Life in Livingston, Texas

The weather warmed up and it definitely feels like South Florida.  In the morning, the condensation is running off the side of the coach.  Today, we sat through one of those monsoon-type thunderstorms.  Strange how humid climates seem to warm up all day long.  In dry climates, it seems to warm and cool quicker.  Here, there really is no relief and you just learn to live with it.

We adjusted our workout schedule to escape the heat.  The alarm is now set for 5:15 AM, which gives us just enough time for a cup of coffee and run before the sun gets too high.  Still, it ain’t easy.

The installation of the A/B switch for satellite TV was a great success.  On the day of the great experiment, we set up the dish, pointed it in the right direction and immediately picked up a signal.  After a little fiddling with the dish, the signal was better than the one from the automatic system.  Problem solved.

One morning, we drove to nearby Lake Livingston.  It is a big lake surrounded by wooded, flat terrain.  Was it nice?  Yes.  Picturesque?  No.  Would we consider it as a place to live?  Definitely not.

One of the benefits of our lifestyle is that we usually spend enough time in an area to get a feel for it.  Livingston is a marginal-existence town with the highway, logging and law enforcement as the main industries.  If it wasn’t the seat of county government, it would have dried up.  There just isn’t much here.

In contrast, the Escapees park is really nice.  Located about six miles south of town, it covers several acres, probably over 150 acres, of gently rolling woodlands.  It is almost a community unto itself and probably a beehive of activity during the winter months when the snowbirds show up.  We enjoy it here and will probably return someday.

Yesterday afternoon, we got into a long conversation with our neighbors, Rush and Sandy.  It appears they recently sold the house, bought a new motor home and plan to be full-timers.  We shared on-the-road stories and laughed about strange experiences.  Ironic how you can laugh about something now that didn’t seem very funny at the time.  Whenever I tell the story about flooding the campsite when filling the fresh water tank, virtually everyone else has a similar story.  Yes, most problems in life are self-inflicted.

Aside from the above, we spent most of our time hiding from the heat, reading, learning about XML and watching TV.