On Friday night we had a lot of rain in the south central Texas area. During the day, the weather services we're reporting heavy rain with some predictions up to five inches. Later in the afternoon NOAA issued a flood watch for the San Antonio area which included Von Ormy.
In the past, the Medio Creek, which runs through Hidden Valley RV Park has flooded. A few years ago the flood was severe causing a lot of damage, washing away a couple of buildings.
With the predictions of that much rain in the forecast coupled with the ground being saturated in this area, there was a high potential of the creek overflowing it's banks and flooding the RV park. So, with all of that knowledge, Joyce and I got our rig ready to move up to the top of the hill, just short of hooking up to out truck.
Around midnight it started raining sometimes very heavy when a thunderstorm passed through. We were up watching the weather reports and the local radar channel and the forecast was for much more of the same. So, around 2 AM while there was a lull in the storms, we pulled the slides in and hooked up the rig. I took a look at the creek and at that time all looked good so we finally got a little sleep.
When I got up around 6 AM the creek was starting to rise but at that time, it was no where near flood stage. At about noon it had crested at just below spilling over it's banks and then slowly started receding and by 3 PM, we felt comfortable unhooking the rig.
I think we dodged a bullet on this one. We do have some more rain in the forecast for this week, hopefully nothing like the stuff on Friday night.
02/27/12
It's been several days since I last wrote anything so I'll bring everyone up-to-date on our activities.
On the 23rd we made our second trip to the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo. Since parking is at a premium at the AT&T Center and very expensive, we carpooled with Dennis and Carol from Alberta, Canada. After the rodeo we saw Alan Jackson perform. Alan does more "traditional" country these days which we enjoyed very much.
When we pulled into the parking lot, one of the parking attendants saw our license plate and asked what part of Oregon we were from. When I told him Oakridge, his face lit up and he told us that he used to drive truck in that area in the early 60's. He said he used to have breakfast at the Sportsman's Cafe there and he was sad to learn that it has been closed for a couple of years now.
On the 25th, we again went back to the AT&T Center to see the Extreme Bulls competition and were again joined by Dennis and Carol.
On the way into the grounds, we asked the fellow at the information booth where we might get some breakfast. He pointed us to the Ag Barn where they were serving free burritos.
Since Dennis is a fan of anything machinery, we decided to walk around and check out the equipment. After a few minutes we realized that all of the implements in the barn were made by high school Future Farmers of America students.
This tractor was completely restored by one of the Ag mechanic's. He did all the work himself including rebuilding the motor, transmission and paint.
The girls built this trailer from scratch. Beautiful!
Joyce and I have been to a lot of rodeo's but this was the first time we have been to a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Extreme Bulls show and what a show it was.
Kanin Asay out of Powell, Wyoming dominated the event buy not only willing all the money but he took bot go-rounds as well. By the way, the score of the competition was:
Bulls - 55, Cowboys - 7. The stock that is used for Extreme Bulls is the biggest and meanest around!
After the bull riding Trace Adkins put on a great show.
Yesterday Joyce and I went to the Alamo Dome from the San Antonio Home and Garden Show. Even though we don't have a "real" home anymore, it is fun to look at all of the new stuff out on the market and do a little dreaming as well.
During the show, Bob Guiney who was a contestant on the first season of The Bachelorette and then the bachelor on season four of The Bachelor talked about the housing market. Of course he gave us some tidbits about being on the television show as well. Bob is busy these days with his own show on HGTV and performing as a singer in The Band From TV. In addition to Bob, one of the other band members is Hugh Laurie, star of the TV show, "House". The band's web site is at: http://www.bandfromtv.org/
03/03/12
On Tuesday, Joyce and I along with Terri, the manager of Hidden Valley and two other couples went on a walking tour of the King William District of San Antonio.
This neighborhood of large, beautiful houses is located just south of downtown along the San Antonio River. Many Germans immigrants began to settle in this area by the 1870s and it became known as "Sauerkraut Bend" to the rest of San Antonio. In 1967 the King William District was designated the first Historic Neighborhood District in Texas.
The District developed into an idyllic neighborhood of large, impressive houses shaded by enormous pecan and cypress trees. The main entry street into the area was given the name King Wilhelm in honor of King Wilhelm I, King of Prussia in the 1870s. During World War I, when America was at war with Germany, the name was changed to Pershing Avenue. A few years after the war was over the original name was restored, but this time it was given the English version of the name, King William, and it has remained so since.
After meeting Gary, of San Antonio Walks across from The Guenther House, and began the tour. Gary is highly versed in the different styles of architectural styles in the area, which includes Greek Revival, Victorian and Italianate. He also has a wealth of knowledge about the history of San Antonio and during the tour, he told us several stories that enhanced out tour experience.
The homes in the King William District were built by some of San Antonio's most prominent citizens. Karl Harnisch, who was in the confectionery business, brought the first soda fountain to San Antonio. The Edward Steves homestead is an elegant three-story mansion that was built in 1876, was the founder of the Steves Lumber Company. The family still owns the oldest cabinet making company in the country. John J. Stevens, who brought the first Hereford cattle to Texas also built his home here.
This one is Joyce's favorite. Simple but very elegant.
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