Mexico... then Texas

Our last week in Lo de Marcos was crammed full of last minutes things. Most we didn't have much control over...  like the new sewer line....

When we arrived here early October, 2016, the work laying the new sewer line began almost immediately.  We applied for the permits, paid the fees and jumped through all the hoops.  But all that did not make the connection from our property to the main sewer line at the street happen an faster.  Finally, the week before we headed back to the States, the city worker came and dug this trench...  and then laid the pipe from our line (just in front of our gate) to the city line...  in the lower middle of the photo.  So it's done... right?  Wrong....  But when we get back this October we will hire the man who laid the line in our yard to come back and do whatever needs to be done to get us off the septic tank system and actually hooked into the city system.  Yes, things take time here.

At least the worker didn't use a barricade like this when the street was torn up...

Wouldn't OSHA have a fit if they saw something like this?

We made several trips to the water office in Bucerias (that's where you apply for the permit) and that's where I saw this cat asleep just inside the door...

I've seen a lot of beat-up, bedraggled tom cats in my day, but this guy topped them all!  Both ears were nearly gone...  he had only one eye....  he had scars and patches of hair gone all over his body.  His hair was dirty and matted in places.  Of course I had to squat down and pet him.  He was ecstatic...  kept purring and rolling over.  He may be rag-tag and tougher than nails, but he still likes a little attention.

We waited until the last day to disconnect our fountain and store it in the bodega.  And I'm glad we did...

We had this pair of Streaked-back Orioles and the male Painted Bunting come to it at the same time.  What gorgeous colors!

We managed to get in a few last-minute walks along the river.  The bridge isn't finished yet...  maybe by the time we return.  We weren't disappointed with the birds...

A Wood Stork...  kind of flopping around at the edge of the Lagoon

A little Green Heron along the bank of the river.

It will be months before I see these birds again....

One evening, just before leaving, Santos brought over a real treat...

Here he is... shucking oysters fresh from the sea!

We slurped them down nearly as fast he he shucked them.  He even brought over some limes to squeeze the juice on them.  They sure didn't need anything else...  they were delicious!

We worked the Sterilization Clinic one last time last Sunday.  Thirty dogs and cats were spayed or neutered.  It was a long day, but everything went well...  two dogs did not have surgery due to poor health, but hopefully they'll be better soon.  Don, who is in charge of the clinic, might be able to arrange a summer clinic.  Mostly they are held when the winter folks are there as they need volunteers.  My job is to heat buddy bags in the microwave to use around the critters as they are in recovery.  The surgery tech didn't show...  so I learned how to secure a dog to the table, clean the area being cut, hold "body parts" in forceps for the Vet and all manner of things.  Just a few things I never dreamed I'd ever be doing...  at least I'm not squeamish over blood and guts.

Like I said, the last few days just seemed to pass faster and faster...

And it was time to go...

I had to say goodbye to Pirate.

He's been my favorite dog for the past 2 years.  This year he's had some hard time as he was hit by a car in November and nearly died.  After finally getting his health back he'd gained weight and energy.  But he's never been to the Sterilization Clinic...  he got in a dog fight and his ear was badly torn and got infected.  With care from the local vet he got better.  Then about a week later he was limping...  but this time recovered quickly.  Here he looks good.  Hopefully he'll get through the summer without anything major and I'll see him again.  Yes, he does have an owner and is fed and cared about....  but Mexican culture is different in how dogs and cats are viewed.

Bill & I decided to take the bus to Puerto Vallarta on Tuesday.  Relax a little, 

go to the Mariana area (very touristy and up-scale)...  look at all the expensive boats in the harbor...

have a beer at the Beer Barn

(Bill likes a really dark, hoppy beer)

and even find a Geocache in a phone booth.

We ate out, went back to our hotel, and Wednesday morning headed to the airport to fly back to Texas.

Our daughter and son-in-law picked us up at DFW...

Nice direct flight...  no problems getting through customs or immigration... 

collected our bags and we all headed down the road.

Our daughter lives about 5 miles out of town (about 60 miles south of Ft Worth), and there's plenty of wildlife to see here, too.

This big Tom Turkey has a whole harem he herds along...

In full display, he's quite impressive.

We see flocks of turkeys at least twice a day moving across the yard.  And there's a single Tom who travels alone.  I love hearing them gobble and watch the strut!

There's a pair of Roadrunners that live a couple hundred feet across from our motorhome.  Kind of far away to get a good photo, but we see them off and on.

There are cardinals, titmice, mockingbirds, Eastern bluebirds and goldfinch, to name a few species here.  As well as cowbirds, house sparrows and others.

The Blue Bonnets and Indian Paintbrush are in bloom...

The roadsides are lovely with the wildflowers.

Ladybird Johnson, you will always be remembered!

It was quite hot when we got here Wednesday evening, but we got a little rain and it cooled things down.  I think we've made the transition from Mexico to Texas quite well.

We'll be here until late April...  again, we have a lot to catch up on.  It took hours just to sort through 5 1/2 months of mail!  I think we're ready to send out tax stuff to the CPA in Ohio tomorrow.  

And so, another adventure begins!

That's All For Today!