COLLEGE STATION, TX 8-7-2017

Someone expressed surprise that the Vineyards RV Resort is so empty based upon the picture I sent.  That is not “empty!”  That is the space between us and our nearest neighbor!  The park is actually full!

The haps on “prairie grass:”

(I give partial credit to Ken Burns and the documentary on the Dust Bowl for part of this information.)  The entrance to W’s Library was surprising to us.  The surrounding landscaping looked unkempt.  Nobody had mowed the brownish, burned lawn maybe ever and it made the library look like an abandoned building (to us).  We learned that Laura and W had chosen to landscape with “prairie grass” to emphasize the “western” feel and spirit of their roots.  Prairie grass should not be mowed.  As it grows tall, about knee-high, the tops of the blades carry the seeds which fall to the ground, reseeding itself.  If you mow it, you kill it.  Unaware of this, when the frontiers people came west, they tilled under the natural growth in the fields, also known as “weeds,” in order to plant crops.  It killed the prairie grass and left behind nothing but dirt and dust.  Along came the winds sweeping across the plain… and The Dust Bowl.  The Dust Bowl was a man-made disaster!

George Herbert Walker Bush was the 41^st President of the USA. 

W has written a book about his Dad entitled, “41.”  They jokingly call each other, “41” and “43.”  The only other father-son Presidents we have had are “J” and “Q:” Adams.

HW was born in Massachusetts but as a child, the family headed west. 

They drove across the country in a
1950 Studebaker and Dad got involved in the oil industry.  When the Japs bombed Pearl Harbor, HW felt compelled to join the fight and enlisted in the Navy at age 18. 

He became a Naval aviator and flew scores of missions off the SS San Jacinto.  He took enemy fire with four 500-lb. bombs on board and yet, he managed to deliver the ordnance according to plan, got his crew evacuated and finally, bailed out of the plane.  He was rescued by a US sub hours later.  No one knows what happened to his crew, they were never found.  HW agonizes over it to this day.

He fell in love with and married Barbara and soon, babies were on the way.  W was the first one down the chute.  The family moved back to Massachusetts because he was determined to go to college.  Married and with a son, he nevertheless finished up a degree in Economics from Yale in 2 ½ years, Phi Beta Kappa.  He reasoned that he had to hurry so he could get a job (a novel concept)!  The couple moved back to Texas and continued making babies, six altogether, although Robin died of leukemia when she was 3.

Grumman TBM 44 - HW's was shot down

The library is massive compared to W’s.  It contains a Grumman TBM 44 Avenger

(his original is at the bottom of the sea), a Presidential limo, a Studebaker like the Bush’s, a piece of the Berlin Wall and a recreation of HW’s Oval Office.

Piece of the Berlin Wall

 

The Day the Wall Came Down
sculpture by Veryl Goodnight

On the beautifully landscaped grounds, there stands a stunning bronze sculpture entitled, “The Day the Wall Came Down,” created by Veryl Goodnight.  The horses jumping over the rubble of the wall symbolize “freedom.”  There are two of these pieces, the other is in Berlin.

You can't stop the spirit of freedom.

Late in the afternoon, we found a bar called Razzoo and treated ourselves to a brew and a dozen raw oysters.  Finally, we headed for the ranch (that’s “home” in Texan), and fixed a nice fried chicken dinner.  We can’t seem to escape the storms on this trip.  At 2AM, torrents of rain pelted our roof and thunderclaps nearly threw us out of bed.  We are now on the road to Westlake, LA and it is raining buckets!  Bee bravely trudges on while we, on the other hand, are nervous and panicky.  Four inches of rain in a day?  We’re accustomed to 4 inches of rain per decade.  We are currently engaged in a Bee roof leak repair.  It’s always somethin’, Jane.

(Texans have a mind and laws of their own.  The sign in the bathroom says, “Carrying lighted cigars is strictly prohibited.”  Huh?  OK, I won’t light mine.)