Texas: Alpine-Marfa-Ft. Davis-Alpine Loop 3 July 2010

After you're "hit" with a major event (in this case my hubby's heart attack and the next day, a triple bypass surgery - followed by more than his fair share of things going wrong), the road to recovery is difficult - at best - and you can't realize that one day life will return to normal - a "new" normal, but normal nonetheless! Yes, we went to Carlsbad, NM three months after the "event" ... and it was a fun "testing of the waters" ... yet very stressful, because there's always the "what if" factor. So, now is the time we have declared our INDEPENDENCE from worry and fear and we are enjoying ourselves this July 4th weekend in the Big Bend area of Texas. We could not resist also knowing we would be arriving in the area the same day as the remains from Hurricane Alex ... what could be more perfect?

Day 1 started off with me saying "Okay, honey you have been so good in eating right and exercising - you may have anything you want to eat today ... um, within reason!" (First time he's heard me say that since the "event"!) We went for a late breakfast at Penny's Diner, one of our favorites - great atmosphere, good food, friendly people and you don't have to auction off a kidney to pay your bill!
The decision was then to roam the shops "downtown" Alpine - first stopping at the fabulous "old girl" the Brewster County Courthouse, all decked out in her 4th of July glory.

Then after roaming in and out of some shops, I went to inspect the old caboose at the "Railroad Park" ... stepped into some very slick, very wet ... did I say slick ... mud WITH BOTH FEET ... saw my life flash before my eyes, before I got control of my balance and managed not to wind up face down in the mud - whew!
Then we viewed the Hotel Ritchey .. well okay remains .... my question, is it haunted - I bet so!

After several hours we stopped and had snowcones at Murphy Street Raspa Co. -- how quaint and atmospheric it was!

While we rested and cooled off the Amtrak showed up, stopped, off-loaded, on-loaded and stayed, and stayed, and stayed, and stayed ... well you get it, it was still there by the time we got back to the car and left ourselves -- they obviously don't rush ... too much.

So off we went to Marfa ... we got as far as the Marfa Lights viewing area and got out to take photos of clouds ... and caught, yet a different train! I, of course, waived at the engineer - don't know if he waived back, I had a camera up against my nose.
Here is where we caught the most promising of clouds of the day, it was slightly rotating and pushing down a wall cloud - it was trying hard and I thought we might at least get a water spout (as it was too cooled by the area rains) - we watched it for quite a while, then moved on.

Marfa = pouring rain ... so we'll go back another day this weekend - if it clears up, but between Marfa and Ft. Davis the rain let up just enough to catch this beauty.

We then got "socked in" - couldn't see much of anything, so when we got to Ft. Davis (unfortunately it appears all 4th of July festivities got canceled) we then had a late lunch at another favorite of ours: The Chuck Wagon .... yes, I let him have a bacon cheeseburger!

....and I chomped one too -- with french fries (we were living dangerous today - can't eat -zero fat all the time ... gotta treat once in a blue moon!)

As we left Ft. Davis to head back to Alpine .. finishing up the loop .. we were "socked in" again.

We had a fabulous day and I didn't once think "Where is the nearest hospital?!" So, we have reclaimed our right to live again, not as a wife with a recouping husband (although he won't be able to eat what he wants tomorrow!) ... but as a happily married and wonderfully in love couple!

Stay tuned for more fun ... if you can stand it - our traveling companion Angel says:

YOU KNOW YOU WANNA!