The unexpected highlight of our weekend was an invitation to judge the 7th Annual Rib Roast BBQ competition, presented by the Outlaw BBQ Association. Friday’s wet weather and plunging temperatures may have dampened some of the enthusiasm and produced a few cancellations, but the main competition commenced on Saturday, as planned, and we found ourselves…
The threat of severe weather throughout Friday afternoon dominated the local news for days. Our weekend at Loyd Park was dependent on one thing: a stop, en route, at Discount Tire in Grand Prairie, to evaluate a screw that had found its way into our tread. Would the storm strike at the precise hour Cloud…
The summer of 2022 has been one for the records, at least in terms of triple-digit temperatures and lack of rain. But this weekend brought a break in both. We arrived on Friday afternoon to set up camp and begin preparing for Date Night. With temperatures in the low 90s, it took only about an…
“Anyone who loves the law or sausages should never watch either being made.” That idiom came to mind this weekend as we became aware of the various parts of the pig that go into the Mexican version of chorizo, a highly seasoned ground or chopped sausage: lips, lymph nodes, salivary glands–you get the idea. Typically,…
All right. We surrender. It’s summertime, and the livin’ ain’t easy. As much of North Texas sweats through a string of record-setting heat waves, we are beginning to refashion our lives simply to survive the ultramarathon of misery that now defines our white-hot summer. We already limit our weekend activities to the early morning hours,…
Once again, we spent our weekend avoiding the summer swelter. That meant limiting our outdoor activities to morning walks and evening cookouts, spending the better part of the day in Cloud 9’s air-conditioned comfort. It even seemed like the birds took a break. Jon noted on our Sunday morning walk that there wasn’t as much…
Next week, we will likely experience our highest summer temperatures to date, with predicted highs reaching 107 degrees, and the potential for heat indexes to be even higher. But for this weekend, with temperatures in the low triple-digits, we enjoyed the shady surrounds of Site 10 at Loyd Park. Although it’s normal for temperature highs…
Over the course of a sizzling summer weekend, Jon read a profile in The New York Times about a couple who recently married. It concluded with the line, “We’re both looking forward to a chapter of domestic bliss, where we stay at home on Sundays and do the crossword and read.” Although we didn’t spend…
This weekend, we camped at Loyd Park, along the western side of Joe Pool Lake. With record-breaking heat, we were concerned that it would be difficult to keep Cloud 9 at a comfortable 73 degrees, but Loyd Park’s dense tree canopy made climate control more manageable. We arrived on Friday in time to set up,…
We traveled to Cedar Hill State Park to get away from March Madness, only to find ourselves surrounded by it. The park was crowded with campers of every sort, including Boy Scouts in tents, newbies in Class B’s, seasoned pros on electric scooters and first-timers. Having done this routine for more than eight years, we…
Garinns on the Go 