Life in Smithville and the RVICS Village

We're settling into Smithville and life here in the village. Everything in town is a short bike ride away so we try and use that form of transportation for short errands as well as visits to the local donut shop, hardware store or Dairy Queen. The town is larger then we originally thought and there are many ways to navigate using the residential streets avoiding the rural highway that runs through the center of town.

We are adjusting to the train noise. Union Pacific Railroad: Smithville, TX Depot is a transportation hub that serves as a vital link in the railway network, facilitating the movement of goods and materials across the region, therefore, we hear trains throughout the day and night. Every trip to and from the village requires traveling over the four tracks entering the depot and first it was difficult to get used to the trains horns in the distance. But now we are accustomed to them and amazed how we've come to appreciate the sound of an approaching train, reminiscent of a past era.

Karen has found a chiropractor in Bastrop and will be using that office for adjustments while we are in the area. Bastrop has a huge HEB grocery store and a Walmart we'll use for our provisioning. When we were there shopping earlier in the week we stopped at the Tractor Supply, Dollartree and Harbor Freight. Bastrop has all the big box stores off the main highway. We checked out the town of La Grange later in the week. It is about the same distance as Bastrop but south of Smithville. It is less busy according to villagers and has the nearest VA Clinic if needed. The HEB store there is smaller but not as crowded; there's a RAM dealership as well.

Karen also recently found us a local dentist in Smithville and we both had appointments. This completed our needed annual dental check ups and cleanings. This is yet another convenience in our new base of operation. Our plan for the next three months is to leave the rig here during our scheduled future travels in December and January.

On Thanksgiving Day, Thursday November 28 we drove up to have the holiday dinner at the home of Frank and Nina Phelan, Karen's cousins who live in Cedar Park, Texas which is north of Austin. Cousin Cass and Auntie Ann were also part of the celebration. It was great to be together with Auntie Ann and the rest of her side of the family. After a wonderful meal and family fellowship we returned home with plenty of leftovers that we will finish before leaving again on December 1.

From left to right: Frank, Nina, Cass, Auntie Ann, John and Karen. Thank you for inviting us to join y'all. The turkey, ham, and all the fixins' were awesome. Dessert included pumpkin and pecan pies.

Smithville has a Christmas Festival and parade every holiday season. Throughout the town gingerbread panels decorate the streets and homes. The gingerbread man, later named “Smitty,” became a reality on Dec. 2, 2006, at the 16th annual Festival of Lights celebration in Smithville, Texas. He weighed 1,308 lbs, 8 oz and measured 20 feet from head-to-toe. He consisted of 750 lbs of flour, 49 gallons of molasses, and 72 dozen eggs (separated!). He was baked over a dump truck load of charcoal before being raised by crane to an angle of 65 degrees in order to qualify for the Guinness World Record.