In <e97960d462292d7fc52a8b0e1e35558d@localhost.talkaboutpets.com>,
Gabey8 <gabey8-@-aol-dot-com (formerly dgabriel-at-netaxs-dot-com)> shouted to everyone in earshot,

Well, OK. =)  In 1999, I took a vacation with my dad to Big Bend
National Park in Texas and a couple places in New Mexico and Arizona,
and I took lots of pictures.  All I had was a 35mm point-n-shoot,
nothing fancy, but it got the job done.  The photography-shop lady who
developed my film was quite envious of my having been to places where
I could take pictures like those.

Naturally, the pictures are on my web site:

http://web.mr-happy.com/~jfb/ablum/vacation1999/

I think I did a reasonably good job of captioning the pictures, but I
didn't write much about anything I didn't take a picture of, so I'll
relate one of the more eventful, uhh, events.

I think we were about an hour away from Las Cruces, New Mexico, maybe
on our way to Silver City, when my dad pulled over to walk the dog (an
event I always looked forward to, as having half of a German Shepherd
on your lap for several hours can get a bit old).  I didn't even get
out of the truck that time, but my dad came to my window and told me,
"Shut off the truck... we're gonna be here awhile."  Uh-oh.

I got out to see that one of the camper tires was mostly gone, and
that which was not gone was utterly shredded.  The flailing tire had
also ripped up the wheel well, above which is the compartment under
the main bed inside the camper... which is where my dad kept the cash
stash, among other things.  Everything was covered in rubber dust, but
nothing seemed to be missing.  We didn't notice the blowout when it
happened because the trailer has two axles, so there was still enough
support.  So on goes the spare trailer tire, and into Las Cruces we
go.  We somehow managed to find an open tire store on a Sunday, too,
so we were hardly even inconvenienced by the whole thing, at least
compared to how it could have gone.

The best part of it, for sure, was finding the Aguirre Springs
National Recreation Area just outside of Las Cruces.  We spent two
nights there and did a lot of hiking.  The elevation made for a nice
break, too, as it was cooler there (10-15 C/50s F) than Texas or
Arizona were, so the hiking was far easier.  (I don't deal well with
heat even when I'm sitting still.)  Always good when something crappy
turns into a very nice weekend.

Anyway, enjoy the pictures.

Jeff

Donna, I love that idea. Since I changed jobs 3 1/2 years ago, I get a
measley 2 weeks' vacation. :( Don't get to go on any big trips. I want
Alaska to be my next big trip.

Katz, who stays at home w/the furkids

I'll be going on a trip in April... nothing terribly special - my LLL, John,
and I are going to work an art show in Huntsville, Alabama.  We always have
a great time when we travel and I usually report back :)

Jill

I have a lease car from work, and as such, am contracted to do so many
kilometres a year. If I don't meet or exceed the target, the tax I have to
pay on it substantially increases and I end up owing the tax man a small
fortune. Last year wasn't a problem, but the tax man doesn't seem overly
sympathitic regarding the last few months of pregnancy, childbirth and the
first few months of a baby's life and hte effect that has on one's ability
to clock up the km's. So, in the space of 2 months, I have to do 10,000km of
driving. The thought of just chockingthe car up, putting a brick on the gas
pedal and coming back in 6 hours or when it runs out of petrol has crossed
my mind several times, but I may as well get some *real* distance in too.

So, ont he weekend, Joel, Cary and I went for a drive to Mogo along the
coast road, travelling through all the coastal towns. Mogo is an old gold
mining town and has its own zoo, so Cary got to see very big pussy cats
(lions) for the first time in his life. He was more interested in being sick
down my shirt....

Then we decided it would be quicker to go back home via the straight flat
freeway at 100kphrather than going through the windy little towns at 50kph
and stopping at all the traffic lights. So we headed up over the coastal
range and the Great Dividing Range to a place where we thought we'd meet the
Hume Highway. Unfortunately what we didn't realise was that this lovely
mountain road was actually taking us steadily south as well as west, so we
ended up onthe outskirts of Canberra  - even further away from home than we
were at Mogo. Still, we did get to see some lovely countryside, saw a
classic Inland country town, Braidwood, unspoiled by the tourist industry
(once the tourist industry gets to a town it filsl with antique shops and
"quaint" coffee houses with exhorbitant prices. I want actual genuine small
town feel, not 'quaint'), and got to visit pretty much every Fast Food
restaurant along the freeway back as Cary kept filling up his nappy and it
was raining so we couldnt' just drive with the windows open.

498km later, and we got home again, much to our relief.

And we have to do that another 20 times before April 1st. *groan*. These are
the times I wish Joel (or even Cary!) could drive.

Yowie

I'm glad you liked my trip report so much :-)  I always post about all
my trips, so if you want to read about previous trips, of which there
are many, just google me and something like "I'm back", "We're back",
"Back home", etc, etc...
I've actually been contacted privately by email by complete strangers
wanting travel advice in Thailand...which I'm always happy to provide

--
Britta
Sandpaper kisses, a cuddle and a purr. I have an alarm clock that's
covered in fur!
Check out pictures of Vino at:
http://photos.yahoo.com/badwilson click on the Vino album

consider

The most memorable vacation DH and I ever took was on a cruise from New
Orleans to Key West to Cancun and back.  Forget all the Mayan ruins and
stuff - what I remember the best is visiting Ernest Hemmingway's house in
Key West and the hundreds and hundreds of polydactyl cats roaming the
premises!

Hugs,

CatNipped