We're Home!

We are staying tonight at Rainbow's End in Livingston, Texas. It felt quite strange as we approached today to be coming "home"--our legal address is here, in a file folder in the mail forwarding building, but we've only been here once before. That was April, 2008, when we were here to become Texas residents, register our vehicles, and get our driver licenses. We recognize familiar landmarks, and we also recognize that we have learned a lot since we arrived here as "newbies" at fulltime RVing.


Our next-site neighbors own a New Horizons fifth wheel, a brand we are very interested in, so we struck up a conversation and ended up touring their custom designed rig. Jim and Sally were in the construction business and had had a Country Coach motorhome, so they knew just what they wanted. One of the features we really appreciate is the light maple cabinetry and woodwork. Smart design along with high quality materials and work are evident throughout, along with luxuries like the double-door refrigerator, dishwasher and washer/dryer. New Horizons has made their floorplan one of the standards available, as the F34RLTSS711.

Jim and Sally Bonsall

As we chatted over wine and munchies, we realized that we will be winter neighbors, since Jim and Sally are square dancers and stay at Tip of Texas in Pharr, where we regularly dance to Joe Saltel. (They are plus dancers, which is why we didn't meet them last winter.) On the wall in their rig is a plaque with the inscription "Friends are like seashells we collect along the way," a saying we found especially appropriate for RVers. We meet such interesting and friendly people along the way.

Speaking of friends, we had lunch today at Mazzio's in Nacogdoches with Loretta and John Dahmus, whom we hadn't seen since our visit in May 2008. We parked the rig on Raguet St. and left Sweetie there. Loretta drove us to the restaurant in their minivan, with nifty automatic passenger doors. Loretta was driving back to Austin this afternoon to stay with their daughter Teresa and grandson Joseph, so we didn't have a very long visit, but it was really nice to see old friends and have a chance to talk.

Lee with Loretta and John

Today was a lovely warm sunny day--beats the northern chill.