I don’t really have to get back. 11 days and 800 miles through central Texas is just the right amount. That’s an average of 72 miles a day. Laid back travelin’, huh? What day is this? O.K. it’s Friday the 16th. I’ve just dropped in on the architects who designed Baxter Adam’s Lovable House to congratulate them on a job well done. Now I’m parked in front of the oldest suspension bridge in the U.S. of A. spanning the Brazos River in downtown Waco.
This is one dead town. I could have fired a cannon ball down Main St. and never hit a sole. What a depressing sight! Sure is easy to find a parking space. Geez, I can remember coming down to the movies with cousins Paul and Paula back in 1950 when this town was alive. Theaters, bars, even flop houses. Then the Baptists “cleaned up the town”. And to finish it off, the shopping malls arrived. But this is my birthplace, and I’m growing more fond of visiting aunt Pattie Rose and ol’ Harry. It’s a super home with super people. And I’ve found my niche in their backyard driveway where I can sleep in the van. Oh, how many curbs and driveways I have slumbered on. From Bronxville NY to Santa Cruz CA. I’m now taking a “loop” back to Dallas from Waco, avoiding the drag of I-35. It’s 35 miles farther, but it’s through the “top of the Hill Country” by way of Valley Mills, Meridian, and Cleburne. It’s a comfortable Texas highway all the way. This state has an unparalleled system of roads.
Oh Lord, thank you for seeing me home safely to headquarters, Big D. Gotta keep myself occupied unpackin’ Ol’ Baleau. I feel a high coming off such a beautiful Texas odyssey. Every trip seems to get better. Can you discern a little difference in the type? I’m back on the Smith-Corona at my desk. That ol’ Royal was really fun to have in the mobile office/home. Reminds me of that Saturday afternoon back in Austin, parked in front of the Holiday Inn. I was banging away on the manual when this young man looks in and says, “Now that’s my kind of office!
No photos this trip, although I do wish that I had had my camera loaded and ready to photograph Lynn that Sunday morning when she was all decked out to go walking the Riverwalk. She looked radiant. Three sketches on 5 by 8 index cards shall suffice (Love Creek Orchard, Waco suspension bridge, and San Antonio’s Riverwalk). Now I’m ready to watercolor. Maybe some appreciation gifts to my hosts …..
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