Icepocalypse 2014

Not one to make fun of my fellow Houstonians, but I feel that, sometimes, we tend to overreact a wee bit to certain situations.  We can handle hurricanes, storms, tornadoes, droughts, fire ants with some aplomb (ooh, one of them 5 dollar words).  However, when it comes to colder temps, we have a tendency to go into the tend to an apocalyptic, end of the world mode.  With the onset of the polar vortex down south, we have seen our temps dip into, to quote local newscasters, a "frigid, arctic blast".  Last Friday, there was a full on panic over the icy road conditions and winter weather warning that had a lot of businesses and schools closed.  I had planned to take off Friday morning for a dentist appointment and arose to icy roads and freezing temps.  Work had asked everyone to delay the start of the day until 1:00 but I headed in at 1030 (roads were not that bad).  A number of the freeways and overpasses were closed because of icing.  A lot of people made it in without any problems.  And this was because the temps got down to a brutal 30 degrees.  

This week, it was round 2. Tuesday's forecast was for rain/sleet/snow with temps getting as low as, dare I say it?, 30 degrees.  Local weather forecast was pretty much doom and gloom (Oh God, Oh God, We're gonna die!).  Given the weather reports and projections for icy conditions, people went into full on apocalypse mode.  All of the area schools closed.  Most businesses closed.  City was put on emergency standby.  The hoard (12) of trucks were dispatched to toss chat rock on the roadways (we don't do salt down here).  Everyone was prepared for the end of the world.  My office had prepped everyone not to come in until 1:00 pm like earlier to allow the roads to clear.  So, when we awoke to temps still around 40 degrees, we were told to come in.  For all the projections of doom, the weather never really got extreme.  No way this can compare to some of the conditions that you guys are experiencing now.  

Now, I am no expert, but I have to admit that I have lived in colder climes during my life.  I spent more than a few years in my youth in New Jersey (I recall many Jersey winters plowing dad's driveway with the snow blower).  Later on, I spent several years in Germany with the Army, so I am not totally immune to cold weather conditions.  I realize that we don't want to risk people's safety for some minor goal or project, but it seems that we sometimes jump the gun on emergency response.  A lot of people on the net seem to be having fun with the Houston Icepocalypse 2014:  

 

 

  

Good thing this Icepocalypse ended quickly.  Otherwise, we might have had to resort to cannibalism.  

I see Goldens

Pop quiz. What’s the best way to make it rain?

• Plan a major event outdoors (wedding, birthday party, graduation)
• Ride your bike to work
• Plan a campout
• County Fair
• Leave the top down on the car
• Turn on your sprinklers
• Wash & wax your car
• Plan a picnic

I may have bemoaned earlier about our current drought. We haven’t had any decent rain since last January and everything is either dying or burning up. I read the other day that we were 30 inches behind on rainfall for the year and it may take years to recover. We have lakes that are 10 feet below their normal levels and creeks have dried up. It’s gotten so dry that the trees have taken to whistling for dogs (old joke).

So, what do you do when you have a serious dry spell? You plan your annual picnic. Golden Beginnings Golden Retriever Rescue (GBGRR) group held its 12th annual picnic to celebrate all the dogs that have found homes and raise money for the cause. Rough estimate is that, in the short 12 years since the group started, they have helped over 2400 Golden Retrievers find their forever homes (~200 per year). Some were pups, some slightly older, some were in their prime and some were seniors. No matter where the dog came from or what happened to it, the group worked to find it a home, even if it was for a short time.

The picnic has become a regular deal for us. They don’t charge a fee, but sell raffle tickets and shirts and various stuff and ask for donations. We even get a local bar-be-que place to provide the grub and even had someone bring shrimp and gumbo. Of course, the main reason we go is for all the dogs. Everyone tries to bring their old dogs who have been adopted over the years. Kind of a Golden reunion. Last year the dogs had a blast playing with each other and chasing balls in the pond and running wild. This year, of course, the skies opened up and dumped about 5 inches of rain on the park. Fortunately, we had reserved the large pavilion and could hang out semi dry underneath. Dogs were not as thrilled at all the rain and thunder, but they did have a good time. Grayson was excited to be with the other dogs, but somewhat skittish with all the thunder and rain. Claire was the proper lady and would have nothing to do with all that wetness, but preferred to hang out under the table.

Grayson & Glaire

 

People will do strange things with their "children"

 

Drought?  What drought?


Of course, there are always one or two “water” dogs in every group who enjoy the rain….

Throw the ball!



Wet and loving it

Running scared

Maybe it's the age or perhaps it is all of the band trips, but back when junior was in school, I don't recall everyone taking off at the same time.  Now that the son is off the grid in college, we are into a different routine and we no longer take off spring break.  So, that means I am working this week when, apparently, everyone else has taken off.  Was hoping to catch up this week but I cannot get anything done because it seems like 2/3rds of the place is gone.  It's the same story around Christmas time.  Yet, I don't begrudge them their time off to be with their families.  Been there.  Done that.  Life's too short to spend it all at work.  You have to take care of the important things - family & friends. 

Trying to get back into a rhythm of running at lunch.  I try to knock down a few miles instead of eating some greasy, fast food junk at the local irish establishment.  Now that winter is almost gone down here, I am trying to take advantage of the cooler temps before the hot & humid summer arrives.  Monday was a typical spring day in south Texas.  Cloudy, semi-cool, light wind, the threat of rain in the air.  The skies were dark and it looked like rain, but nothing really serious, so I chose to hit the trail.  Told myself that I wasn't going to let a little rain keep me from running.  If I ever intend on improving my 1/2 marathon time, I have to learn to run in all sorts of weather.  Started out ok, streets a bit wet and some smattering of raindrops.  But, the weather gods down here have a wicked sense of humor and decided that, around the 1/2 mark to cut loose.  I was still about 1.5 miles out and heading back and already getting soaked, so I cowboyed up and kept running.  Ain't gonna let a few raindrops stop me.  I was cutting through the parking lot of the local college when the bolt of lightening hit one of the lights in the parking lot knocking out power for the lights and scaring the beejesus out of me (not to mention the guy walking across said lot talking on his cell phone).  At that point, common sense took over and I detoured to one of the buildings on campus to wait out the storm.  I'll run when it is somewhat crappy out, but when lightening is being tossed around, I'll yield the battlefield.  Besides, running while crouched over does not improve my times.  After about 20 minutes of deluge, it let up enough for me to wade back to work.  Next time, I think I will stick with the treadmill...       


Spring's just around the corner



Brrrr

Still sick.

Fever's gone, but I've still got some nasty hacking old man type of cough that I just cannot seem to kick.  I feel way better than last week, but not back to neutral, yet.

Was interesting to be in Packer Country last week before the big game. Everyone was glued to their TVs watching all the pre game hoop-la. Given their current weather, they found all the weather problems down in Dallas amusing. As the defacto representative from the Lone Star State, I was requested to provide some first hand intel to the situation in Arlington. As my earlier missive explained, we don't do cold weather too well. When the big ice storm of 2011 hit Dallas-Fort Worth, it basically shut down most of the city. Freeways were a war zone, DFW airport closed down, schools closed, pipes froze, etc. There ain't a lot of snow plows and salt trucks in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Down further south in San Antonio and Houston, we've only got pictures of snow plows. So when Jack Frost comes to town, the whole place boards up. The news channels go into major panic mode. (Remember the 3Ps!!!  Plants, Pipes, Pets!). They make it sound like we are preparing for Armageddon. The only thing that gets more attention is when a Hurricane rolls up in the Gulf. I try to remind people that, sure tonight may get down to 24-28 degrees, but, by Saturday it is supposed to be in the 50s and we should be playing with 70s by next week. Put a coat on, wear a hat and cowboy up.

Stole this picture from a friend's FB page - but it fits the mood.

No rest for the weary

Ok.  Let me just apologize up front.  This may have a slight tinge of whineyness in it. 

First of all, been sicker than a dog.  Interesting expression.  After RC's explanation of Brass Monkey Balls, I looked up the expression Sicker Than a Dog.  Not pretty, but it does give a visual.  I completed the 1/2 marathon Sunday in decent time and the weather wasn't too bad.  Was pretty sore and stiff afterwards but figured it was because I hadn't trained well enough.  By Sunday night, however, I was definitely feeling like hammered crap.  Fever, aches, cough.  Not sure if it was the run that pushed me over the edge (running in the rain I'm sure did not help) or if this was already coming.  A lot of folk at the office are out with the same symptoms so I am inclined to believe the latter.  Anyway, was up most of the night Sunday night with a fever tossing & turning.  I tried to watch a Netflix movie (AVATAR) to get rest but was up half the night dreaming about floating mountains.  Woke up Monday feeling way worse and a 101+ fever.  Not what I needed now.  I had a busy, short week ahead and no time to be sick.  But, given how much I felt like doo-doo and upon advice of my home physician (wife), I logged into work and told them I wasn't coming in.  Slept most of the day but the fever never really went away.  Woke up Tuesday feeling a bit better but could not afford to stay home since I had an interview to conduct (for my group) and it would be bad form not to show up.  Manned up and went in.  Felt a better than Monday.  Came home last night, loaded up on all sorts of meds and crashed around 2100,  Woke up this am feeling a bit better (slept through the night), so I think the fever has broken, but the cough, nasal drip continues.  I don't get colds very often and they usually go through certain phases fairly quickly. 

Now, for the record, let me state that I am not one of those "I'm siiick and don't feeel well" kinda guys.  I am more of a cowboy up and ride through it (most of the time).  I tend to try to work my way through any sickness with lots of meds at my side.  If I do stay home, I prefer to be left alone.  I do not need to be waited upon, served lunch in bed, check your temperature every hour.  My darling bride, bless her heart, keeps wanting to take care of me and I appreciate it, but I tend to hunker down and try to sleep it off.  

Anyway, I went to work yesterday and did ok.  Will do the same today.  Now there are two things I am dealing with now.  First of all, it is the "storm of the century down here" or so I'm led to believe from the news reports.  Artic Blast Slams Texas.  Freeze Tightens Grip From Texas to Maine.  Winter storm leaves bus passengers in limbo at Dallas terminal (reminds me of a story I will share in a later post).  OMG!!! We might see a 1/2 of snow by Friday!!!!  Start stocking up supplies!  Get out the snow shoes!  Bring the cows in!  Now, from the news reports, you'd think ice age was coming.  People are loading up like it is going to be 2 feet of snow and it will last until June.  Reality forecast has it in the mid 20s through Saturday with it warming back up to the 50/60s by Sunday.  If it does snow (and I mean a dusting), they'll close whole school districts and businesses.  I've lived in colder climates for part of my life.  Spent a good number of years of my misbegotten youth up in Jersey, so I know what snow is like.  Spent 4.5 years in Germany and, let me tell you, they can get some snow.  I've shoveled it, snowplowed it, slipped in it, drove in it, even driven on black ice, so I would claim to have a wee bit of experience in colder weather.  But when it comes to icy/snowy weather down here, I will NOT get out on the roads with these kooks.  Most of these people have never seen snow except for movies and a Christmas Special.  And driving in it?  Sure!  I can go 75 MPH down the freeway in my big a$$ SUV.  I can pass you on the side of the road in my Audi.  If given the opportunity, I will stay home and watch the mayhem on tv (my kind of reality tv).  But, I would not expect much of the white stuff.  As of this morning, there is a 5% chance of snow.  One of the other problems with colder temps is most of the houses down here are build for extreme cold.  Because of foundation issues, pipes are typically run through the attic, which, make them susceptible to freezing.  When we moved back down to south Texas in 1990 there had been a hard freeze the month before and most of the houses/apartments we looked at had pipe problems.  I am just hoping to keep our pipes warm enough to avoid any damage. 

Now on top of all of that, I am supposed to go back out on the road again for another audit Thursday.  You think that I would plan this better and go to some place like South Florida or Hawaii, but nooooo, I have to fly up to Milwaukee.  So not looking forward to this road trip but there is no way to postpone it until warmer temps.  Keeping an eye on MKE.  They've already closed down Ohare for flights and I could see some delays. 

I know, some of you might be reading this thinking (What a Wimp!  I walk/drive through 4 feet of snow every day) but all this time down in Texas has made me a bit thin skinned.  Trotting out my cold weather gear for the excursion.  Hope nothing important freezes off.     

Ahhh....the weekend

Spendiferic weather.  Temps in the mid 60's to low 70's.  Not a cloud in the sky.  Humidity hovering around 40%.  Woke up this morning and almost thought I was back in SoCal.  We ain't used to this kind of weather.  It's been hot & humid down here since April and this weather is almost obscene.  Trying to spend as much time outdoors before it changes.  The old expression we have around here is:  "If you don't like the weather, wait a minute.  It will change." 

Work's been kicking my butt.  Projects, reports, deadlines and fire drills.  I am almost caught up from my road trip to California three weeks ago.  I would complain, but I really hate whiners and, besides, I'm grateful to have a job given today's economy.  My nephew has not landed a job yet, but he is looking hard and hopes to land something soon.  Our next door neighbors at work, NASA, is starting to shut down programs now since they are on the last of the shuttle flights.  One NASA contractor in the area has just laid off about 1/3 of its work force on Friday with more to come by the end of the year.  Time's are tough all over.       

Tried to get out side over the weekend.  Yard has stopped growing.  Not sure if it is cooler temps or the lack of rain, but it doesn't really need to be mowed this weekend.  Got to spend 1/2 day out in Katy yesterday participating in their annual Rice Harvest Festival.  Our dog group (GBGRR) participates in the parade every year as one of the volunteer entries and we walk the streets with a pack of wild goldens looking for someone to lick or pet.  The dogs are typically a hit with all of the spectators and this year was no exception.  Always thinking ahead, we hand out bags with our card/website information, plus a treat for humans & dogs.  I took both Chaos & Pandemonium (Claire & Grayson) and the dogs had a blast and were well behaved.  No gutter incidents this year.  They did so well that I even took them to the local dog park in Katy as a treat.  I've taken on a mission to hit all of the dog parks in the area just to see which one is better and the one in Katy top notch.  Lots of grass/trees/shade/benches.  One of the better ones we've been to. 

A pack of killers

Tag teaming the crowd

Walking on water

Hurricane Alex.  First named storm of the season.  Was only a Cat 2 (Category 2) Hurricane when it ran ashore in Mexico.  Not really a major storm and it hit ground about 8 hours down the coast from here.  You figure something that far away would not really have any impact on our area.  Wrong.  Hurricanes north of the equator rotate in a counterclockwise fashion with most of the rain/water surge is on the eastern side of the storm (the dirty side).  That means if any storms hit the coast south/west of Houston we typically get a boat load of rain.  It's been crappy all week but the bottom fell out Thursday night.  Yesterday was a solid day of heavy rain/downpours.  Many local spots got 8-10 inches of rain.  Street flooding, overflowing bayous, underpasses flooded, stalled cars, flooded homes, beaucoup traffic accidents.  I had the day off yesterday and went into town in the morning.  Figured I could take care of some business in between the deluges.  I had a front row seat to a nasty wreck at a stop light were a Jeep Cherokee and Toyota Tundra tried to occupy the same time & space unsuccessfully.  Nothing gets the adrenalin flowing like watching an explosion of plastic & steel about 20 feet in front of your hood.  Drivers were ok (pissed but ok).  Trucks were not.  BTW - if you have to have a wreck, having it right in front of the local firestation really helps.  After that show, I figured I would probably be able to take care of business from the house.  Lots of flooded streets, but that's one reason I have the landbarge with high ground clearance.

I mentionned before, the dogs don't like rain.  Claire is pretty good and will go off and hides in the closet or under the bed.  Grayson is the wimp.  He paces to and fro and would try to dig a hole in the den carpet.  During a lull in the rain, I tried to walk them to prevent "accidents".  Even with the streets flooded, Claire still prefers to stick to the streets while Gray likes to cruise through the yards.  He still has a thing for water and will walk through every puddle he can find.  Of course, walking a Golden Retriever in the rain (even a mist) is like walking a sponge.  And nothing is more aluring than that wet dog smell.     

Out of office

On the road again. It's the end of our fiscal year. Several key projects are hanging. Got to finish up a supplier review for my boss. Trying to negotiate a contract with our calibration house. Need to write up reviews for my buyers. Planning for a trip to Kerrville in two weeks for my nephew's graduation. Trying to plan a trip to Austin in May to help junior move out of apartment. So what am I doing now? I am packing for another supplier road trip this week. Will be off the reservation until Friday in Philly on supplier audit. I've said it before - I love to travel, but these audits are a regular PITA for me. Oh, sure, it's great to break away from the office and travel to different cities/states, but these are not vacations for me. Lots of prep work, coordination. I am the defacto leader of this trip which makes me the bus driver/chaperone/cruise director for this gig. If it were just me, I can handle the logistics of travel (flight, car rental, finding hotel) but I have the VP of operations and one of my buyers going with me this time. The former (VP) is an old hand at this and knows everything; the latter (buyer) has never done this before and looks to me as mentor. Of course, I am still expected to achieve all of my tasks even though I am on the road. The expression that comes to mind is: “That’s what they pay you the big bucks for”…

I know it will work out fine, but I tend to fret/worry over these trips up until we take off. Once we are on the plane, things are pretty much locked down so I figure there is not much I can do about the situation.

As an aside, weather has turned out fantastic for the weekend. Was pouring down early Saturday, but it did not last and the rain pushed out by 0900 and a clear, sunny day set in. I was able to mow the yard by noon and loaded up the mutts to take them to the local dog park. I’ve been dying to take Claire to the park ever since the vet cleared her from her treatment and yesterday was the first opportunity. Grayson has been to these parks so he knows the score. As soon as we got out of the truck, he was chomping at the bit to get inside to play/run free. Once inside the gate, I let him off leash and he was off like a kid at a playground. Claire on the other hand did not quite know what to make of all of this open space and lots of dogs running free. I let her off the leash and initially she hung right beside me. I tried to get her to run with the other dogs and explore, but she was somewhat intimidated. Not sure if it was the open spaces or the plethora of butt sniffing, ball chasing, wet dogs that made her skeptical. One big fuzzy German Shepherd tried to get a little “friendly” with Claire and she “politely” declined his offer. Eventually, Claire opened up a bit and tried to explore the area, but I never got her to go into the water. Grayson, on the other hand was all over the park, splashing in the water, running to play with other dogs, meeting other people. It must have been Golden Retriever day at the park yesterday because there were at least 5-6 other Goldens there at the same time. More than once I lost Grayson for a while. Just when I thought I had spotted him, I then noted the dog was not wearing the same collar. One observation I noted was that Grayson is more of “dog’s dog”. He likes to seek out other dogs to sniff/play with. Claire is more of a “people dog”. She preferred to seek out other people (when not parked next to me) for petting/attention. Of course, she’s good at getting lots of loving.

Afterwards, I took both dogs outside the park to give them a bath. A lot of the new parks have a dog wash area to hose them off from playing in the mud and ponds. In the end, both dogs had a blast and were thoroughly worn out on the drive home.

Happy Pi Day!

Beautiful weekend. Weather is fantastic. I am trying to spend as much time outside before the temps get hot. Been working on momma's car door, helping my neighbor replacing a back fence. Off to the brother's house to give him a file cabinet I bought from work.


Claire is finishing up her 1st month of HW treatment. 1 month down, 1 month to go and she is doing well. I can tell that she is going to be trouble (just like a red head). She is supposed to not get excited or too agitated, but whenever Grayson gets into hyper mode, she kinda eggs him on. Gray will sometimes start playing with me and Claire wants to join in. She'll start nipping at him and that just winds him up more. I can't wait to see her off restriction. I've already nicknamed them Chaos & Pandemonium.

Trouble? Us?

The prodigal son has not yet returned, but we expect him tomorrow. He is attending the South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin which is a huge music/film/interactive technology festival held every spring in Austin. It started out years ago as a 3 day music festival but has morphed into a week long event for bands and films and technology shows. There are shows/concerts/parties/seminars throughout Austin all week and the place is sold out. Don't confuse this with some sort of grunge or farm aide kind of event. This has become mainstream with tickets to venues running from a few bucks ($100) to a bit more expensive ($500++) to attend all events. Some big name bands play alongside of a lot of indies. Junior should be home tomorrow. Today he is attending the Facebook workshop.

And in deference to all of the geeks out there, Happy Pi Day (3.14). In case you did not catch it last year, our distinguished House of Representatives voted on a nonbinding resolution (H RES 224) last year to officially recognize 3-14 as National Pi Day. Go out and make a circle somewhere!

Hope you moved your clocks forward.

1.5 seconds of fame

Made it back home around noon without any problems. Actually, I made it to work for a few hours before I went home (details, details). I hate to fly but love nonstop flights. Slept most of the way, read the rest. Walked back into a chilly 30 degree temperatures. Forecast is for mid-20s tonight and through the weekends. I think the only one who is enjoying the "cooler" weather down here is the dog. Seems to make him more frisky. Of course, he was elated to see me back home (Walk? Can we go for a walk? Can we? Huh? Huh? Oboyoboyoboy). I think the poor mut musta missed me. Given the results of our extended frosty walk, I would assume he has not pooped since I left.

Anyway, while I was out in Phoenix, my son was attending the BCS conference game in Pasadena, California. I tried to catch the game in a local beer pub near the hotel but missed the opening hoopla. My wife informed me later (exitedly I might add) that our offspring was spotted on the TV holding the flag on the field. Our friend who made the sharp spot had TIVO and she backed up and advanced it frame-by-frame to capture the picture with her cell phone. Sure enough, junior was dead center in the picture with a shit-eating grin having the time of his life. Of course, momma has capture said picture and posted it on her facebook page.

Parents - if you don't embarrase your kids now, when will you?

Now I just have to head back to the airport at midnight to pick him up again...

You are here...

South Texas is on full alert. Seems like we have a nasty visitor headed our way today and our temperatures are forecasted to hit the mid 20s for the next few days. Mid 20s you say? I can already hear Terri up north (in her parka and fur-lined boots) thinking “pffttt”. Those hardy Minnesotans are scoffing at our cooler temps. I’m even sure that Abby would consider 25 degrees good running weather. But ya’ll should remember that down here on the Texas coastal plains, we rarely get below 32 degrees for any period of time. Anything south of 30 for more than a few days has people literally going bat shit crazy (to quote one of my favorite bloggers). The last time it got that cold for an extended period of time was back in January 1990. I remember that time because I was moving back to Houston around that time and about 1/4 of the houses I looked at had some freeze/pipe damage. Most of the homes down here were build with heat and air conditioning in mind and the pipes run through the attics. Not a lot of insulation for cold weather unless you have added it yourself. Newer homes are a bit better insulated, but old ones like mine are susceptible to freezing weather. Of course the new channels are projecting all sorts of doom & gloom. Protect your pipes, plants, & pets.

Now, given the crappy weather projections, where might you thing I should be? On the road of course. I am sitting in Phoenix, Arizona on aonther supplier audit. We have a lot on the books this year (24 and counting) but I don’t have to do all of them. Weather is a bit nicer in Phoenix .

And junior is off in California right now. He is attending the BCS bowl game in Pasadena tonight along with the rest of the rabid fans. Look for him in the stadium. He’ll be the one wearing orange. Actually, he scored a slot to hold up the gianormus Texas flag on the field before kickoff, so that's his chance to be on the field. A friend of ours has TIVO and spotted him for a brief moment holding the flag and posted his picture on facebook. In spite of the way the Horns are playing right now, for him, this is a trip of a life time. For momma, more gray hairs worrying about her son wandering around LA.

Once in a blue moon (updated)

Temps stared out around 41 this morning and light rain. It's now 34 and the snow just started. Still too warm to stick, but temps are dropping. For once, I am glad to be home camped out on the computer drinking wassail and watching the traffic reports.
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Looks like squirrel moving day. I have spotted 5-6 of the little tree rats scurrying out in my yard trying to pack it in before the freeze. Dog's going nuts trying to get at them.

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Addendum:

Seems that somebody is happy with the snow...

Frost on my cacti

Forecasters down here are projecting the possibility of snow tomorrow.

From the way the news crews are covering it and the city is going into massive preparation, you'd think that we were hunkering down for another hurricane. Typically, when the road conditions get dicey, they wind up shutting down school districts, closing businesses, firing up the sand trucks (hey, we only get to use them once every 10 years or so!).

I love my fellow Texans, but as I've pointed out before, a lot of them don't how to drive on ice/snow. I am not going to claim to be a seasoned veteran, but I've logged a fair amount of hours on winter road and have some experience handing lousy road conditions (driven on black ice on the Autobahn). Even with that experience, I am off this week (working on chores) and have no intentions of hitting the streets mañana. Although, I may keep any eye out for all of the shennanigins on the road.

Who knows what mother nature may bring?

Break out the parkas

Finally turned colder (cooler) down here this week.

I know, I know. There are others who have been braving much colder temps than we have (tip of the snow shovel to terri & Abby) since September, but our weather has been quite nice down here (mid 70s) and definitely unwinterlike. I am grateful for the temperate weather we've been having, but it's hard to get in the mood for Thanksgiving (much less Christmas) when you are out shopping in shorts and Tevas. Might as well be in south beach or Maui. But finally, on Tuesday the front came through and dropped the temps 20-30 degrees around here. Got up to drive into work on Wednesday and it was in the mid-40s. I know, that's t-shirt weather for some northern dwellers, but down here, people dress up like they are preparing for the ice age. You ought to see this place whenever we get the occasional dusting of snow every 10 years. Entire school districts close, stalled cars, lots of traffic accidents. I've lived in Jersey in my yout, trained in Kentucky during the winter, lived in Stuttgart for 5 years, so I have a wee bit of experience in cold weather, but people down tend to go crazy when at the first sign of frost on the pumpkins.

Slowly getting ready for the Thanksgiving onslaught. Picked up a huge turkey yesterday. We typically invite over my parents, my brother, some of my brother's sons (& spouses), the wife's parents, her sister, my son and his girlfriend, and occasionally a friend or two. Typical controlled chaos. I don't really go in for the massive feasts any more. Would much rather prefer as smaller gathering, but we have started something (tradition?) that is hard to put aside. With all of the preparation, cooking, clean up, we tend to spend way too much energy preparing for this event. I'd rather have a small plate of turkey & dressing and enjoy the game. I tried to convince my wife one year that, instead of gorging and killing ourselves for this one meal, we should volunteer to serve at the annual Thanksgiving dinner for the homeless downtown. I got the evil eye for that suggestion (Please forgive my impertinence, milady). In the meantime, we will enjoy the time with our families and be thankful for all of our blessings.

Speaking of blessings, I'm off to get the dog blessed this afternoon. My old church is conducting its annual custom in remembrance of St. Francis of Assisi’s love for all critters. I am not overly religious, but we did it for Shadow (and he enjoyed a long and happy life) and somehow feel we should afford the same blessings for our new mutt. I'm quite sure that Grayson ain't Catholic or Jewish or Hindu (or even Methodist) so he wouldn't care if he got blessed by the Pope or by Bubba. He'll probably enjoy the car ride and chance to visit with other dogs (& cats) more.

Outdoors (part duex) - It's called a DOG park

Weather is still fantastic. It is almost criminal not to be outside enjoying this.

Took the dog to the new dog park yesterday. It is a brand new dog park built down in the bottom land near the Brazos River. Nice big park but still needs some more work. The ground must have been saturated last week because it looks like a herd of elephants had roamed through the area. Not a lot of grass next to the pond and the pond was very muddy. The grass needs to grow a bit more to make it less of mud pit. Of course, the dogs didn’t care. Grayson thought it was just like going to the play ground to meet all sorts of new friends. Young dogs, old dogs, fat dogs, tiny dogs, hairy dogs, slobbery dogs. Dogs with their own bones/balls to fetch. Dogs who loved to swim. Dogs who loved to chase each other. I played with a pair of Huskies who seemed to be enjoying the cooler weather. One girl brought a tiny Corgi named Bo. And by tiny, I mean this dog couldn’t have been more than 4 pounds soaking wet. My dog’s head was bigger that this entire dog. Of course all of the big dogs (including mine) were fascinated by this new “toy” and were checking her out. Funny sit to see three big dogs sniffing out this small, but undaunted Corgi. In spite of his diminutive stature, Bo held his own against his bigger brethren. All in all, the dogs seemed to enjoy the freedom of the open park and the new sights/sounds/smells. On our way out of the park, as Gray & I passed through the gate, I noted a young couple bringing in their dog. What caught my attention was the girl was carrying (ISYN) a ferret! I did one of those classic double takes. A ferret? Who brings a ferret to a dog park? I almost turned around to see if this was going to turn into a YouTube moment but had to head on home. If the pack was interested in a tiny Corgi, I was curious to see what hilarity would ensue with a ferret.

Outdoors

Must get out.

For those of y'all north of the Red River or east of LA (Louisiana), south Texas weather is sometimes a unique experience. One day it will be 99+ degrees & 95% humidity and you will be camped out in the a/c, but by the afternoon, you are putting on a jacket. Normally, the temps crawl up into the 90's around May and don't come back down until October. The last week, we've had some serious storms roll through the area and the temps have dropped dramatically ushering in the fall season. Yesterday, the clouds finally broke and it is now crystal clear and ~58 degrees and should hold this way until some time next week. Beautiful hunting weather. We typically don't have this kind of weather but once or twice a year. I actually drove home to/from work with all windows down enjoying the fall afternoon (hard to do in traffic). I intend to take advantage of this situation and max out my outdoor activities. My plans are to work in the yard, trim up some bushes, work on the Mustang, and will take Gray to the new dog park in our town that just opened up last weekend.

I hope everybody has a great weekend!

Life's short. Enjoy it while you can...

Ike - one year later

It's been a year since Hurricane Ike tore through south Texas.



The local paper is posting photos (before & after) along with stories.

In our area, we were very lucky and did not suffer any serious damage, so things have returned to normal but for other areas it has been a much longer road. It may be hard to imagine, but even after one year, some houses are still sporting those infamous blue FEMA tarps awaiting insurance settlements and roof repairs. A lot of the homes and places on the coast were destroyed and only now are people rebuilding.

This time last year, the storm was just off the coast and headed towards Galveston. It was listed as a Cat 2 (Category 2) hurricane with the possibilty of reaching Cat 3 before landfall. Most of the south Texas coast had already evacuated north and west, but we are far enough inland that we are outside of the evacuation zones and we hunkered down in place (did the same during Rita a few years back). We loaded up on supplies of food & water and locked down the fort to await the storm. From the traffic debacle back during Rita, we decided that we would rather wait it out at home rather than get stuck on the highways with everyone else. The biggest problem we faced was not having power for an extended period.

Sometimes we are reminded that life is short and hard and we should enjoy the ride while we can.

Hot dog

How come everytime I go swimming, the paparazzi show up?

We made it to another weekend! Went out for bagels this morning and the temps are already in the mid 80s. Supposed to hit 100 today and the forecast is for much of the same for the next 7 days. Tough to run in these kinds of temps unless you do it early.

Grayson is back from his treatment and "grooming". He is doing very well and you couldn't tell he had anything wrong with him. The vet says he should remain calm & quiet (not get excited) for the next 30 days and I am not supposed to walk him for at least 2-3 weeks. Of course, he doesn't understand that restriction. He thinks he is being punished cause I won't take him for a walk or play with him too roughly. Been trying to use those sad, brown eyes on me to no avail. He'll just have to wait like the rest of us.

While he was in the shop, I had him groomed. Well, groomed is not quite the right word. I told the groomer I wanted him to get a "shave down" to keep him cooler in the hot temps and get rid of his fleas and I kinda regret it now. He now has taken on the look of a yellow lab and looks a lot like a larger version of our older dog, Shadow. I think he looks more handsome with a fuller coat, so we are going to let it grow back out. Althought, right now, he is cooler and not panting as much. I will post a picture of his new "doo" later this weekend.

In the meanwhile, I am off to mow the yard. Thanks to the constant watering of last week and a 2.5 inch rain we had on Wednesday, the yard is coming back with a vengance. Of course, with the forecast as it is, it will probably start to brown up again by next weekend. Low key weekend planned. Mow yard, wash/wax cars, hit the range, sort through some boxes junior brought home (momma likes to organize) before he returns next month.

Have a great weekend!

Dog days of summer

Burning up down here. Temps have been hovering around the 100+ mark for the past week and the weekend was no different. A/C is running nonstop and the yard is dying. I have been watering to save what I can, but some areas of my yard are starting to look like a highway median.


I haven't had much to update our mutt Grayson lately. He's been doing good, has picked up some weight and pretty much taking over the house (Did I mention that Golden Retriever's are slightly hairy?). In spite of his progress and good looks, he is still heartworm positive. I've got to take him in early this morning to the vet for the first round of the treatment and I know he is not going to enjoy the next few weeks. This treatment is the kind where they give the dog a shot and then he must be kept quiet for 30 days (some people will kennel the dog for the entire time) to prevent any stress or excitement for the dog (could have severe consequences). I am not even supposed to walk him until the treatment is done. After 30 days, they give him a second shot and we repeat the cycle. Pretty nasty stuff, but it is supposed to be the best/only way to eliminate heartworms. I feel kinda bad for him so I took him back to the bark park Saturday to let him run free and socialize with the other dogs and play in the lakes. Would have been more enjoyable if it wasn't so hot. I'll get one last walk in this morning before we head in.

Who let the dogs out?

Singing in the rain

Time to put the waders on. Been pretty nasty down here since yesterday and has been pouring nonstop since first light. They have even cancelled the MS150 (Houston to Austin) bike ride for today. Tomorrow ain't looking good, either. The good news is that the dog is not as thunderphobic as Shadow was but he living up to his typical Golden "velcro" personality. Bad news is that he needs to go out for a leak now and is not too excited about getting drenched. Poor guy has had a ruff day yesterday. Got a grooming and his plumbing fixed. He ain't quite as chipper today. Even got him his own personal lampshade to wear (to keep from licking).

Sometimes you're the fire hydrant, sometimes you're the dog...