Dental Work, Happy Hour, Rocking at the Rock Shop, and Making Chain Mail, (the Idiots Delight)

I simply can’t believe how fast time flies by! It’s been over a week since I have updated the blog and I guess it’s been because we have been so busy. The past week has seen us busily preparing for the Gulf Coast Gem and Mineral Show, feasting on Happy Hour ribs and brisket, getting caught up on my dental work, and making chain mail,(and yes the pattern is called the Idiots Delight which kind of tells you something).

So let’s get the bad news done first. Last fall I went outside to take a picture of the moon, poking its way through the smoke filled haze. As I was taking images with my mouth open I sneezed and of course my loose dental crown fell out. We spent the next two days looking for it as it fell into gravel, with no luck.

Knowing I now had to plan a trip to Mexico to replace the crown I was so overjoyed that I put it off until my tooth became worse. Deciding that it was time to visit a US dentist, Renita called and found one that had crowns for only 595. So we spent two days driving back and forth from here to Corpus Christi and I had a wonderful time with an extraction and a root canal. Suffice it to say it was more than 595……

The rest of the week was much more pleasant. Our happy hour group had a brisket and ribs cook off and so we all gathered on Friday and enjoyed the work of chefs Jim and Gerry. I of course was restricted to soft food so I concentrated on the desserts. Lois made her carrot cake, (which drew a marriage proposal from one of the men,) and Jane made her homemade and handpicked blackberry pie. They were both to die for!

Saturday we went to the rock shop and I sawed rocks as Renita ground a stunning charoite cabochon As we were working our friend and mentor Dick showed up and gave us his usual expert advice. He told me my beautiful blue chalcedony was dyed and he told Renita her cabochon was asymmetrical, he certainly doesn’t mince words! However at 88 years old he knows about ten times more than we do and so we both thanked him for his input.

Finally I have come up with a design for making chain mail. It’s actually from a silversmith book. I first made a mandrel to form the rings from a piece of straight round wire, then sawed and trimmed each ring, before joining them in a weave pattern called, the Idiots Delight. Now the book says it’s named that because you may feel like an idiot trying to figure it out and suffice it to say I definitely took a while to get it right.

Of course I made my first two in brass and copper and then ordered premade rings from our supplier for one in sterling silver and one in 14k gold filled wire. I really would like to make my own rings from gold and silver but my saw isn’t good enough to cut the rings without a lot of wasted metal. The purchased rings still required me to handle each one three times in preparation for the chaining.

Regardless, I love making the chain mail and the modified necklaces and Renita says I do tend to sit there and grin while making them, hmmmm. Clear skies.

Valentine’s Day, At the Beach of Course!

 

Valentine’s Day arrived and of course the age old dilemma was here, what to do? Candy is out and restaurants rarely have a balanced diet so……Lets go fishing at the beach! I mean doesn’t every women want to don her waders, dress warmly and fish for pompano and whiting?

So Renita made a picnic lunch and we headed for the Padre Island National Seashore. It’s one of our favorite places to fish and beachcomb as there isn’t much pressure. There had also been an article in the newspaper saying that the pompano had been biting and we both love grilled pompano.

It’s a bit of a drive from here, about fifty miles, and it involves riding the ferry so an hour and a half later we reached one of our gps fishing spots. Setting up two poles Renita quickly had a bite and reeled in a whiting. Now whiting are a good white meat, fish so into the ice chest it went.

I added another and then had a good hit that turned out to be a pompano, yeah! For the next three hours we had bite after bite, and had to stop fishing so we could eat lunch. The wind increased and the tide started coming in so it was almost time to leave. We had a dozen whiting and three nice pompano so it looked like dinner would be fresh fish!

The drive home was a lot quicker,(Renita was behind the wheel), and now for the fish cleaning. Renita and our friends all helped. Some even threatened to snatch fish fillets off of the cleaning table. I had to yell at one of the brown pelicans who was almost touching me, and the gulls oh well they are gulls after all.

It didn’t take long and I was soon dipping the whiting fillets into beer batter. Nothing like fish and chips, along with Loretta’s Southwest salad to complete the meal. It was a perfect Valentine’s day, a picnic  on the beach, fishing and a seafood dinner! Clear skies

Rain, Rock, and a Small Show

We taught a wire wrapping class and then it was time to get ready for our shows. So besides going to the shop, for more sawing, we also did some wire wrapping, and getting our display items priced and ready.

Somehow we have reached the point where we have too much stuff. I had a nice talk at the lapidary shop with our friend Mark about the difference between collecting and hoarding and we decided it’s not hoarding if you sell items.

I was actually able to finish sawing the British Columbia and Alaskan Jade and the juror is in. It’s mostly crummy jade. Yes I will be able to make some pieces and yes we do have one piece that is head and shoulders above the other rocks, but for most part the northern jade is simply too fractured, I refuse to wax and buff the jade, which hides the flaws and is what is done with all the Chinese made jade figures sold in Alaska and BC).

Renita did make several beautiful pieces on the grinding wheels, her usual stunning red jasper piece and several leopard skin jasper cabs that are almost too beautiful to sell,)ok we will sell one but only if the price is right).

Back home,(remember we live in a fifth wheel), I made a beautiful 14k gold filled wire/charoite bracelet that we are listing at $495, and that’s a good price for stunning charoite as the others on Etsy at that price are sterling silver. I also wrapped a charoite pendant to match, also in 14k gfw, and priced it at $165.

The morning of our rv parks arts and crafts sale came and so did the rain. Molly and I went for a walk and the rain hit so hard and fast that we got a free bath. It poured as it only does in tropical areas and soon the streets were flooded, (rain amounts were recorded at 3-4 inches in less than three hours.

The rain finally slowed and we were able to set up in the recreation hall. We really didn’t have a lot of hope but it was good for us to practice our setup before our big show in March, (there we have four tables reserved). Both of us were a little surprised as we filled two ten foot tables with ease, and that was just with our cabochons and custom made jewelry, (yep we made it all here in the USA and its hand made one of a kind wearable art).

A few people showed up but we did sell some pieces and we did have more people request another wire wrapping class and so that’s good.  We were not allowed to advertise outside the park as there is no parking here, but that’s ok as this really isn’t our market. Our market is at juried arts and craft shows and gem, mineral, and fossil shows,( did I mention we are also now selling fish fossils, mammoth and mastodon teeth, and even fossil horse teeth from the Peace River in Florida, not collected by us but bought from an estate sale).

So we still have some samples to saw and polish, but for the most part we are show ready. We do hope to have some more success here and we are looking forward to the coming summer in Wyoming. Now if I can just figure out how to make a five piece tiger eye pendant and matching neck wire before we get there….. Clear skies




ps, there is some ok jade in BC but its all sold to China and  the BC jade mine wouldn't sell us any. Plus even the best in Alaska and Canada is not as good as the stunning quality Wyoming nephrite jade, and you can take that to the bank!

Why We Enjoy the Texas Coastal Bend

There are so many beautiful places to spend our winter, and yet we return again and again to The Texas Coastal Bend. This year it’s been the warmest we have ever spent here but that not even the real reason as lots of places are warmer then Wyoming.

Our lifestyle, somewhat of an alternative one, lends us the chance to meet so many nice people and make friends from everywhere. I can’t imagine living in a stick built house, where I would hardly know most of my neighbors. So of course part of it is the friends we have made here but that not the whole reason.

I know the main reason is the water. Having spent most of my life living in the plains and the mountains, the sea has always called and so we choose to spend part of the year in its thrall. Fishing is a big part of it and the past week the fishing has been good at both the South Jetty and in St Charles Bay.

Pete and I had talked at happy hour about going to the South Jetty, at Port Aransas, and so we headed out early armed with live and dead shrimp. The sea was calm and so we headed out to the end and a place where I have caught bull redfish.

There were quite a few there already, and I lost a nice fish on the first cast, but it stayed there and took my second offering. It was a nice black drum and I strung it up with thoughts of fresh fish for dinner. Now if I could catch another Renita could also have fish as she does harp a bit when I catch just one and don’t share it with her, (just kidding of course, did I actually use the word harp).

The fishing was winter slow and it took awhile before I caught a nice sheephead. It’s a fish that most native Texans disdain, but it belongs to the porgy family and they all have a beautiful white flesh that tastes great and are highly prized here by many winter Texans.

No big reds hit our baits and in fact it was slow for the rest of the day, but dinner was assured and we headed back, walking carefully on the slick rocks. Later at happy hour our friend Dave, of Dave and Jane from Michigan, invited me to fish in his boat and of course I took him up on it.

The next morning we headed out into St Charles Bay, just planning on catching some mullet, for bait, and then looking for new fishing spots. The big schools of mullet had disappeared but the fish certainly hadn’t and we caught several small but fun reds and black drum at the first three spots.

Heading back into the bay we continued to fish new places, places I couldn’t reach with our canoe and the rat reds,( a term people use for undersize reds but still fun to catch), and black drum continued to be plentiful. We eventually found a spot that had so many fish that we caught two limits of black drum and a limit of reds. It was a nice day as we fished and watched ducks and whooping cranes.

The rest of the week has been spent getting ready for shows and classes and of course grinding and sawing rocks. The lapidary shop continues to be a place where we spend lots of our winter time but that’s another story for another entry. Clear skies

A Lazy Day Paddling in St Charles Bay

 

We had hoped to launch at Big Tree but the tide was so low that we would have had to portage the canoe across the mud. So instead we drove to Goose Island State Park and launched the boat. It was still so low that I had to wade and drag the canoe from the west side of the parking lot, but soon enough we were both dipping our oars in the shallow water and gliding toward the mouth of St Charles Bay.

The first stop was at a favorite gap, in which I have caught quite a few speckled trout. The trout weren’t there and the only bites we had were small sheephead. An airboat of duck hunters came in and ran right over our lines and so I flipped them off as there were plenty of other places to cross in shallow water.

I have duck hunted and it isn’t just some duck hunters, it’s really anyone that is a complete and self centered ass*^&@. So we wound in our lines and paddled further into the mouth, heading for another pass. As we rowed we saw several pairs of oyster catchers and were even treated to watching a pair perform their mating dance.

Reaching the next channel we cast out but no fish bothered our lines and it was ok, just a nice lazy day on St Charles Bay. Heading back we turned the canoe to the outside of the oyster bars and again we were treated to birds that didn’t mind our nearness.

Willets and a long billed curlew were just some of the usual fare, but it was still a treat to be so close. Reaching the first pass another pair of oyster catchers entertained us and Renita even caught several sheephead. Releasing them our daughter called and so we talked about her new job.

I nearly fell asleep until the seat back collapsed and dumped me into a prone position into the canoe. I had to laugh as I have started a diet and it’s pretty obvious that I need to lose more weight when the seats breakJ.

Returning to that put in point, we loaded the boat but our bird watching wasn’t yet over. Three rosette spoonbills waded and fed in shallow water and Renita’s camera snapped away. It had been a nice day, a lazy day really, and that’s okay as sometimes it not about the fish, but instead a relaxing day on the water. Clear skies.

 

Paddling St Charles Bay, Whooping Cranes and Redfish, January 2013

I really do have some good images for this post, hmmmmm

I looked up at about the same time as I heard the whoopers. Renita had just cast out and was winding in the extra slack and so she hadn’t seen yet them. I told her to look up and she quickly grabbed her camera. Of course her pole doubled over as did mine and we had a double on! I fought in my fish but she simply stepped on her rod and kept snapping image after image as the whoppers flew overhead.

It has been cold here in Texas and so as soon as the weather warmed we loaded the canoe and headed to St Charles Bay. There we hoped to catch a glimpse of whoopers and perhaps catch a few fish for dinner. Regardless it would be a good day to paddle near Lamar.

As we launched four whooping cranes flew across the sky and you, (I), could even hear their distinctive call. Several birders had taken up stands at the canoe launch site and of course they were enjoying their quick glimpse of the white birds.

Heading out we paddled smoothly across water that had a small ripple but clear water none the less. We passed and disturbed several schools of mullet. We could see a whopping crane family in the distance and so we went wide as we didn’t want to disturb them. Two other kayakers actually landed on the beach and took images, which I thought was a little close, but the whoopers didn’t seem concerned.

Reaching an abandoned duck blind we anchored and cast out some live shrimp, but no redfish or black drum disturbed our poles. I knew it wouldn’t always be so easy and so we moved to another spot hoping the fish would be there.

Now there are several types of fisherman, those that anchor on a spot and those that like to move. I of course am a person who has little patience and so we decided to move again. The second spot was also devoid of trout or black drum and so we paddled to a protected cove.

Renita handed me my lunch and as we ate her pole jerked violently when a redfish blasted the shrimp! She adroitly grabbed her pole and balancing the sandwich on her knee she fought the fish in! I netted it and then my pole got hammered, we had found the fish!

We caught redfish and black drum and while they were mostly small Renita did catch and keep two legal reds for dinner. For the next two hours the bite was on and we were rewarded with a fun day of birds and fish and another memory.

Running out of bait the fish slowed and it was time for more images as Renita aimed her camera at passing night crowned herons. The wind picked up and so we had to fight back to the landing, taking water over the side from larger waves.

It didn’t really matter as it’s so shallow here that we were in no danger, after all I could always get out and wade and drag the canoe. It had been a fine day and we had ended up seeing twelve whooping cranes, along with Renita’s catch of a twenty one and twenty three inch redfish. Fish dinner tonight and maybe a side of cornbread. Clear skies

 

 

 

Florida to Rockport, a Quick Run

So after leaving south Florida we headed north into the cold and rain. We pushed hard for three days and the only excitement was when a drunk tried to drive around the bayou in Beaumont Texas, (It was right in the middle of the rv park we were in,(the emergency rescue were still looking for the driver when we left).
The westbound I 10 road in Louisiana was actually better and so the trip was uneventfully. The truck worked fine and the house held up. It was just so cold compared to south Florida! As we neared Rockport we were greeted by two pairs of whopping cranes. The first was at Cavasso Creek and the second a little further south. It was the first time we have ever seen them there, so it augurs well for our birding.
It was nice arriving at our usual winter spot and seeing old friends, however it is so empty here, is it the economy, are there fewer people retiring? Anyway we have lots of Alaskan and Canadian jade that needs to be cut and Renita has some larimar to work that I got her for Christmas. Not every body can give their wife a rock for Christmas and get away with it:).
Clear skies