Health Report

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-30-2022

A much improved OFM got in a brisk morning walk with little wobbling and nearly no pain. It was a big surprise. Then a bit after lunch another single ibuprofen tablet was taken and he has been doing very well until now. But with only two tablets to cover the day we feel like the improvement was up to the over 80% level and it was wonderful. So tomorrow we should be in even better shape than today.

Today was a very busy day. After the morning walk we hit up Walmart for a few food items. As we entered the store the display of bright flowers caught our attention. Some of the flowers were very pretty. Here is one of them.

The OFM does like painting flowers.

The store was crowded and we wondered why. Then when we stopped by the beach park we took this picture.

We had not noticed that this weekend was kite festival weekend. The crowds were serious and large. Thank goodness they wanted to stay near the beach with the rest of the mob. The kite area was just across the street from the beach park entrance which made for some serious congestion at that intersection.

The kite vendors were flying kites in the 20+ mph winds to attract customers. Here was a few of the kites in the air near the beach.

The OFM was feeling so good tonight he decided to do a stir fry for supper.

The stir fry part had cauliflower, bell pepper, onion, potatoes, carrot and broccoli in it. The meat part of the meal was boneless, skinless chicken (eggs) scrambled with black pepper for spice. The whole assembly was outstandingly delicious to the OFM. He needs to remember to do more cooking when he is feeling decent.

We also did some changes to the OFM Fishing Equipment that helped a bunch. We changed the fishing line on one rod from 10 pound braid to 8 pound monofilament. The braid was doing just fine but was so thin the OFM was having a real problem with his fingers being able to tell if he was holding the line or not. Ten pound braid is about the same diameter as 2 pound mono but a lot more limp. The new line is a diameter mono that the OFM can feel with his fingers and tie good knots. Good knots is really important when fishing. Having knots come untied when a nice fish is on the line is not a great way of trying to have tooooo much fun.

New Hope

 Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-29-2022

It has been a day of adventures for sure. But let us start at the beginning. The OFM was up early this morning and gimped around a bit then ate breakfast watching it get lighter outside. Finally he declared it light enough to attempt a walk at the Beach Park and away we went.

We went into the park about half way and parked Sierra at the restroom buildings. The OFM legs were not doing well again today so we had little hope of a good walk and we were right. From the building upper floor we took this nice picture of the early morning beach scene. It looked nice and felt nice for a good walk. 

Then we cut over to a path that goes onto the beach to see if we could walk the beach.

NOPE. The loose sand was just too much for the OFM balance and joint pains. So we cut back to the pavement and walked for a bit. This wade fisherman was wading Little Bay. He had chosen a good location but we did not wait to see if he got into some action or not.

We turned back to Sierra right after we got to the wade fisherman. Then took Sierra back to the Castle and wobbled our way into Sierra. It was time for Internet research about the OFM's current physical difficulties.

  After several hours of research we found the answer we were looking for. A site we were referred to had some diagnostic charts to lead you to your problem and the answer.

So the OFM started looking at the diagnostic question listing. The short version is we found a very likely cause of our trouble. This diagnostic list had seven items on it. The list read like the OFM had written the list from his list of pains etc. The OFM read down the list of items and at each one he mentally checked it off as one of his symptoms. He was astounded at the list and his body being in such total agreement. It is a form of early arthritis caused by excessive abuse or injury to the joint tissues. The good news is that the treatment is regular use of ibuprofen or other NSAID drug. 

That even agreed with our experience that ibuprofen helped the OFM get around better for a little while. The difference is the quantity of ibuprofen we can use.

The OFM had always worried about taking too much ibuprofen and causing internal damage to himself. Well this article and the others on ibuprofen say that he can have the ibuprofen more often during the day on a regular basis depending on a couple of factors.

So we took our first new dosage late this afternoon and the OFM soon was walking considerably better than in the last couple of years. WOW that was nice. It was really nice to walk into the restaurant like a regular human instead of waddling like a lame duck. And the Chicken Fried Steak even tasted better.

A very important part of this is that there is no pain or grinding of the bone part of the joints. That would be a much bigger trouble.

Another caution is this is not a repair and the trouble will continue to get worse but at a lot slower pace and eventually need doctor care.

We have great hopes that this will allow the OFM Teams to increase the types of things we can do for trying to have tooooo much fun gently.

The Brick Wall

 

Adventure Location: Comfort Castle, Texas

Today's Date: 4-28-2022

Nothing to report. Hit a brick wall writing wise.

Gaftopsail Catfish

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-27-2022

We got in a nice walk at a brisk pace today. The whole mile and a half went well so we were very pleased. The winds have slowed to some extent so we dropped by the Beach Park and ended up doing a little fishing with no success.

This afternoon we went back to the fishing pier to do some bottom fishing. When we got all set up to fish a sailboarding person showed up from the nearby beach to play. The little camera was having get a good focus on the rapidly moving boarder but here is what we did get.

The boarder was getting some major air often and was fun to watch.

Fishing finally took top interest and FishBites were the bait of choice with circle hooks as the choice we preferred. The bait was put on the bottom at several places with only minor pinfish nibbling. Around 1700 something pulled on line and then ran with the bait. It was FISH ON time. Whatever it was did a lot of pulling line from the reel at times. The OFM worked the rod carefully since we really wanted to know what the fish was.

The fight went on for a few minutes because the OFM rig was light line and he was afraid it might break. But everything held together and the fish was finally lifted onto the decking. It was a gaftopsail catfish about 18 inches long. But it fought like a 20 pound concrete block. When we looked up on the internet what a 18 inch gaftopsail catfish that size would weigh. The weight was about three pounds.

They are very good eating. But this one was lucky the OFM caught it and it got to go back into the water to make more fishes.

Now we are going to rest up for another long day of trying to have tooooo much fun in Rockport Texas.

Golf Fun

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-26-2022

During the morning the OFM had some fun by getting out his half set of golf clubs to check them out. It has been months since he tried to swing one of them.

It is possible to hit yourself in the ankle with a golf club if it is not swung properly. The OFM picked a workable area in the campground to do some swings. The good news is he did not injure himself in the effort. However after about a half hour of trying lots of golf swing things we feel that the OFM will not have much chance of playing golf again but he might try. We just have to wait and see.

Another adventure was the trip to the Rockport Beach to see what there is to see on the beach sand after last weekend. There were many shells on the beach and most were still occupied. Here is one of the colorful models.

There was not a lot of unique or pretty shells to see but we did enjoy the walk.

In the meantime fishing was done and no fish bothered the lures we chunked out there. A single porpoise did swim through the area without stopping. That usually indicates a lack of food fish for the porpoise in the area. And the wind did still blow but from the opposite direction of the last few weeks. It sure is keeping the water all stirred up with all the wind turbulence.

About the biggest excitement is that no blood was shed during all the effort of trying to have tooooo much fun.

A Fat One

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-25-2022

One of the nice things the folks who maintain the Memorial Park do is to prune trees into shapes that kids can have fun on.

For instance this tree was getting too big and getting in the way. So the excess was trimmed off in such a manner that kids have another place to rampage on the trees and play equipment to have lots of fun.

Down at the beach park the OFM was trying to fish a bit with no success. As he was reeling in his lure for the last time this 14 inch really fat speckled trout hit the lure right at the pier. A short fight and it was on the pier deck for a picture. Then it was back into the water to go up to legal size.

And tonight we have another piece of art for your giggles.

This is a 4”x 6” size painting that was fun to draw and paint. It did take the OFM quite a bit longer to produce than we expected but it was a neat way of trying to have tooooo much fun.

Speedy OFM

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-24-2022

Why do most of the women the OFM meets ask the same question when they learn he is long time single..... Do you eat out or cook?

Happened twice today.

It was very exciting this morning when the OFM realized his walking pace was a lot faster than in several weeks. Nothing was hurting much and getting into deeper breathing mode certainly felt good. We made the whole mile and a half at that pace. It was a great feeling to walk briskly for a change and the cool weather seemed wonderful also. WOW.

Since the OFM was feeling so good we decided to head on over to the beach park and see if we could do a bit of fishing. At the beach we headed for a nook where we thought we could dodge some of the wind. It is right across the channel from George Strait's house that is for sale if you are interested.

We did not dodge much wind but we didn't catch any fish either. At least it was fun fishing.

There was a freshly dead catfish nearby. It was about 14 inches long. We hate wasting natural resources like fish. Probably someone caught it a little while ago and they left it to die and become bird food.

We headed back to the Castle to get some Root Beer and rest a few minutes. While we rested and checked the internet, the neighbor came home from wherever they went. He got out of the car and his wife drove away. In a minute or so the motorhome motor started up and away they went out the front gate. Here is our front yard now.

Behind us is three or four more trailers that are seldom used. So basically the OFM Teams now have a large area all to ourselves. We like that!

We hit up the harbor area for some late evening fishing but the wind was way to strong to have fun. That continuing wind is getting in the way of trying to have tooooo much fun.

Lots of Folks This Weekend

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-23-2022

It was Saturday with beautiful weather but lots of wind. Very early this morning the beach park was very packed and it stayed that way until our evening patrol. It was still full but the teams headed back to the Castle to stay out of the way.

The wind was strong into the beach which the folks on the beach enjoyed. However an OFM that wanted to fish a breakwater found it a dampening experience.

As we meandered around we came to the harbor from the south. Most all the pictures we post are taken from the north side of the harbor. It is a nicely done harbor that is working on how to expand it to accommodate all the new boats wanting to transfer to Rockport Texas for their mooring needs.

The OFM just spent time piddling with an art effort that is not going right and also trying to figure out our next travels in search of trying to have tooooo much fun.

CFS Reward

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-22-2022

The first order of business today was to get over to Don and Patsy and help them get the rv into summer storage and on the way to Michigan. The Teams arrived right at 0800 and we were steady at it until they left about 1030.

We got the rig broken down and ready to move and all sorts of “help” that had not idea of how to handle a rig especially in backing showed up to get in the way. Anyway Don, Patsy and the OFM got it into the corner and settled into its new home for a few months.

D and P then finished loading the truck and got the bicycles securely strapped onto the rear of the truck. It was time for good byes and good lucks to you and away they went. We sure hope they have an easy trip back this year.

Once we got back to the Castle it was shower time and rest the bad joints AND hit up the ibuprofen.

The rest of the day until supper time was spent resting or cleaning and organizing fishing gear. We even got in some tuning of the pier rod and reel to make sure it will be a good performer in the near future. The wind was pretty rough today again but it all got taken care of and is ready to “haul'em in” when we get to fish again.

Along about 1800 it was CFS time at the Mexican food restaurant near to Tackle Town fishing gear store. The restaurant was nearly empty when we went in. Thirty minutes later it was nearly full.

Friday is Chicken Fried Steak Special day. We do not like to miss it either. The meal is not fantastic but is just right for the OFM.

The salsa for the chips is not good according to lots of the gringos we know because it is not hot enough to keep you from tasting the flavors of the salsa. The OFM likes to taste the many flavors instead of putting band aids on his tongue so we like it well.

The main dish is not really fancy but once again it is flavorful and quite adequate in quantity for the OFM Teams.

Now we have finished a very active day off with good food and excellent sweet tea that should lead us to sleep well tonight from trying to have tooooo much fun.

Fish In Town Again

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-21-2022

Fishing was calling this morning and the very sore left foot was saying no to long walks. So we got busy and rode down to the harbor to see what we could see. The wind had the water whipped into a frazzle every where it could get to the water. No fishing in those spots. As we meandered around we passed the entrance to the beach park and stopped at the Crab statue.

Hmmm the maintenance building is blocking the wind. Here is where we went.

Where the water shoreline is closest to the maintenance building is where the OFM stood to do some fishing somewhat out of the hurricane winds. The lure kept getting a bump or two each cast. Must be some grass under the water out there was the thought. Then after one bump the line started moving sideways and something was jerking on the line. We got it to the surface still about ten feet from the shore and it was a small speckled trout. It shook loose. Oh wow actually a fish for a change. To shorten this part of the story. We had about a half hour of fish bumps and managed to land three 12 inch trout. The first fish we have caught in two forever's.

We had to leave and left them biting.

After a few other chores were completed we were thinking about fishing again and the wind. Hmmm the wooden beach park pier used to be fishable in windy weather. So the command decision was to go ahead and by the yearly pass for $40 to access the beach park for the rest of the year.

With the pass firmly attached to the windshield we headed into the beach park wooden pier to see if it was fishable. As it turned out the wind was at an angle that left most of the pier decently fishable. So there we went out to give it a try.

The surprise was that we got frequent bites from something that would grab the lure and powerfully swim away from the pier for 40-50 feet then drop the lure. This must have happened 20 times and we never got a hook into what ever it was. Finally we gave up and headed back to the Castle to rig up a bait rig to try at the wooden pier. Maybe tomorrow we will be reporting on more fishing action as a great way of trying to have tooooo much fun.

Making Grey

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-20-2022

Another gentle morning beginning. At the walking park it was breezy and warm. So the OFM got in a bit over a mile and a half of walking at an aerobic pace but not any running. Folks were especially friendly this morning so it was a very nice walk. A couple of pictures of the park ponds were taken to use as references for water/vegetation images.

Back at the Castle the OFM worked diligently at trying to learn to blend gray watercolors. He learned a lot but still did not achieve the goal we are striving for.

The next painting has been conceived and detail sketching has begun. It will be a challenge for the OFM. We like challenging him so he will get better at this art stuff. This painting was suggested by a photo taken in the swamp alongside the Tennessee River in North Alabama a couple of years ago,

Now all we have to do is work hard at trying to have tooooo much fun.

New Art Lesson To Learn

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-19-2022

After a gentle awakening this morning we took our time getting over to the Memorial Park for a nice walk. We did get Sierra to meander over by the beach park and the waves and wind was way too strong to play there.

After arriving and parking at the Memorial Park we noticed that the trees were getting pounded in their tree tops but down at OFM level it was just a nice COOL breeze and 74F. It was just right for the nice walk. With a couple of short side trips for pictures we managed to get in a bit over a mile and a half at an aerobic pace but not fast enough to cause any more terror on the damaged knee for a change.

The pond at the back of the park that the trail winds around is just a pretty place and this morning it really hit the spot to make the OFM feel good even if the day was a little grey.

We decided that we will try to get a really nice picture of the pond in better lighting when the opportunity presents itself.

After finishing our walk the OFM decided we needed to sit a bit on one of the benches and do a gentle massage of the right knee. He was right, it sure did feel good. The knee seemed to do well the rest of the day.

While we were there sitting at the finish line and OLD travel trailer pulled up to the stop light at the entrance. The OFM could not recall when he first saw one of that model but it was likely in the range of fifty years ago. The green is an unusual touch for a travel trailer.

We did get started on planning the next painting but before we can start the background the OFM has to learn how to mix the correct shade of gray for the background. This will be a major learning experience for him. Learning experiences are just another way of trying to have tooooo much fun.

Board Faces

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-18-2022

After the OFM got himself moving around this morning, we decided to give the Rockport Beach Park a try for the walking location. It turned out to be a good day for it. The pace was a fast meander since the OFM was feeling almost well from the fall of a few days ago. We got in a bit over two miles so it was successful for distance also.

The trash left over from the holiday weekend was huge. The maintenance crew was working on the cleanup. One trouble came up. The garbage collecting truck had a break down at the first cluster of trash cans. They were working on it when we came back by later.

The OFM managed to get in two flights of ramps and three sets of stairs. Both of them did strain his injured knee a bit but by tonight we think it was just the right amount of stress for them.

We even got to walk on the wooden pier again but no fishing rods were with us today. However the OFM did spot a couple of faces in the boards of the pier floor. The next picture shows both faces.

The one on the left reminded us of owl eyes looking at the old man face on the right . Of all the times we have walked over that area we should have seen them in the past but we didn't before. We liked what our imagination came up with in those boards.

Over by one of the gazebos is a bit of a garden and it had two plants in spring season mode. This first one we saw was this “palm” that was putting out new growth and we thought it was pretty neat.

Near it was another plant that has a neat leaf growth pattern of large leaves lined up on a each stem. Here is what the new growth leaves and stems look like early on.

As we passed the bird nesting area some birders were setting up to see and photograph the seagulls doing what comes naturally. Lots of good pictures come from this area in the springtime.

Resting the knees, ankles and left hip from the walk was spent getting another painting underway. It will be a larger than normal size for the OFM Art Team. As it worked out it will be about a 8x9 inch size which is odd ball size but we will enjoy it anyway.

Doing odd ball things is actually a pretty good way of trying to have tooooo much fun.

Helicopter Rides

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-17-2022

We got the day started with a full walk of Memorial Park at a moderate pace. It was nice out and the folks friendly. Then back to the Castle for some computer time and a shower. Right after that a migraine of lesser severity hit

so everything came to a halt for a little over an hour. It cleared away just in time for lunch.

Off to Aransas Pass Whataburger for lunch. Lunch was the usual decent but not special. Whataburger food has really gone down in the last couple of years. But when we left Whataburger we saw that the first of the blooming plants had come in at Walmart.

Naturally we had to stop and photograph them to ad to our art reference files. We got 24 new blooming plant photos for our files. Here are three of them.

They were all very fresh so we got some good references for future art efforts.

Back home we put in a couple of hours on the latest painting and made some nice progress.

The fishing itch hit the OFM so we shut down the art effort and headed to the harbor to see if any fish were home year. Nope but we did get this nice catch with the camera.

The Easter event that spilled out all over the harbor area had helicopter rides for entertainment this year. We did not check the cost. They flew from near where we were fishing and made a nice loop over the beach area and back around the far end of the harbor where we were fishing. The rides lasted about five minutes and was active enough that we bet it was a fun ride. Did the OFM go for a ride? Nope he has hundreds of hours riding in helicopters from his fifteen months in Viet Nam as a combat infantryman.

We could hear the kids when they got out of the chopper after the ride. They were all screaming and excited and running around like crazy. It was nice to see them having so much fun.

Tomorrow starts the planning for the trip to Grandkid Land. We hope to have toooo much fun getting those plans made.

Gabby and Rest

 

Adventure Location: Rockport, Texas

Today's Date: 4-16-2022

Aches and pains precluded a long walk today so we spent the morning at the marina visiting folks. The oleanders at the marina are blooming with brown flowers. We do not recall ever seeing brown flowers like these before.

The most import meeting of the morning was Gabby. She is wonderfully nice and loves to cuddle and be fondled.

But she thinks it is her job to educate all dogs that come near that she is the top dog no matter how big you think you are. But nobody gets to walk past without her offering to be petted. She is definitely a sweet little pup. She lives in a house boat at the Marina with Tim. And they live next door to this next yacht.

That small yacht is a full camper with toilet, shower and beds for two folks. The owner uses it often but is thinking he might sell it soon since he likes to try different boats.

Due to some recovery pains in his right knee the OFM took the rest of the day off to sit and paint with water colors, gouache and colored pencils. The knee got a great day of leisure and ibuprofen. We will see tomorrow how it is doing. We are still plenty mobile but decided to be a bit careful for a change. At least the OFM was getting in some really desired art time for a change. And yep we did a really good job of trying to have tooooo much fun.