ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS BELIEVE...

Its been a while since I have posted to my blog and my favorite daughter-in-law (Stacey) just reminded me of that when she called to wish me Happy Birthday. That's right I'm a year older and having the time of my life. By the way, I'm 66, just incase you wanted to know.

I am still in San Jose,CA and to be honest, when I got here I knew what I wanted to do, I just did not know how to do it, or where to start. But I BELIEVED it would happen. And sure enough it did.
On February 4th I start a volunteer internship at the Golden Gate National Park and I could not be more pleased. They will give me a place to live and pay me $500.00 a month for food.(don't tell them but I would have done it for free). For the last 4 weekends I have been volunteering at the Marin Headlands and learning to give tours at the Point Bonita Lighthouse. Last week they gave me an interview for the intern position, and I got it. I think the only person on the planet who is happier than I am is my sister Ethel (she gets her bathroom back).

My commitment is for 8 month, but the best part is when it is completed I will be able to apply at any National Park in the country. So look out Yogi Bear, there's a new Brown Bear in Town.

This is the Bonita Point Lighthouse where I will be spending a lot of time over the next 8 months
and if the last 4 weekend are any indication, I'm going to have a ball.

Just let me take a moment and say to you retired folks out there, if you're tired of sitting on the couch in the winter months, watching reruns of Walker Texas Ranger and Matlock, go on the internet and google National Parks/Volunteer, you might be surprised to find there are some great adventures out there to be had. Now don't get me wrong, you don't have to be old or retired, volunteers come in all ages,sizes and colors. So think about it.


The little church in the foreground is now the visitor center for the Marin Headlands and another place where I will be spending a lot of my time. The building in the background is much like the housing where I'll be living for the next 8 months.

Ever weekend when I go to the park, I take my camera, and I say to myself, "SELF" don't take anymore photos of the Golden Gate Bridge, you have enough.

I'm sorry, every time I drive over the hills at the Headlands the bridge takes on a totally different
mood and I just can't help myself.

I love this bridge, and me and a million others are in these hills and much as possible taking photos. Below are a few more photos I've taken while at the Lighthouse or just driving in the hills of Marin Headlands.

The coastline just west of the Golden Gate.

When I spotted this group of Pelicans from the the lighthouse, it reminded me of the Blue Angles
I shot at the Cleveland Air Show.

I don't know why, but every day I have been at the Bonita Point Lighthouse at about 2:30pm
a formation of pelicans do a flyover.

Ok, just a one more shot and I'll sign off.

Sorry, I just had to do it.

Over the years, I have had some great jobs, but this is a great adventure and what I have dreamed about doing for many years. It's great to be able to live your dream.

Oh by the way, Bob got his first wash and wax job since we've been on the road and he lovin it

Bob's very happy to have a few month off the road, and maybe if he's lucky, he'll get to take that thing off his head.

Take care gang, and I'll do better with my postings. I promise.

Bob and Me

THE PRESIDIO OF SAN FRANCISCO, WHERE DID IT GO.

Please forgive me for taking such a long time between post , but I really do have other things going on. Like trying to get a volunteer position at The Golden Gate National Parks as my first volunteer spot which will enable me to volunteer in other parks around the country.

The reason I want to start with the The Golden Gate National Parks is that it use to be an army

base. And I spent a lot of time there...

Back in the late 60' after doing a year in Vietnam I was stationed at Walter Reed General Hospital on the Presidio Army Base right in the middle of one of the most beautiful city's in the world, San Francisco, CA..

After working in surgery, as a surgical scrub technician for about 6 months, I transferred to Letterman Army Institute of Research (L.A.I.R.), where I became a Surgical Research Photographer in Dental Research (pretty impressive huh).

Because I had a family (my wife Cheryl and my son Gary Jr.) the army supplied me with housing
at Fort Barry on the North side of the Golden Gate Bridge.


Above are a few views from the Fort Barry Hills and I have to say it was a wonder place
to be stationed.
Yes, this is the house where we lived and is now housing Park employees.
Back in the 70's the developers very much wanted to get their hands on this property, but the people fought to give it to the National Parks and to the people.
Hard to believe, they actually did the RIGHT THING.
I will let you know how I do with the volunteering. So stay tuned.



Bob and Me





PS...To my brother Jim, get off your butte and go play some golf in some warm weather.

BOBS FIRST BURRITO

On that long ride though Texas I told Bob about my favorite burrito place in San Francisco. Its a little hole in the wall place called El Faro, so as soon as we got to The City (that's what the locals call it, tourist call it Frisco)Bob would not let me go to San Jose to see my sister Ethel until we went to 20th and Folsom Street in the Mission District of San Francisco for an El Faro Super Burrito.
When I first started coming here the burritos were 99 cents and they were huge, now they are 6 bucks but the quality is still there, they are still huge and still the best burrito in San Francisco.
How do I know that, because I'm Gary Burnett Sr. That's how I know that.

I wanted to sit down at a table and eat my burrito while I did a little people watching. But Bob, Mr. Big Shot, said he had a better idea.

OK,OK... even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then.
It was a foggy day but it was beautiful and somehow made that burrito taste even better.

They tell me it is going to rain here in Sunny California for about two weeks. So I am going to stay with my sister and her family for a while and as soon as the rain lets up we'll head in to San Francisco.

Gary Burnett Sr. and BOB









P.S. My Son and his Lovely wife have sent me a very nice note that they miss me, and I really miss them to, and I forgive me daughter-in-law for giving my room to Kim.

I KNEW THERE WAS A REASON I DIDN'T LIKE TEXAS

And now I remember. When I was in the army and stationed at Fort Sam Houston, TX for my medical training. This is what I remember...

Nothing for miles and miles and miles. So let me give you a little tip... If you ever get the chance
to drive from Austin,TX to California on Route 10...DON'T!!!!!!

If they could cut out the Texas part of the drive, it wouldn't be bad, but Texas never ends and this is all you see.

Looks like cotton doesn't it?

Maybe we'd better get a closer look.

Yup, that's cotton.

And of course more and more road.

I have been telling Bob about the best burrito in San Francisco. So that's where we are headed and to visit family in Northern California.

Oh- By the way, for those of you who have been putting comments on my blog. I promise to read and respond when I can. So please feel free to comment.

Love you all,
Bob and Me

A PLAN WOULD BE NICE

Bob and I arriving at my daughters house in Austin, Texas
(I wasn't going to use this photo but Bob thought it showed his good side).

I have talked about doing this road trip for a very long time and you would think I would have made better plans. You know, things like, where to stay, how long to stay,who to stay with and other stuff like that.
Thank God I have great family, who lets me drop in and stay with them as long as I need to. As I get further and further away from my home base in Cleveland, Ohio the more I realize that I should have spent more time on the internet researching the things I plan to do while I am traveling. Instead of sitting on my butte, watching reruns of Walker, Texas Ranger I should have been on the net doing a little research. Hey, that's what life's all about. To live and to learn.
So now I have to work on the fly,and make some arrangements that will put me in one of the National Parks by January. After all, Ethel (you remember her, my mean sister) can't put me up forever.

What I'm trying to say here folks, is "don't be like me", do a little homework. If you do, your family won't have to pay for your mistakes.

That being said, lets move on to a few more photos around Austin and then on to California.

I'm sorry about that, I wanted to get a picture of the State Capital of Texas, but as you can see, someone wants to be in every shot.

That's better.

This is the Frost Building. I don't know why it's well known, but it is.

Austin, Texas skyline form the famous Congress Bridge. Why is it famous you ask? Because at dusk, millions of bats take wing to feed, they say if it were not for the bats, Austin would be over run with insects. People come from all over the world to see this amazing site.

If you want to watch the traffic or maybe catch a nice sunset, one of the best places in Austin to do that is over looking the 360 Bridge where it crosses the Colorado River.

It's been a wonderful time in Austin with my daughter my grandson and Clayton but it's time to move on. We're heading down the road. Bob and I will being traveling along Route 10 from Texas to California.

We'll keep in touch

Bob and Me

MORE ABOUT AUSTIN

I HAVE TO GET THIS POST FINISHED OR I'LL GET ANOTHER CALL FROM MY DAUGHTER-IN-LAW STACY AND HER FRIEND KIM.

I have left Austin but I still have a few things to share with you about my stay there. So please forgive me for not keeping up with the blog in real time. Of course if I did keep up in real time,
blogging would be about all I'd have time for.

Two of the greatest things I liked about Austin... The first, is my daughters great cooking. While I was staying with her, she made one of the best Pound Cakes I ever eaten. And a Peach Cobbler that made you want to slap somebody. I'm not sure where she learned to cook, but I think she picked a lot of it up from Julia Child.

Ok folks, my daughter likes to have a little wine when she cooks and she has been saving the corks over a long period of time or my daughter is a wine-o.Where ever she picked it up from, she still a fantastic cook.

The second, is the legendary Texas BBQ. Now I've had pork ribs, beef ribs and baby back ribs,
but I had never had real Texas BBQ Beef Brisket.

My first experience with Brisket was at Rudy's. They tell me that Rudy's pits are fired with 100
per cent oak wood which burn much slower than the mesquite used by others. All I know for sure, is that it taste great.

My almost son-in law (Clayton) said he would take me to the small town of Lockhart the BBQ Capitol of Texas, where some of the oldest BBQ joints in the country are located.

When you step into Lockhart you truly step back in time about a hundred years. With beautiful tree lined streets, lots of antique shops and world famous barbecue restaurants (Blacks and Smitty's to name a couple).

Right in the center of town is the Caldwell County Courthouse, completed in 1894 and quite a site to see. Ok, I did not have the time to go around and get the history on all the building in Lockhart but if you really want to know, then get off of this blog and google Lockhart, Texas.

Here is a quick look around town...

This has to be one of the first in the country.

I tried some of the other BBQ places, and even though they had a lot more history,

I think Rudy's is still my favorite.

We use to call my youngest grandson "Baby Joey",
Now we just call him "Joey".

As you can see my family are all such posers, That's why I love them.

Well there you go, some photos and some words, I guess that's what a blog is. You can probably tell I'm getting tired so I'll take a break for now and finish this up latter.

Thanks to all for following,
Gary and Bob