No, we are not at Saint Peter’s Basilica. But we are near a royal place. People have their own most reverent places to go. Folks might go to Saint Peter’s, the Hurva Synagogue, the Pashupatinath Temple, the Masjid al‑Haram Mosque. The Simpsons go to the First Church of Springfield. The Slowskys go to Franklin’s BBQ… Read More The Basilica of ATX – May 2023
Resort. I had to look up the word because I felt I may have missed or forgotten its’ meaning. I mean, it’s not like we have never stayed in a resort. In fact, we have stayed in some of the finest resorts in the world. Years ago, I called on some of the top resort… Read More RV Resort – Nov 2022
We don’t write a year-in-review post every year, but when we do, I always start by thinking, what the hell did we even do this past year? And after going through our pictures, I’m like – wow – we did a bunch! Of course, this is not an historical world view of 2021 – just… Read More 2021 in Review – Dec 2021
I had never heard of this place, but leave it to my bride to always find really cool places. Palo Duro Canyon State Park in Canyon, TX must be one of the biggest state parks in the country, is listed as the second largest canyon in the country, and clearly one of the most interesting… Read More Palo Duro Canyon – Apr 2021
If you are vegan, please stop reading now. You won’t find anything I say or do even slightly amusing or entertaining. You’ll just get the same feeling my wife feels about me. Many years back during a multi-city, multi-day marketing event, a colleague and good friend who shall remain nameless (Brian Giuffrida) nicknamed our marketing… Read More Carnivore Tour – Apr 2021
I’ll get to Goose Island in a second – bear with me. We are headed to see our kids, and we are jazzed! They moved away. Now we go to them. You can run, but you can’t hide from your parents. Our trip to see our son in Denver begins in Atlanta and heads towards… Read More Goose Island – Apr 2021
2020 has been the worst year ever – right? Watching 2020 unfold was like watching porn. First it was titillating, then it felt unseemly, and lastly you got a sinking feeling in the pit in your stomach like you get two minutes after wolfing down a quarter pounder and large fry. No happy ending, so… Read More 2020 in Review – Dec 2020
Thanksgiving won’t be the same this year with Covid; limited or no travel, no big gatherings – I think we all know the list of “not that”. We won’t be with our kids this year – first time ever. Nevertheless, it is a time for thanks! We will be doing a Zoom call with the… Read More Thanksgiving Retro Style – Nov 2020
Want to know the most beautiful road in America? We’ll get to that shortly. Patience (Yoda). We finished up our stint at the fireworks show, and were now prepared to head east towards home. But we wanted to map a route that a) was not on interstate highways, b) was pretty and/or interesting, and c)… Read More Eastward Ho! – Feb 2020
“The stars at night are big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas.” Technically we are a bit south and west of the heart of Texas, but I think we can be forgiven for a little literary license. We have been to many parts of Texas, yet we have barely scratched the surface. For… Read More Southwest Texas – Feb 2020
It’s been three years since our last visit to Big Bend National Park (TX), and we again realize why we love this place so much. It is not for the “epic” things you see (think Mount Rushmore, Half Dome, El Capitan…), but instead the myriad “little” things of beauty here. The fact is, you can… Read More Big Bend NP – Feb 2020
Keep Austin weird. We’re doing our part, just by being here. Forgive me if I repeat myself, but Austin is one of our favorite places. One of these days we’re just going to have to spend a month or two here – get it out of our system. But for now… We took several walks… Read More Austin – Jan 2020
We are camped at an Airstream-only campground (NTAC – North Texas Airstream Community) in Hillsboro, TX as a home base for a few days. I think it is common knowledge that we Airstreamers are like lemmings. “Lemmings have periodic population booms and then disperse in all directions, seeking the food and shelter their natural habitats… Read More Waco – Jan 2020
OK, so it’s been awhile. I know. I thought I no longer needed the self-therapy of writing blog posts, but Karen has convinced me that my mental instability is in dire need of some serious assistance – she has informed me I am neither stable or a genius. WTF. We headed west (from Atlanta) to… Read More Winter Road Trip – Jan 2020
If our stay in Palm Springs was sublime, then our very short stay in Austin was ridiculous. We LOVE Austin, although this time around we did not get to stay nearly long enough as we would like – practically an overnight. We traveled from Palm Springs and a campground (Outdoor Resort) that was very homogenous,… Read More Austin – Mar 2018
Almost to the day for me, it has been 3 years since I (we) retired. Oh, how I miss those days of quarterly, monthly, weekly, daily, hourly forecasts… And who doesn’t love a well-placed flaming email distributed to the world. After retirement, one is forced to forego the joys and luxury of business travel: cramped… Read More 3 Years Post Retirement – Mar 2017
Let me just start by saying that on Monday morning I will be checking myself into the Betty Ford Detox Center for Barbecue Abuse. Grab a cold beer or two and sit back – this was quite a stop on our journey. We made Austin a destination on our trip for two very good reasons:… Read More Austin SXSW – Mar 2017
It has been years but we revisited San Antonio, home to the Alamo, the Riverwalk – and the Pearl Neighborhood. We used this chance to meet up with friends, enjoy the Riverwalk, and test out a few craft beers and some excellent food. We had heard or been told that the Pearl neighborhood was a… Read More San Antonio – Mar 2017
Bubbling crude… oil that is… black gold… Texas tea… a few of us remember the Beverly Hillbillies. West Texas represents to me a microcosm of some of the many challenges we face today; the tension between growth, convenience, natural preservation and environmental protection. West Texas is an area that encapsulates these challenges perhaps better than… Read More West Texas – Mar 2017
We have checked the Guadalupe Mountains National Park box. Typically when we visit a national park we say to ourselves that we will absolutely have to come back to visit stuff we weren’t able to see. There is much (let’s call that most) of the park we did not see. But for whatever reason I… Read More Guadalupe Mountains NP – Mar 2017
Our destiny is clear: Get to Mesa (AZ) in plenty of time to set up and watch the Superbowl, with the New England Patriots facing off against the Atlanta Falcons. This is clearly a game I want both teams to win, being as we spent most of our lives in New England and have lived… Read More Bowie, AZ – Feb 2017
Karen, Dottie and I have been commissioned by our new “leadership” and his crack team to figure out the best place for the new wall on the Mexican border to go, and of course any décor items that might compliment it. We have looked around, and I think I have some great ideas! It’s all… Read More Big Bend – Jan 2017
Karen and I are here in southwest Texas in our quest to find the coldest part of America; seems we are on track. Seriously, we are about to head into Big Bend National Park but are camped just outside the park in Marathon, TX. Marathon is a cute little town of about 500 residents. You… Read More Marathon, TX – Jan 2017
Since departing Atlanta, we have been living in high society. FDR stayed in his “Little White House”. William Hearst stayed in the Hearst Castle. Two nights ago we camped in the parking lot of the Cracker Barrel Restaurant somewhere in Mississippi, and stayed in another one last night in Waco, Texas. I’m sorry, but does… Read More Waco, TX – Jan 2017
The National Park Service was created this month in 1916, one hundred years ago, “to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and wildlife therein, and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”, and… Read More National Park Service 100th Anniversary – Aug 2016
Just when you thought it was safe to head west… Arghh! The Roberts’ are doin’ it – again! Sad but true, as I write these thoughts we are but miles from the California border, sitting on BLM (Bureau Land Management) lands in Quartzite, AZ. But I get ahead of myself. We started our journey west… Read More Heading West – Jan 2016
Austin is a really cool town; dog friendly, eclectic, great food, music. We were in town shortly after Austin, TX had received a boatload of rain; the waters came up to the statue of Stevie Ray Vaughan. But this is one of our favorite towns! Stayed at Pecan Grove, which is one of our favorite… Read More Austin – Oct 2013
Can you say Hoss? That’s right – this is where Hoss Cartwright from Bonanza hales (or went to school, or something). Alpine, TX – pretty close to the middle of nowhere, but home to Sul Ross State University. Now you are surely saying, why didn’t you say so? NOW I know where you were!
If this isn’t just the coolest place on earth, I don’t know what would be. Marfa, TX is pretty much in the middle of nowhere (not too far in a relative sort of way to Big Bend National Park); artsy, fartsy mixed with throw down farmers and cattle hands. Fabulous destination if you have a… Read More Marfa (TX) – October 2013