No Moshing Allowed

It’s never a dull moment around the hacienda down here.

I must have caught whatever RC had. Was sick for two days and actually stayed home. Woke up feeling like my head was going to explode, nauseous, dizzy, and that was the high point for my day.  Generally felt like one of the Walking Dead.  Crawled on line, e-mailed my boss and co-workers that I would be a no-show and went back to sleep. Pretty much wasted days - watched a few left over NetFlix movies (Captain America, The Mechanic) a couple of old WWII movies (Frank Sinatra as a PFC, Burt Lancaster as the Sergeant). Finally turned the corner on Thursday and went back to work . Of course, for every day I miss at the office, I get backed up 3.

I am still fighting with my computer. Thought I had it pretty much licked, but this weekend something else started dragging it down. I’ve restored it back to an earlier version, but I am still working at a handicap. I am debating getting one of those PC cleaning programs, but I think, at this point, I am better off reinstalling the OS (aka, starting over) which pretty much wipes out most of my settings/favorites. I don’t really want to go to that extreme, but it is either that or use my special hard drive fix it tool (9 mm version). The funny thing is that for the $$ it may cost me to recover the system I could probably pick up the same system that sported in Wally world this weekend (same brand, more memory, faster processor). I may go for a laptop version and keep the old system to recover files and use as backup. 

I’ve been laying low for the past few weeks. Halloween came and went like it always does. We don’t get many trick or treaters each year. A few of the local kids, some neighborhood kids with their parents in tow, a few “older” kids and of, course a couple of guys sporting facial hair. I have a soft spot for the little ones. They usually get a handful of the good stuff. The big kids get twizzlers and the off brand stuff. The dogs were pretty intrigued by the whole deal. I expected them to bolt every time I opened the front door, but they were very well behaved. Grayson was interested in greeting each of our ghoulish guests, and even dressed the part (yes, I did dress up one dog). One the other hand, Claire wasn’t sure what to make of all the commotion. I am not sure if it was all knocking/doorbell ringing or kids in costumes, but she hung back. Quite the difference from her normal role as Ambassador of Lickenstein.



Aloha, Dudes!



Junior was in town this weekend for a Guns & Roses concert. Brought home a wrist band with the Moshing disclaimer. He indicated that there sure were a lot of “old” people in the floor seats.  G&R kicked off at 11:00 pm and Axel played all 38 sets. Old rockers never die – they just go on the road.

I am finally getting psyched up for my road trip to Brussels next week. Started packing this weekend, but not sure what to bring. Trying to prepare for cold & wet but don’t want to haul too much wasted gear. I am starting to plan my down time to take an opportunity to see some of the local area, sample some of the local flavor, drink some of the local beer. I will be in country over the weekend so Saturday and Sunday are mine to use (or lose). I started mapping out a strategy and just figured out yesterday there are a number of very interesting options for the short amount of time:

  1. Explore Brussels and the local sites (drink beer, explore local area)
  2. Try to find a local volksmarch
  3. Go tour Bruges (1 hour northwest)
  4. Hop a train to Normandy (a couple of hours southwest)

  Or, for something completely out of the box,

  5. Hop a train for Paris (2 hours south) for the weekend or
  6. Hop a train for London (1.5 hours northwest) for the weekend

All of these options peek my interest. I’ve been to Paris, granted it was 25 years ago, but how many times does one get to climb the Eiffel Tower.  Always wanted to tour the battlefields of WWII and see the Normandy invasion beachhead.  Bruges is an iconic older town that has a unique flavor (check out the dvd In Bruges). Of course, I’ve always wanted to go to London. And who knows?  I might wind up running into some bike riding, guitar playing, pizza chef, rabbit owner.

So much to see, so little time...

Any ideas/suggestions?

Offt

Yo homies!  I be sitting here with a cup o' joe and chillin' with the dawgs.

Fantabulous morning.  Weather's clear & dry and temps in the low 50's.  Actually had to put on long pants this morning to walk the kids. 

One more week in the books.  Made it through the week without too many scars/injuries.  As my old platoon sergeant used to tell me:  "One more day closer to retirement, sir".  I still got a boatload of vacation piled up that I have to take before the end of the year (use it or lose it) and I am playing hooky today.  No real plans for the extended weekend but taking care of lots of little projects.  I may go up to College Station to the football game tomorrow.  I may work on the Mustang.  Need to clean out garage.  Helping momma get her new toy this morning.  She's has been seriously into quilting for many years using an old Singer sewing machine she's had since high school (before we ever crossed paths).  The old 35+ year old machine finally gave up the ghost two weeks ago (I offered to take a whack at it to fix it, but was gently rebuffed).  So, momma has gotten the urge to get a new machine that will support her habit.  Just like looking at new cars, you just can't settle for the same old plain ride.  She picked a state of the art machine that will pretty much quilt by itself.  All sorts of bells and whistle and doo-dads.  Definitely not your momma's old Singer.  This new toy ain't the most expensive but it does cost more than my last computer.  It's a wee bit pricey/extravagant and she is feeling guilty about getting this but I feel she's earned it.  I've already given her the green light and she is still trying to justify it to me.  Ordered it two weeks ago and it just arrived at the shop yesterday so we are going to pick it up today.  This weekend should be like an early Christmas.

I keep expecting to get an espresso from it or maybe even access the Internet.   

How soon is too soon?

I like walking the dogs early in the morning.  Oh, sure, it is sometimes a pain to try & herd these two mutts around the block on their "sniff & pee" patrol, but I enjoy the early, pre-dawn quiet.  There is something serene about the early morning hours that inspires me with new resolve.  Typically, I take the time alone to go over the day's tasks, gather my thoughts and plan my attack on the day.  I've won lots of debates (internal) with myself as I walk the dogs. 

We also tend to see strange sites in the wee hours before dawn.  Yesterday, as I rounded the backside of the neighborhood, I spotted some lit figurines in a neighbor's yard.  A few people in my hood will decorate for the holidays.  Some, who will remain nameless, Lynn, seem to decorate for every holiday.  Now, this guy has not been one to put out a lot of decorations in the past.  I don't recall too many decorations for other holidays, so I figured this was some Halloween ornaments.  I know the family that lives there.  Nice guy.  Sweet wife.  A couple of cute/young kids (2 girls, 1 boy) and they are always out walking at night.  As I got closer to the two foot tall figurines (three), I was able to make out the statue of Joseph and Mary and one wise guy.  I know people like to get a jump on the holidays, but ain't it a wee bit early?

Post Halloween

Great weekend.
Weather fantastic.
Outstanding game.
Nice road trip.

Spent the weekend with the parents & brother camped out in the RV lot on campus and participating in various pre football game activities. It's been a while since I have had the time to enjoy touring the campus or hitting some of the pre & post game activities. I walked the legs off of the dog and he loved it. I took him on several walks on the surrounding field adjacent to the RV lot and then hiked over to campus and did a tour of my old stomping grounds. After 30 years, things change. A lot of new buildings, but many of the older ones still remain. I always like how my school has a strong sense of tradition and they tend to keep a lot of the older buildings in use (with some modernization). Brings back lots of memories. The dog was well behaved in the crowd of people, but he still acts like a puppy when he sees other dogs (wants to play). He even got to greet the school mascot (Reveille) - a beautiful full blooded Collie. I'm just glad he behaved himself and was a gentleman (not cool to have your dog get into a fight with the school mascot). Of course, Grayson was always up to the challenge of meeting new dogs. Our next door neighbor dropped by with her dog, Tahoe, a Great Dane. And when I say Great, I mean GREAT. This dog stood flat footed and its head was over 4.5 feet tall and weighed in at 185 lbs! Grayson is not a small dog, but he was dwarfed by this beast/horse. Tahoe was easily 3 times the size of Grayson but as gentle as a lamb (or cow). I don't even want to ponder the logistics with handling and supporting a beast of that size....

Friday night was a treat (& trick). A lot of people had set up for the game so there were a lot of families camped out on the lot. I guess that, because the game was Saturday afternoon, most people decided to do trick or treating Friday night. It was a hoot to see all the families and kids dressed up and go trick or treating from camper to camper. With a football game camp out, you'd expect to have a lot of rowdy fans, but is was like a close-knit neighborhood with everybody decorating their trailers and trying to out do each other. Kids had a blast and scored a ton of candy. Even saw a number of dogs dressed up in costumes for the festivities (I didn't subject my dog to that torment, yet).

Friday Follies (Trick or Treat version)

BOO- YA! Made it through another week!

Loading up the truck and heading north as soon as the rain stops. BTW - for those who actually read this tripe, I commented this summer on how bone dry we were. The saying goes: If you don't like Texas weather, just wait a minute and it'll change. Over the past two weeks, we've just about caught up to our rain deficit. Earlier this summer, we were behind 7-8 inches in rainfall. Lots of rain/flooding in low areas. The hill country is always susceptible for flash flooding, so you gotta watch the river crossings. Even though people are griping about the rain/nasty weather, I am glad we are finally getting the rain. I've been out on the trail or in the field when it was pouring down and I'd much rather sit in my office or at home and listen to the rain on the roof and watch the show.

The office had a costume contest yesterday to encourage people to show their spirit. It is kind on an interesting culture where I work. Some groups/department are a bit more open/relaxed and get fired up for these kinds of events (you ought to see them during the Christmas holidays). Other groups (mine) are a bit more reserved and some folks tend to frown on this "dress up". My boss is one who thinks this is silly/unprofessional but I am ok with it. I have told my people that, if you want to dress up for Halloween/Xmas/Mardis Gras, knock yourself out, just keep it legal (no thongs/fishnet). Anyway, there was a company contest and a number of people dressed up in various costumes to see if they could win the prize (dinner, $$$). I applaud everyone's spirit and imagination, but you should always be cognizent of your gear/attire. One pair of engineers dressed up as two Star Trek characters (Kirk & Urhura). I don't think that Lu (Urhura) fully realized the logistical issues with the mini dress uniform that they wore back the 60s. I was in a design meeting with her in the morning and she was having issues maintaining her decorum in the leather conference room chairs.

Lots of ghosts & goblins out on Saturday. Make sure you keep any eye out for the little ones.

Hope everyone has a great and safe Halloween!