Dodging Drifts...

 

Snow?  Not here in the Tropical Tip.

Out for a ride this morning, I went a bit further north on SPI than I usually go.  From the southern tip of the island, the developed part of the island runs a bit over 4 miles... and then, it is a long, skinny island; the Gulf of Mexico on one side, the Laguna Madre (bay) on the other side.  The road goes another 4 or 5 miles, and stops.  If you have a vehicle that can handle the sand, you can drive on the beach from there.

We have done that years ago with the different 4x4 vehicles we've had, but that isn't a big thing for us... salty sand gets everywhere.  But, a lot of people like to head north from the end of the road to camp on the beach.  You are definitely leaving civilization behind.

I took the CTX north of city limits today.  No, not to ride on the beach - it is not an off-road bike.  Far enough that you don't see people, cars, or buildings as you look north.  We've had plenty of wind since we've been home, and that means you have to watch for sand drifts on the road...

 Looking behind the bike in the above photos, you can see where some people drove through the drifts at the edge of the road.  It isn't legal to drive over the dunes (erosion), but when they creep onto the road, I guess it's fair game.  Although I can't understand why anyone would want to do that - the sand is fine and powdery; blasting through it is going to drive that salty abrasive sand into places you don't want on your undercarriage.

It's been a couple months with the CTX now - I think I enjoy it even more than when I first got it.  I have gotten very comfortable with the size and performance of the bike.  I've come to appreciate the looks of the bike, too.  These morning rides keep my head in it... no great roads in this area, but it still is good for my soul to be out on two wheels.

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Wake up, Little Sous-y...

Um, Oh, Sous-y Q?  No bonus points for the Everly Brothers or CCR.  But if you said, "Sous - as in: sous chef?" you get 10 bonus points.  It's no secret that I have spent much of my life avoiding cooking.  But, since we got the Blackstone Griddle, I have done all the cooking with that.  There is plenty of other cooking that gets done by the pretty Blonde inside, but she appreciates me taking some of that load by making meals on the griddle.  And, I am happy to do it.

I am learning as I go with the griddle, and have been picking meals that are relatively goof-proof.  The thing most important in what success I've had on the griddle: good preparation.  Joan is a detail person and figured out right away that her organizational skills will go a long ways towards keeping me the griddlemeister.  Truly, this would be a chaotic process if not for her prep work.

This is what my sous-chef gives me on my way out to the griddle...

I made breakfast tortillas late this morning.  With everything in one place, all I have to do is figure out what order to put stuff on the griddle to make it all ready at the same time.  I didn't get any photos of the cooking in progress; in fact, I had the first tortilla almost finished before I thought to grab my phone...

My Honey has been encouraging and complimentary on my efforts - that goes a long ways towards me sticking with it.  Today, she said, "This may be the best breakfast tortilla I've ever had."  That is a bold statement when you know we used to have Manuel's (now closed down) that was widely known for their breakfast tortillas.  She really liked the way the tortilla came out.  My belly was happy with it, too.