chapter 10 of Genesis.

Awake before six well before sunglow and go directly to the w-mart. I stay in the mart all day and work on my computer. At six-thirty pm, I turn the computer off to head out and get something to eat.

After eating, I return to the d-mart to get horizontal and read for a while before sleep.

Another early start for today. There was a clear sky last night and the moon shown brightly almost the entire night.

Today′s gallery work ends at six-thirty, drive to the d-mart, and have my supper. It is nine pm when I climb into the back of the jammer and read for a while picking up at Genesis chapter 15 where I stopped last evening.

Up during sunglow to a crisp clear morning. The sun rises at seven-thirty am and by then, I am having my first cup of hot. Then I drive to the hall to get dressed and prepare for the study today. The congregation that I want to go to had their meeting yesterday morning so I go to the Dickinson congregation meeting. The only family that I know here is Armondo and Terry who I talk with for a while afterwards.

Since the government is functioning again, I choose to drive into the heart of Texas to visit the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park and afterwards may drive to south Texas to visit Padre Island National Seashore but am not sure about that yet because I do want to finish this upgrade before I return to the road.

I arrive in San Antonio just before six pm and go directly to one of the missions but the park closes at six pm so I leave and head for a w-mart to plug in my computer.

Then, I pack out, drive to a d-mart and retire early.

It is dark when I arise this morning to obtain my first cup of hot and then begin working on the photo pages. I arrive at the visitors center arriving just before nine am and there are several people already here. when it opens, I get my stamped map and patch and then walk through the San Jose Mission. Next, I drive to Mission Espada, the southern most mission and tour this mission. Then just a little north of there, I stop to see the Espada Aqueduct, the only Spanish built aqueduct in the United States. This aqueduct was necessary to allow the Acequia (Spanish for irrigation ditch) to cross a river and continue to the areas to be irrigated. Then, I continue north on the Mission Parkway and Mission Road to each of the four remaining missions, including Mission San Juan, Mission San Jose, Mission Concepción and Mission San Antonio de Valero, better know as the Alamo, a Spanish word when translated to English is cottonwood. (It seems that the area where the mission was build had many cottonwood trees growing.) The Alamo was the first mission on the San Antonio river, founded in 1718, only a dozen years before the Jean Lafitte′s Blacksmith shop was built in New Orleans (1722-32).

Another interesting fact that I learned today at the missions is that the purpose of these missions was to convert the indigenous population, the Coahuiltecan (pronounced co-ah-whee-tea-con) Indians, the First Texans who lived in the south Texas area for centuries before the Europeans came to North American. Also, Texas was the location for over thirty Spanish missions during the period between 1659 and 1795 as well as about twenty Spanish forts. This is also the era that The Royal Road of the Texas (El Camino Real de los Tejas) was established and this is a new park that has been established within the National Park Service called El Camino Real de los Tejas National Parkway. As yet, there has not been a visitors center built, much less even determined the location where it will be built.

All of the touring of this park only took from nine am until about one pm and I decided that rather than stick around in the city any longer, I will drive south to the coast and camp there for the evening. After lunch, I drive south on Interstate 37 which take me directly to Corpus Christi and then after driving through the city, arrive on the seashore at about six pm. Upon arriving at Padre Island National Seashore, I stop first at the visitors center and see that they still have the cold shower. I had determined that I was going to take a shower there tonight, but upon arriving, the rain is coming down hard and it would require a long rain walk to and from the shower room, so I choose to forgo the shower for now. Also, while at the visitors center, even though it is closed, I see a sign showing that the campground has a shower too, so I drive to the campground to find out that not only does it have a shower but I can drive right up next to the building and not have far to walk in the rain. To make things even better, the camping fee is only eight dollars and half price for senior pass holders. So far on this tour, I have only seen two national parks with a shower, Cedar Breaks National Monument and here. I take up a space in the campground, take a shower and begin working on my journal until about nine pm when I get into the vertical position for the evening.

Up shortly after sunrise and drive to the visitors center for a map and stamp. The patch is the same one the had the last time I was here and not an embroidered patch but a screen print with an embroidered edge. However, I am not into non-embroidered patch and don′t buy it. I walk about the area and then drive to the end of the road to photograph the birds on the coast and to talk with some of the visitors. One couple is from Germany and we talk for a short while. I stop to greet another couple and I bring up the subject of the Bible and we have a lengthy discussion of several topics. Finally, I leave the park and head north along the coast, cross over a large bay of water and turn right find myselƒ at Goose Island State Park. I drive past the entrance to the water and find the small fishing park with a boat ramp and stop in the parking lot for the evening.

The noise of several people talking awakens me this morning. I arise and see that there is a truck and boat trailer with a Texas Parks and Wildlife emblem on the truck door. After putting on my shirt and shoes, I open the side door and step out into the morning and give a greeting to the men working on getting their boat ready to immerse. They respond in kind. Then I turn around and notice the bright sunglow to the east so I grab my camera to begin taking photos of the sunglow together with the palm trees and dock area. I look at my phone and notice that it is only ten minutes after six am. Then more truck-boat trailers arrive and begin preparing for an immediate water departure. I only stay long enough to take photos of the TP&W boat leaving the boat ramp. Then, I drive north on this road to take photos of the waterfowl hoping to see a whopping crane, but there are none of these cranes, however, I do get to take photos of many other wading birds.

At about seven-thirty, I drive to Goose Island state park and determine that due to the fact that I plan to access several of the Texas state parks for birding as well as for hot showers, it would be better that I purchase an annual pass than to pay for the many times I do enter the state parks. Therefore, I decide to purchase an annual pass and not have to pay for entering the Texas state parks again for a full year. After entering the park, I drive to the pier parking and begin preparing coffee when I notice a state park ranger drive in and park near the entrance to the pier. I continue to boil the water and then notice another person arrives who walks up to the ranger and then is given a pair of binoculars. It is at this time that I realize that this can be none other than a state park sponsored bird walk. I make sure that my stove is stoked to boil the water that is sitting on top and then I walk over to the ranger and ask if she will be guiding a bird walk. Of course, I already knew the answer to that question and tell her that as soon as my coffee is ready, I would like to join the bird walk. Janelle, the ranger asks if I have a pair of binoculars, probably thinking that I might need a pair to view the birds, and I tell her that I have something better than binoculars, a high zoom camera.

I return to the Windjammer, pour the boiling water into the coffee cone to drip brew my coffee and wait until I have my sixteen ounce stainless steal Sierra cup full of Cafe du Monde coffee. I then join the bird walk which consists of myselƒ, another older woman and the ranger Janelle. We then walk along the roadway and Janelle keeps stating "I have a bird in the grass area" and then the two birders, the older woman and myselƒ, begin to look for the bird that the ranger is referring to. Often, the area that the ranger is referring to is the nearby grassland, waters or even on a manmade structure. I particularly like the way that the ranger was ever cognizant of each new bird sighting. I even begin to look for the new birds so as to find them before the ranger does.

Some time into the bird walk, the older woman says that she has to leave to return to her husband at their campsite and then the ranger and myselƒ continue on the bird walk together. There are many birds that we identify but none of the type that I have not photographed before. Then as we approach the half way point of the walk, she brings to my attention an Ibis that is walking in the marshes. This particular white Ibis is a juvenile bird and has splotches of brown and white. I have never seen a white ibis, being of with the second year plumage, not to mention getting photos. I tell Janelle that this is the highlight of the bird walk. Then as we continue walking, another Ibis joins the family search for food, one that is even a younger juvenile and is totally brown in color, being of the first year plumage; I tell the ranger that I will add both to my journal. We walk back to the pier parking area and I thank her for such a wonderful bird walk. Then I leave the state park and head north to locate the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.

Just a short time earlier, I arrived here at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and after checking in at the visitors center, begin driving the park circular driving route. It is a clear and sunny day and at the first trial head when I get out of the jammer to walk a short path to the viewpoint and find that there is a hoard of biting insects. I return to the Windjammer and open the side door to access my supplies and retrieve my ninety-five percent deet product. I walk away from the jammer and apply the deet to the exposed parts of my body as well as the areas of clothing near to the exposed body parts. I return to the jammer and continue driving the park route.

Now, when I get out of the jammer to walk a trail I am not attacked by the hoard of insects. As I continue on the driving route, I notice that there is a continuous attack of insect around the windows of the jammer. I then finish the route and stop at the picnic area to write in my journal the events of this day and during the entire time that I am here, I continue with the engine running with the air conditioner on high and watch the different insects as they persist in trying to access the inside of the jammer. If I open the window then several of them gain access to the inside of the jammer and I have to expend my energies in an effort to swat them. There is a major battle that is going on here in the south coast of Texas, and that battle is between myselƒ and all of the creeping, crawling and bitting insect that live here, be they mosquitoes, gnats, flies or any other creatures that try to obtain entrance to the inner sanctum of the Windjammer. This battle is ongoing and constant to keep them all out of my sleeping quarters. Just last week, I found an earwig in the back of the jammer and made sure that he was deposited on the ground outside of the vehicle; I was shocked that there was one inside of the jammer. I suppose that I will always be wrangling with the insect creation trying to keep their entry at bay, but I have never liked sharing my sleeping area with them nor do I think that I ever will like it.

I have been sitting here in the picnic area of Aransas NWR for over an hour with the engine and air conditioning running; I had filled up my gas tank shortly after leaving Goose Island state park earlier and feel that I can burn the gas for a while here in the refuge. I digress somewhat in that this refuge is part of my early life experience; it was probably in the year of 1966 that Boy Scout troop 810 of which I was member with came to the south Texas coast and camped here in the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and I have been wanting to return her for an opportunity to search out my past. I remember that by that time, I was a probably a Senior Patrol Leader and that I used a jungle hammock during that weekend camping event. The jungle hammock was a completely self contained sleeping hammock which included a waterproof cover and mosquito netting. My experience here now proves that the features that the jungle hammock provided were invaluable for this topography and creature terrain. Now, I sit here and watch the hoards flying around outside as I have a light evening meal.

When I find out that there is no camping in the refuge, I head towards Port Lavaca to find a d-mart.

The events that came about on this day and the previous evening are ones that I have long wished to forget. Even now at the late date of this journal entry, I refrain from disclosing this matter in full but because of certain recent occurrences find need to disclose the fact that the earlier events have made changes to my life, changes that I now believe to be for the best. On this day I had made the choice to refrain from drinking alcohol any more. For most of my early life I had overly imbibed, even to the point that my liver became damaged and slowed down on consumption, even stopping entirely a couple of times. Still, drinking alcohol has continued all my adult life, even heavily at times to where I feel that I am most likely an alcoholic.

So, with the events surrounding this day, I have made the conscience decision to stop drinking alcohol entirely. I feel that this decision is best for both my physical health as well as my spiritual health and will go a long way in keeping me free from the stupid decisions that I have made while imbibed. Yes, too many times while I have been drinking, I have made really bad decisions or done really stupid things and hope this decision not to drink will help free me from those consequences in the future.

However, what has come about from the previous events continues to boggle my mine. Likewise, on a recent Sunday, during a congregation study, the subject was dealing with the protection that God provides his people. The study insured us that God's people as a group will survive any tribulation or persecution brought upon them and reviewed examples in both Bible times as well as recent history. Also, during the discussion by citing other Bible examples, it was presented that as individuals, we can not expect God to provide deliverance during our individual problems. Nevertheless, my personal belief is that at times, for whatever his reason is, God does help individuals and sometimes this help is unimaginable, as was the case with the help that he has provided to me to resolve the matters resulting from the events during this time.

Last night I stayed with a friend and his family. This morning, I awake early to go to breakfast with them and shortly afterwards I get into the jammer and head northeast up the coast back towards League City.

After driving most of the morning, I arrive at the w-mart at the FM 646 crossing of Interstate 45 and continue working on my computer until almost ten before I stop, pack out and drive to the d-mart to park for the night.

After working on my computer, I leave to go to a volleyball tournament where my niece Lauren is playing with her team. Afterwards, I go to their home and help Susan to make some sign pots (coffee cans partially concrete filled with a plastic pipe stuck in the middle) for the school western festival that is being held at Lauren′s school next month. Then Chad makes smoked chicken for supper.

I spend the evening at the kitchen table working on my computer and feel that I am closing in on the end of the first leg of this upgrade, the creation of the new photo gallery menu and it′s transfer to all the photo pages. Once the menu is completed, the next step is to populate the menu pages with the photos and their descriptions including all the new photos recently taken during the past six months. Then, the adjusted menus from each completed photo page will need to be transferred to the Journal Site Map (of which I am using as a monitor of my progress) and finally, the Online Journal will need the placement of the blue-italic links into the journal text with connections to the new photos.

Finally, I take a shower and head out to the jammer to go to sleep. During the early morning hours, a thunder storm rolls through the area which awakens me.

I awake, climb into the drivers seat and begin working on my journal and a short time later, Susan walks outside and asks if I would like to go with her to get some coffee and a donut. I tell her no to the donut but would love some coffee. I end up having one of the donuts from the dozen glazed that she buys but I eat no more than that one because I am trying to abstain from what I call the three sins: salt, sugar and fat. (The word without in Spanish is sin, thus, I am trying to keep my food: Sin sal, sin azúcar y sin grasas.) Also, in my effort to lose weight and keep my digestive tract healthy, I have included dairy, meat, corn, wheat and yeast in my list of sins (each of which have their own reasons for being on my sin list. See Living Food. The sin meats for me include all processed meats, beef, pork and turkey but I still eat seafood and occasionally chicken. This seems to be working for me as I have consistently been loosing weight during this tour which began on the first of March this year. Also, since beginning this tour, I have not had a plateau where the weight loss has stalled, instead, it seems to be continuing full steam ahead, that is until arriving here in Texas where I have enjoyed many meals at my sister′s home as well as going out to restaurants with her. Methinks that this cultural thing of eating together when visiting friends and family is the major drawback to my desire to lose weight, but, the problem remains with me and not with others because it is me that needs to learn that even when having these communal meals, I must be determined to eat less and eat only those foods which fit into my desire to loose weight.

Later, after going to the hall, I head for the w-mart to continue my work on the photo page upgrade. Then at about nine-thirty pm, I return to the jammer to read several more chapters in the Bible book of Genesis, after which I retire for the evening.

I awake several times during the early morning having some interestingly strange dreams, one including Becky Rose. At six am, I arise, drive to the w-mart, purchase a cup of hot and resume the upgrade work.

Another late night after working all day on my computer.

It was a warm night and subsequently a warm morning but get up and resume the work on my computer.

It is now after eleven pm and even though I am tired, I don′t feel like sleeping so I get out the computer and work a little while longer.

Today is a repeat of the past several days, only warmer.

Awake, repeat, sleep.... and repeat.

Awake, eat, work, sleep, and repeat.

The downpour that occurred last night proves to me that there are still leaks in the Windjammer. I comment to Susan that I need to get out of this torrential Gulf Coast climate so that I don′t have to keep drying out my van. Susan laughs!

Yes, I want to return to the desert climate, but wish to go to the high desert in a tropical climate. Still, there is need to put sealer on the gaskets and seams so that while I am here there will not be a continual need to keep drying the jammer.

Today is a day for meeting with my spiritual brotherhood.

Up early today and head directly to the w-mart and continue working on my computer.

Today, at seven pm, I begin uploading the new upgraded Episode Four Gallery to the web site because it is complete enough to do so. Afterwards, I begin doing a final proof reading, correcting any mistakes; a proofing that I know will take some time.

Awake during sunglow, get up and first go into the d-mart, then drive to the w-mart, purchase coffee, take my seat by the window and start the computer, all before seven am.

A mild cold front arrived last evening and dropped the temperature to where there is need to use my sleeping bag to stay comfortable during the night.

Rise before sunrise and notice the clear sky with upward reaching crepuscular rays forming above the horizon and head for the w-mart. Last night, another cold front blew in with a lot of wind but at nine pm, the temperature was still in the mid-sixties and I was able to sleep comfortable all night with just my sleeping bag.

The new gallery, although now uploaded to the website, remains under construction. Nevertheless, most of the pages are completed less the addition of the recent photos taken. Now, the work being done is on reorganizing the photos and directories on the website.

Awake after the sunrise because after the meeting last night, I stayed up and read more of the Genesis account. I really enjoy the reading of this new revision and use both of the ribbons to mark where I am currently reading, Genesis and Hebrews. After briefly stopping in the d-mart, I go to the w-mart to continue working on my computer.

Although this latest upgrade is not complete by any means, shortly after nine pm, I finish upgrading the menu on all of the new photo gallery pages and changing the names of all the old gallery pages to the new naming protocol. The numbering of the photo pages will no longer concur with the online journal chapter numbers because keeping them synchronized was getting too unmanageable. This new arrangement has taken much work and gone through several rough drafts before deciding on the final system.

With the gallery section names delegated, then all of the pre-existing gallery pages need to be assigned to one of these seven sections. Once assigning all the pages to their prospective gallery sections, then a new menu needs to be created which, as mentioned before, I accomplish first on the Site Map, (the Journal Site Map page.) Then each of the preexisting gallery pages need to be updated with the new menu and page numbering. Next, I will need to update all of the existing photo names and once that′s done, there is still the task of updating all of the current blue links in Quire 1 through Quire 8 and then creating new links for the online journal written this year that has gone without link creation, both Quire 9 and Quire 10.

These formidable tasks could take several months, at least until sometime into the next year to complete. Still, that work load does not include the sorting, cropping and uploading of the many photos taken during the last nine months of the current tour. In fact, I could be working on this website well into the first decade after Armageddon. (Just Kidding!) x

Nevertheless, with this realization of the work load involved in the updating and maintenance of this website, I have been doing some prayerful re-evaluation of the amount of time that I will continue to put forth in this effort because since my retirement, I have been looking forward to increasing my ministry but as yet have not done so. Therefore, I will continue with my supplications and with the help of God′s Spirit, come up with a satisfactory plan.

This is another day during which I spend most of it with my friends among the brotherhood.

Awake just before sunrise as I have been doing for some time now, at least since the time change of the Fall Back a few weeks ago. The change made it a little harder for me to get up before the sunrise since it resulted in moving the daylight to earlier in the morning. However, the moment when daylight appears is changing fast enough as the day begins a little later with each new sunrise.

In just one more month on the twenty-first of December, it will be the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice and the sun will not rise here on the Texas Gulf Coast until about fifteen minutes after seven am. This is still forty-five minutes sooner than on Whidbey Island as they will not see the sun until almost eight am. If my path takes me to the South of Mexico at that time, the sunrise will be just a couple minutes after seven am.

Yes, the further south one goes, the longer the day becomes at least until you approach the equator, where on the shortest days of the year in the northern hemisphere, the sun would rise around six am. Moreover, in Fairbanks, the sun does not show itself until eleven am on that day which is less than four hour long. All this due to the fact that the Creator put the moon in earth orbit keeping the earth at a tilt.

Last evening, I received two phone calls, both from friends back in Washington who were just checking in to see how I am doing. Too, last night, I finished reading the book of Genesis and tonight I will continue with my reading in chapter one of Exodus. Also, I am getting a lot of work done on the photo pages, particularly the renaming and organizing of the existing photos into the new categories. Well, back to work!

It has begun once again in this system and each time it does, I ask myselƒ prayerfully how much longer can this system go on. Yes, the end of the year holiday season begins this coming week with the celebration of the national Thanksgiving day, a celebration that I since I have begun studying the Bible have come to learn the truth about. Thanksgiving has absolutely nothing to do with the true giving of thanks but is all about over eating and drinking, a practice that God condemns in the Bible. Today, my sister, in an attempt to encourage me to come to her family celebration of this holiday, informs me that next Thursday is just another day with different food.

I know that she does not mean any harm in asking me to her home to eat on Thanksgiving day so I reply by reminding her about when I began studying the Bible and learned about the origins of the holidays and their association with non Christian religious practices. Then I ask her, "Did I ever come to any of the family celebrations that you and other family members asked me to come to?" When she replies "No" I then ask her, "Do you think that the holiday origins have changed since then?" She seems to have gotten my point when she shrugged her shoulders.

With powerful winds, a cold front blew in last night making it quite cold this morning while out in the ministry. I try on my wool dress jacket and find it to fit satisfactorily even though I really need to loose a few more inches in my chest for it to feel just right.

Still, I am back into some clothes that I have not worn for as long as ten years and continue to watch what I eat so as to reach my eventual goal weight, which I have set at under two hundred pounds. When this will happen, I am not sure, but hopefully I will be there sometime soon.

My weight loss, however seems to have reached a plateau as I have been hovering between two hundred-fifty and two hundred-sixty pounds. Nevertheless, I just recently drilled a new hole in my belt which indicates that a different type of loss continues, inch loss which is just fine with me.

Saturdays have become one of my main days for the ministry and here in the bay area, I have chosen the Clear Lake congregation as the location to frequent, I think mainly because it has the early morning meeting on Sunday but that choice may change after the first of the year when the meeting times change.

Awake and head to the w-mart for coffee and soon after get dressed for the meeting. Afterwards, I return to the w-mart and continue to pound keys.

Work on my computer continues late into the evening and much is accomplished by way of grouping and renaming the old photos. In the bed to sleep before ten.

Up to a rainy morning but I am comfortable in the sleeping bag. Later, I go into the w-mart to remain warm because of the low temperature outside. There is a freeze warning for this week here in southeast Texas and I have begun looking at the weather map for warmer locations. Nevertheless, I will probably not leave the area but will wait it out for the temperatures to become warmer.

In the afternoon, I begin to scan the photos from my album to digital files; the photos taken before the advent of digital cameras. Many of these scans will adorn the pages of the photo gallery on my website and hope to have these completed soon.

It rains most of the night and the leak in the right-rear side window has reappeared. I will put some tape over the window gasket for now and as soon as the sun comes out again, I will locate the place where it is leaking. Once I have located the leak, then I will apply some roof sealant which I still have need to purchase.

The sun does finally come out and I put clear plastic tape over the seal but the tape then begins to condensate from the moisture still in the van. I wipe the inside of all of the windows with paper towels so as to help dry out the jammer. While working on my computer during the day, I leave the sliding windows open to help dry out the inside of the jammer.

Upon getting up this morning, I go directly to the w-mart to do some writing in my journal and work on the photos. When I purchase my coffee, the clerk hands me a coupon for one dollar off my next purchase, this being the third coupon I have received in as many days and I use it later when buying something to eat.

Also this morning, I notice that the condensation on the windows is on the outside of the glass and this tells me that the window gaskets are almost dry. So after just one more day of dry air and warm sunshine, the time should be opportune to apply the roof sealant to the gaskets. Tomorrow, I will go to the home mart to get some sealant and apply it to the gaskets during the warm afternoon.

Awake just before sunrise (which occurs here today at six fifty-eight) and go into the d-mart. I spend a few minutes working on my computer before driving to the hall for the ministry. Yesterday, I filled the gas tank in the Windjammer and although not the normal price here, paid less than three dollars a gallon, $2.97. (Currently, most gas prices range from $3.07 to $3.19 a gallon.)

Unbeknownst to me is the price of gasoline in other locations but I have heard that it is much higher, this being one of the reasons that I remain here in southeast Texas this winter, another being that I am familiar with the area and have many friends here.

What I have come to dislike here on the Texas coast, even now during the winter, is the high humidity and the frequent heavy rain which makes it hard to keep dry when living in a vehicle.

Some of my friends have told me that the north Texas area near Amarillo (a Spanish word meaning yellow) is very dry but I do not go there for the same basic reasons that I stay here. It is very cold in the north Texas panhandle during the winter months where as it is relatively warm on the coast.

Others have told me that south Texas along the Rio Grande river, known as The Valley is not only dryer but stays warm most all winter. The idea of being warmer all winter appeals to me greatly and may be an option for future winters of my snow birding. That is, wintering in the Valley and then making short visits to the Bay area to visit my friends here.

This is so typical of southeast Texas coastal; in one week, there is three seasons of weather, freezing cold winter six days ago and now sweltering evenings that make it too hot to sleep.

I have grown up in this location with these rapid changes in temperature and decided long ago, that I would not like coming back here for an extended stay. Well, I have proven myselƒ right once again, I do not like this climate even though there are other things that beckon me to stay here even a while longer.

Nevertheless, by spending time in one location, I am able to make rapid progress on my photo gallery upgrade, hoping to complete it to a point where I can make the second upload to the web site, the upload which is to include the changes in the photo names and locations which puts them into their own filing system and completely separate from the Online Journal.

Actually, as I rename the photo files, they are simplified and categorized into directories. Then these files are uploading to their corresponding directories on the website, but completely separate directories from the old photo file directories so as not to conflict with the operation of the current web site.

Proceeding in this way allows me to keep the old web site files/website working until I am ready to make the change over to the new photo gallery. I hope to have this changeover step done by the date of the eighth anniversary of my web site being online, which would be the eleventh of January 2014.

Even when I am able to accomplish this second upload and make the changeover to the redesigned photo gallery, it will be far from complete as I will still need to go through and update all of the previous blue links and add the new ones to this years journal text. Once all of this has been done, I will then be ready to begin adding the new photos from this years tour.

I believe that earlier, there was mentioned that I hope to reach some kind of end to this web site upgrade by the spring equinox (Thursday, 20 March 2014) and, it still looks like that may be the date for getting this web site fully functional so that any future tour or photo sessions will be much easier to get online, taking as little as hours instead of weeks and months of work like it has caused me in the past. In fact, at that point and for future tours, the most time consuming work will most likely be the cropping, organizing and sorting of the new photos.

Methinks this is what I have been trying to accomplish all along, that of having a website that is readily expandable so as to easily accommodate any new tours that the Windjammer (or whatever Burden I currently possess) takes me on and doing so in such a way as to complete the task very efficiently.

With this in mind, I am beginning to look forward to the Journey On this upcoming year.

Awaken by Susan′s voice and get up to greet her as she heads out to take Lauren to school and she tells me that she has coffee ready. I go inside for a cup of hot and begin working on my computer, now working on the next section of the photo gallery.

In the early afternoon, Susan and I go shopping where I purchase some living foods for my storage bins. After we pick up Lauren from school, we return home to get Chad and then go out for an early supper at a local Mexican restaurant.

Upon returning to the home, Chad and Lauren leave for south Texas where Chad will instruct Lauren how to hunt deer. Chad goes each fall to acquire meat for the family freezer and having Lauren with him will double the number of deer they are allowed to bring home.

After they leave, Susan and I go back to the store to get ice cream and a movie. When we get a science fiction movie, I then tell Susan, because we both enjoy science fiction so much, that we are, to coin a new word, scifi-nauts.

It was me who awakes Susan this morning when I walk through the front door but she tells me that she needs to sleep some more. I carry in my computer and set it up in the kitchen so as to continue working on the photo gallery.

Previously, Susan and I planned to do some work on the large Oak Tree in her front yard, trimming the low hanging branches in an endeavor to turn this tree into an upward reaching one instead of the downward drooping one as it stands now. However the extension ladder she had asked the neighbor to borrow turns out to be inadequate and we are left with no means to get up into the tree to trim it.

Susan decides to buy a ladder and once we return with it, we begins trimming the limbs, cutting them into small pieces, binding them into bundles and stacking the bundles near the street for the trash pickup crew. It is a time consuming process and when we are exhausted for the day, we have cut the limbs from the inside area and about one forth of the perimeter of the oak tree. We stand back to look at the oak and I tell Susan that we probably have another week or more days of work to finish trimming it.

Friday night, as we were eating ice cream and watching the sci-fi movie, Susan reminds me that the seventh of December is the thirty-third anniversary of our dad′s untimely death from a car accident.

Methought about that event much and in the process, recalled too that the same anniversary coincides with two other major events in my life.

First, it was during that same fall during which our father died, when I concluded my three year journey across the continent; a journey which began with my two year walk on the Appalachian Trail (The Wayƒarer′s Journal: Episode One, Part One) and continued the third year with my journey through the western part of the continent (The Wayƒarer′s Journal: Episode One, Part Two).

Second, that same fall also marks the start of my study of the Bible with the Golden Acres, Pasadena, TX congregation of Jehovah′s Witnesses.

Awaken at the moment of the seven-o-seven am suntouch due to the burst of sunlight shining into the windjammer and arise immediately to drive to get coffee. After a fifteen hour day of work on my computer yesterday, I will break it up some today, stoping during the day′s warm period to check out a nearby hf-mart in my search for healthier food.

Upon stopping at the hf-mart, I find it to be no more than seller of powdered processed foods and supplements, where in fact, I am looking for whole foods, or as I now refer to the type of food I want to eat, living food. I look through the hg-mart and find that it does have many of the supplements that I currently take but I can get these products of the same or better quality at a much discounted rate through my internet source.

I leave without buying anything and return to the w-mart for a time longer before driving to my place under the oak tree for the night.

After rising before the sun, I go to the w-mart for a cup of hot and to check my email after which I drive to the hall. My thoughts digress as I begin thinking of how lonely a life one leads as a wayƒarer. Still, long before the Weighing of the Anchor on this Journey On, I knew well that there would be times like these, the times replete with the lonely feelings that I am feeling today. Still, I knew these times were coming, this was fully in my understanding of wayfaring. Always, in the times past when upon this path, I found myselƒ staring into the face of loneliness, particularly during those days of cold, rainy, or otherwise inclement weather. Nevertheless, long before returning to this Journey On, a thorough prayerful examination of the pros and cons was made before the decision to proceed obtained. Yet, here I am at a point in my life when I question the Selƒ about not having a home where I can retreat to when the weather goes winter on me. Methinks of the answer that I have always received from my confidant Solitude and it is the same message today as it always has been, "You were always lonely by your self in the home where you lived." Then, I begin to think of where I am in this Passage, The Quest for the Ascent and the purpose of this search. I look up to see the sun breaking through the clouds and I go into the hall for the morning ministry.

During the morning ministry, I tell Mike that I have been looking for living foods and he tells me about a farmers market next to a natural food market not far from the space center. When we finish the ministry for the day, I head to the natural market and find several items to purchase but each one is quite pricey, much more than what I paid for these same items at the g-mart in Oak Harbor. I wonder if I might find another g-mart nearby or if I can go on line to purchase these items as a more reasonable price.

I finish the day by heading to the w-mart and spend several hours cropping photos and then uploading them into the directories that I had previously created on the web site. Then I continue working on the web pages with my web page editor. After sunset, I watch as the moon rises.

Awake just before the suntouch but slow to arise this morning due to staying up late last night and working on my computer. Also, the moon last evening was near to being full, but was still about two percent away from it, as the full moon occurs at three-thirty am tomorrow morning. Also, the moon is getting so much higher in the sky, methinks it will have the highest attitude of the year this week.

Soon, I do rise and enter the w-mart to resume work on my computer, staying here again to after the sun sets. The work today include setting up more of the photo gallery for the different park gallery as well as adding blue links in Quire Ten of the Online Journal.

The day repeats itself with much the same events as yesterday or almost any day here in Southeast Texas during the two plus months that I have found myselƒ a stone′s toss inland from the salt waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

Today, I work on photo pages which include the Birds gallery. Many of the locations of previous Birding were right here in Texas not too far from where I am now located. This makes me think that since it is winter, it could be a good time to visit these same locations so, I will go online and check for the best times for birding at these locations.

Last night, I had driven to Susan′s home and parked on the street for the evening. I awake this morning and go inside to find that Susan has coffee brewing and I pour a cup. She gets Lauren to school and then returns while I begin scanning photographs, now in the second of five albums. I am determined to scan all of my old photos to digital, however, I have noticed that the quality of the scan is dependant on the quality of the photograph and many have faded to some degree. Too, it helps to have a quality scanner and accompanying software.

Some of my family and friends have commented that they are planning to dispose of their paper copies after creating a good digital copy. My idea is to keep all of the paper photos, storing them in Susan′s attic for as long as she is willing to allow me do so. I suspect that someday, technology could improve to the point that digital scans will restore all of the deterioration that previous years have caused on photos.

My work takes me about half way through the second album before I leave for the w-mart. I know, Susan′s home has internet and even a shower and laundry, but it seems that I can get so much more work done in a w-mart environment. Nevertheless, the w-mart is three blocks from the hall where I need to be at seven pm this evening.

After the meeting, I head to the d-mart for the evening but because it is a warm evening, I work on my computer for a while longer.

I began this morning in the w-mart and then leave to search the Baycliff area for photo opportunities but due to the heavily overcast sky, there was no suntouch, only gradual light in varying grays so I return to the w-mart and continue working on preparing the scanned photos for uploading into Episode Three.

It is nearly ten pm when completing the job of cropping, sorting and loading the scanned photos into the web pages and now most all of Episode three photo gallery has been completed with just two sections of photos left to scan. I hope to scan those before the first of the year.

Seattle, WA: Daylight hours: 8 hours, 25 minutes. Noon Sun Attitude: 19°

Houston, TX: Daylight hours: 10 hours and 14 minutes. Noon Sun Attitude: 36°

San Miquel, Mex: Daylight hours; 10 hours, 52 minutes. Noon Sun Attitude: 45°

I awake before daylight and go into the d-mart to clean up a little before driving to the hall and get ready for the morning ministry. We work on return visits all morning and in the car Chip mentions that he lives in Baycliff. I tell him that I was there yesterday looking for a photo opportunity but that the sky turned from gray to dark gray and proved not to have any good lighting for photos.

His wife turned on her phone and showed me a photo taken last month and I say to her: "That is what I am looking for!"

About half an hour before the sun set, the sun broke through the gray overhanging clouds and performs a wonderful suntouch and sunglow. Methinks that there could be another showing in the morning so I want to be in Baycliff well before the sunglow tomorrow morning.

It is a little cooler this morning but no less overcast and when I awake, it is mostly gray with no chance of the sun showing so I drive back to League City to the w-mart. I will try this again when the next northerner (cold front) blows in and possibly get some photo worthy waterfront scenes. I look at the time and see that I have done all of this and it is still shortly before eight am. I leave the water and head to the w-mart, the one on Bay Area Blvd near the hall, to work more on my computer.

In the early afternoon, I drive to the hall and suit up for the meeting. Afterwards, I return to the w-mart and working on my computer.

This make the third attempt to photograph a water sunrise but the weather is just not cooperating with me.

Driving back to the w-mart, I do see some color in the sky and however colorful, it is not photo worthy. I spend the remainder of the day pounding keys.

This is the forth try for a morning sunrise photo but still nothing of any significance. I think that I must needs wait until next year before trying again.

Also, my plans for travel to Mexico this year have been postponed due to a change in circumstances and I have opted to stay in southeast Texas for a while longer. Doing so should allow me to finish my work on the Photo Gallery. For two months now, I have been going to the meetings with the Bay Area congregation and would like to continue doing so because I feel that there are spiritual blessings resulting from staying in one location, more so than when one travels about from one congregation to another. Too, I have been with the Bay Area congregations and would like to remain here in this one until I head back northward.

I go to the w-mart this morning because it opens at seven, one of the few stores open today and work on my photo gallery. Later, I go to the hall to meet with the group at ten am and go out in the ministry for the remainder of the morning.

In the afternoon, I return to the w-mart and continue working on my computer until it closes at seven pm. Then I go to the d-mart and park for the night and it is strange out this even with hardly a car on the road.