Rainy Beach Day

Today Chris and I went to South Padre Island for a day at the beach with friends.  The men and the kids played in the water and then braved inevitable sand in every crevice of their bodies to build a sandcastle.

Sandcastle with mote detail.

Not pictured above were the grey skies that erupted into thunder, lightening, and rain.  All sandcastle construction halted, and we ran for the car.  Doug ran the fastest, as he is terrified by thunder and lightening even when safely hiding in a kitchen cabinet.

Doug during a thunderstorm in San Antonio.

Driving home in the thunderstorm turned out to be even more exciting than running from the thunderstorm on the beach.  Our friend, who drove us all to the beach in his minivan, was unphased by the heavy rains.  Overcoming minimal visibility, slowing traffic, and large amounts of water, he flipped on his hazard lights and plowed through the rain, wove through cars, and passed several vehicles stopped on the shoulder.  His driving was so confident that he turned his head from the road to converse with Chris several times and at one point, reached one of his arms behind the passenger seat to grab a trash bag barely within his reach.  I considered wearing two seat belts.

We made it home safe in the end, so perhaps I was needlessly nervous throughout the stunt-drive home; or, perhaps I will insist that Chris drive next time.            

Smart Phone Surgery

In January 2009, Chris replaced the screen in my old laptop.  A few months ago, he built his own computer.  This week, he began operations to save his phone.

Although the outcome for the phone is to-be-determined, I admire his tenacity for building and repairing electronics.  The only thing I consistently repair around the house is the dog's leash.

A Gala Evening

Last week Chris and I went to a Gala, also known as a fundraising banquet.  Although we sat at a table with only four other couples, the excessive number of glasses, plates, and utensils on the table made it appear as if at least four times as many people were present.  I understand that a fundraising banquet must achieve a certain level of opulence to earn the title "gala," but doing that by providing dinner guests with a glass for each hand and each foot is just ridiculous.

Luckily, the fundraising cause was in no way as ridiculous as the plethora of dishes littering our table.  After spending two hours learning about the Idea public schools, I have a new respect for education in the Valley.  And the yummy chocolate cake for dessert, with an edible Idea logo, almost made up for the  ridiculousness of the table arrangements.

Weekend Feasting

The theme this weekend was good food, and lots of it.  

Saturday lunch: fish with a Haitian tomato-base sauce; rice with bean sauce; mashed potatoes, corn, green beans, pasta, salad, fresh rolls, banana bread, sweet potato pie, and red velvet ice cream.  

Saturday evening: popcorn with yeast flakes, fruit smoothies, and bread with edamame hummus, black olive mock caviar, and artichoke and cashew cream dip.  

Sunday breakfast: walnut pancakes, strawberries and fresh pineapple, and hot-from-the-oven triple berry muffins. 

Sunday Dinner: Spanish rice, tostadas, and chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and a chocolate-chip cream cheese filling.  

Praise God for times of plenty.  

C.A.R.E. Group

Last Thursday was our final C.A.R.E. group meeting for a few weeks.  C.A.R.E. stands for Christ's Attitude Reflected in Everyone.  We learn how to reflect Christ's attitude the old fashioned way: by studying the bible.  Even Doug joined the group.

We spent the last ten weeks reading Hebrews 11 and the stories of Old Testament characters of faith.  In doing so, we learned the characteristics of faith.

• Faith is the foundation for pleasing God (Hebrews 11: 6, "But without faith it is impossible to please Him").
• Faith does not require perfection (Hebrews 11:31, "By faith the Harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe").
• Faith is an action (Hebrews 11:8, "By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance).
• Faith is powerful (Hebrews 11: 39, "By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land); 
• Faith is your testimony (Hebrews 11: 39, "And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith).
• Faith is simple (Hebrews 11:6, "for he who comes to God must believe that He is), and at the same time, it is complex (Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen").
• Faith is rewarding (Hebrews 11:13, "These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were ensured of them").

And, on the note of rewards, C.A.R.E. group is also about feasting your stomach and making good friends.  Cheers!

Cow Bell

Last week at Chick-Fil-A, the mascot cow made an appearance.  The cow walked around tables and high-fived swarms of excited kids.  Following the cow was another employee who constantly rang a small cow bell and helped the cow maneuver.  For the first time in my life I thought, "In this scenario, I would prefer to be the person wearing the cow suit."

Beach Day

Family Beach Day

South Padre Sand Dune

Beach Ball

Dirty Beach Dog

La Pulga

Today I went to the one of the biggest flea markets in the Valley.   While parking was free, entrance was a whopping fifty cents a head.  It was a fifty-cents well spent.

In one stall, I found the exact same discman that I used to own in high school, when discmans were at the height of technology.  Seeing the discman brought back so many memories of high school trips in an old bus and16 passenger vans.  

There were a lot of stalls at the flea market selling health and beauty aids, which included a surprising number of prescription medicines.  Need some Viagra?  Looking for a do-it-yourself Depo Provera injection?  Then I know just the flea market for you!

In addition to prescription strength medicine, the flea market offers a barber shop, multiple salons, and even an attorney (who is just steps from a stall selling chickens, ducks, and rabbits).  The flea market really is a one stop shop for all your needs.  One thing I did not need, however, was the Jabon Blanqueador.  I think the only way to make my skin any lighter is to make it transparent.

In the end, the only things Chris and I purchased at the flea market were nachos and a fried spiral potato on a stick.  We considered purchasing a lawn vacuum, excited to learn that such a device exists.   We even witnessed the machine suck-up cigarette butts and cardboard from the asphalt.  

In the end, though, we couldn't even commit to the lawn vacuum.  With all the leaves in our yard (apparently autumn in the Valley happens in March), I think we may regret not taking our chances.

Go Doug Go!

It happened two weeks ago. Doug was in the back yard begging to play fetch. Chris and I were on the patio duly ignoring Doug's requests. Then, in a moment of desperation, Doug turned to his GoDogGo and finally put into action the prior month's training. It was an exciting moment and has since been followed by many exciting moments of independent fetch playing.

As Doug has become more comfortable with his automatic ball launcher, he has learned the noises that the machine makes as launch time becomes closer and closer.  The building anticipation associated with Doug's understanding of the machine's noises causes him to impatiently bark at the machine every single time it winds up and prepares to launch.  I feel sorry for my neighbors but not enough to turn off the machine.

I previously posted a blog in which I estimated that Chris and I may very well throw Doug's ball over 30,000 times if he lives the expected lifespan of a Jack Russell Terrier.  Now, with the GoDogGo, that number has the potential to be significantly less.  I like the sound of that, almost as much as I like the sound of Doug's impatient barking as he wears himself out in the backyard.

Oh So Very Library

I recently rediscovered the public library.  When I'm at the library, I don't feel pressure to find a good book.  Instead, I pick books based on their cover, plot description, and accolades.  If I decide I don't like a book after 30 minutes of reading at home, I can quit reading without feeling guilt for having purchased the book with my own money.  When I find myself interested in a book, however, I am suddenly motivated to finish reading it because I have a set deadline within which I must return it to the library.   So I guess what I'm trying to say is that reading a book borrowed from the library simultaneously frees me from commitment and commits me to rapid reading.       

South Padre Island . . . Again!

Camping, the beach, and new friends? Yes, please, especially if it involves kite-flying, ball-chasing, weanie-raosting, song-singing, bible-reading, picture-taking shenanigans by the seaside.

South Padre Island is quickly becoming one of my favorite Valley places.  

La Sal del Rey

I love exploring a new place, and that's what I've been doing since I moved to the Rio Grande Valley.  This weekend's explorations ended at La Sal Del Rey, a natural salt lake that was mined into the 1930's and still holds nearly four million tons of salt.  This weekend, La Sal Del Rey was mostly salt and soggy lake bottom with little water, which made for a wide-open expanse of nothingness. I liked it.

Bad Week?

I could write that this was a bad week for me.  On Tuesday, I locked my keys inside my car . . . while my car was still running.  I immediately called Chris and reported the emergency.  Chris dropped everything at work, drove to my office, and unlocked my car within 30 minutes.

Yesterday, I struck a concrete pole with my car in the parking lot at work.  My bumper was the only property damaged as a result of my blunder.  Nonetheless, security specialists in the building where I work reviewed the security cameras that recorded the accident, photographed the lack-of-damage to the concrete poll, and instructed me to draft an incident memo for internal files.  Frustrated and embarrassed, I called Chris for comfort.  An hour later, Chris was at my office with a giant arrangement of flowers.

Today, my bothersome wisdom took was finally extracted.  I remember very little about the actual surgery due to a wonderful intravenous sedative, but the surgery and the sedative left me a little groggy.  Chris took the day off work, drove me to and from my appointment, picked-up my post-surgery prescriptions, and spent the day preparing no-chew meals for me.  

Considering the oral surgery, a minor vehicle accident, and locking my keys inside my running car, I could write that this was a bad week.  Thanks to Chris, though, the week wasn't so bad after all.

Kite Festival

This weekend Chris and I went to a kite festival.  We went with my great aunt and great uncle, who are winter Texans in a neighboring town.  As it turns out, the rest of the crowd at the kite festival were also winter Texans.  This made me feel really young.

In addition to stationary kites and crowds of winter Texans, the kite festival featured stunt kites performing choreographed routines to music.  One man flew two kites at once.  Another group raced six kites in impressively untangled formations.  Other performances, however, reminded me of Napoleon Dynamite's performing with the Happy Hands sign language club.  One man flew his kite to music from Phantom of the Opera while wearing a white mask and a velour cape, integrating theatrical hand motions, and ending with a rose sliding down his kite line as the finale.  The winter Texans around me seemed to enjoy the performance, which made me think that older people do not have a dark sense of humor like I do.    

Shortly before Chris and I left the kite festival, a woman dressed as the Cat in the Hat passed through the crowd.  When the Cat in the Hat passed directly in front of our row of chairs, Doug jumped up, approached the woman, and began barking at her.  The woman played her part and reacted as if she were a frightened cat, which made Doug bark even more.  All of the retired people around us started laughing.  One woman behind us stated that our dog knew a cat when he saw one.  After the the Cat in the Hat left, the woman behind us stated that our dog either knew a cat when he saw one or he knew a weird woman when he saw one.  Older people do have a dark sense of humor after all.

Tall, Thin, Blonde, and Gorgeous

Last time I spoke to my grandma, she told me that she saw a tall, thin, blonde female guest on the Jay Leno Show who reminded her of me.  She couldn't remember the guest's name, but she said that the guest had just turned 40 and that her name was something like "Palto."  Hmmm...Gwyneth Paltrow just turned 40 and she is definitely tall, thin, and blonde.  She is also gorgeous.  Yep, I definitely think my grandma likened me to gorgeous Gwyneth Paltrow.  And no, my grandma is not biased at all; not one bit.      

Love that Chicken from Popeye's

Popeye's, the fast food fried chicken restaurant, opened a restaurant in the Valley about three weeks ago.  I was surprised when I saw a drive-thru line backing  onto the street and a security guard directing traffic through orange cones on opening weekend.  I don't know what to think now.  Three weeks later, the line of cars, parking attendant, and orange cones remain.  What the heck?  Why are people in the Valley so obsessed with Popeye's chicken?

This place is ridiculous.

Weekend Road Trip Sights

What would come to your mind if you saw this roadside sign on a lonely country road in south Texas?

If you're like me, you would think of a museum dedicated to Sasquatch.  Like me, you instantly would be interested in the quality of a Sasquatch museum located three miles off a lonely country road in south Texas.

I'm sorry to disappoint, but I did not find a south Texas museum dedicated to Bigfoot.  A little online research revealed that the Big Foot Museum is actually a replica of a cabin owned by Bigfoot Wallace, the namesake of a small town in south Texas.  That's too bad, because I may have driven the extra six miles roundtrip to see a second-rate Sasquatch museum.  I can't say the same for a replica of a cabin.  

A Bird Watcher's Paradise

Today, Chris, Doug, and I visited Bentsen State Park.  Bentsen State Park is unlike any other Texas State Park I've visited.  The park is full of elderly people, likely due to the numerous retirement villages located outside the park's entrance.  More significantly, the park is dedicated to birding.  Birding is the hobby of bird watching.  As it turns out, the Valley is a popular destination for bird-watching eco-tourists, admittedly a very narrowly defined niche of people.  Besides consumerism-crazed tourists from Mexico, I think bird-watching eco-tourists are the only tourists flocking to the Valley (no pun intended!).

Because Bentsen State Park's primary purpose is birding, vehicles are not permitted to enter.  Instead, the park's nicely paved paths are full of elderly people on bikes.  Along the paved paths are small clearings designed for bird watching.  All of the clearings have a number of bird feeders with different types of food.  Some of the clearings have comfy swings a safe distance from the feeders.  Other clearings have bird blinders, which are man made partitions designed to camouflage humans as they approach the bird feeders and allow humans to observe birds up close and with the naked eye.

Upon entering Bentsen State Park, Chris and I sat down under a tree near some bird feeders to eat a picnic lunch.  Immediately thereafter, all of the elderly people sitting quietly in some nearby swings stood up and walked away.  I think we violated an unspoken rule about quietness and proximity to the bird feeders.  Later, we stepped behind some bird blinders to pose with our dog, which I am almost certain was a violation of birding rules.

The climax of our visit was the hawk observation tower, which is actually a very long handicap accessible ramp gradually inclining to a two-story, open air observation deck. It was actually very cool, and I am certain that we did not violate any bird watching rules while we were up there.  Phew!

Bic for Her

Over Christmas, my high school girlfriends and I were all in town at the same time (!!!!!).   We spent an evening together and even exchanged a few small gifts.  I couldn't help but share Bic for Her pens with everyone, which was inspired by an earlier chain of emails between us regarding an amusing Ellen Degeneres bit on the pens.   My friend Sonya blogged about the pens and posted the Ellen Degeneres video, which you can see here.  Finally, someone else besides myself is blogging about me.

Hugo Chavez, Part 2

As you may recall, Chris purchased a washer and dryer from Craigslist when we moved to San Antonio in 2010.   The washer and dryer were warrantied by none other than Hugo Chavez (see here).  The machines were ridiculously tiny, but they worked well.

My new house in the Valley came with a washer and dryer, and the new washer and dryer are nice and big.  I can now wash a set of bed sheets and a blanket at the same time!  I can also wash more than three towels at once!  Initially (i.e. for a very short amount of time), doing laundry in the new house was actually exciting.  

With the advent of a new washer and dryer, the tiny machines from San Antonio wound up on Craigslist once again.  An elderly couple purchased the machines for their winter RV.  A few days later, the couple threatened to return the machines because "they didn't work."  The couple later recanted and stated that the machines were working well.  Thank goodness, because otherwise I was going to refer them to Hugo Chavez.  In fact, I found Hugo's warranty during our move and I would have gladly given it to them.