Texas

My time in Texas began with a visit to the Dallas/Ft. Worth area to see my friend, Kelly. Kelly and I went to Jr. High and High School together and she is one of the people I haven't seen in 30 years. She lives near Dallas in a great apartment (with a spectacular gym and pool, which I used... a lot!). She has the most beautiful grand baby and we got to play with her while I was there. SO much fun!

On Friday we headed out to Ft. Worth so that Kelly could get everything ready for the little one's 2nd birthday party at the ranch owned by Kelly's boyfriend.
As we arrived at the ranch, the sky opened up and we enjoyed the thunder and lightning as we huddled inside and watched a movie. Unfortunately, I was leaving Ft. Worth on Saturday morning and wouldn't be around for the party on Sunday. And it was a Hello Kitty party! *sigh*

The trip to Austin was quick and I had a great dinner and pub crawl with one of my First Time Meet Facebook friends. Clinton is the ex-boyfriend of a friend and was nice enough to show me around town and give me a place to crash for the night.

On Sunday morning, my dear friend, Joelle, picked me up in Austin and after a delicious breakfast at the Magnolia Cafe, drove me to San Antonio where we explored the Wild Animal Park, Downtown area, and even took a cruise along the River Walk section of the San Antonio River that runs through the center of town. Joelle is one of my Warrior Goddess friends and has made a good life for herself and her son in San Antonio.

As she left me at the bus station that evening, there was an announcement that all bus passengers were to remain inside the building and to keep children away from the windows. It turns out that a Security Guard was forced to shoot a man outside the station when the man pulled a knife and charged the guard. Fortunately, there was no further trouble and the rest of the evening and trip out of San Antonio was rather uneventful.

My favorite part of the bus trip between San Antonio and my final Texas stop of El Paso was when we stopped at a mini-mart along the way and I discovered that Sophia (aka Ukulele Girl from the FL-GA leg) was on the very same bus! She had boarded at a stop that I slept through and we got to spend a few minutes catching up on our trips and where we were headed from there. Me, to El Paso and then on to Vegas and her to Arizona.

El Paso was one of my most-anticipated stops. Shady and I have been friends for years, yet this is our very first in-person visit. She has watched my daughter grow up through FB photos and Holiday Cards and I have been there through tragedy and celebrations in her life. It's wonderful to finally put a voice to the person and have a chance to hang out with her, her boyfriend, and her family.

This trip is everything I'd hoped it would be... and more. What a blessing to have friends who play along with my crazy ideas and help make this an adventure I will remember forever.