Jill and I went to Houston last Thursday to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. We left Austin at 7:AM, so we could be at the Woodlands Country Club for lunch at 11:AM. All the photos from lunch are on my mom's new camera, so unfortunately, I don't have any to share.
A nice tradition we have with Linda's mother-in-law is the gifting of treats. This is what the elder Mrs. Zappa shared with our family - peanut butter cookies, lemon bars, lemon and almond biscotti, and mini brownies with a kiss in each. I wish I could say I have some left to enjoy, but I ate my share within 24 hours.
While at my folks, Jill and I walked around the neighborhood to work off some of lunch. We passed by the enormous home of the person who developed the neighborhood and found these guys in their front yard:
Later that night, Jill and I met Ron and Jeremy at the new Houston Texans Grill to watch the UT - A&M game. Unfortunately, I declined to wager on the game and lost out on a free dinner. Jill wasn't real interested in the game, so she graded papers in the corner and would check in on us every so often. Btw, we had the worst nachos at the Texan Grill - it was basically baked tortilla chips dusted with shredded lettuce.
We spent the night at my sister's place that night and woke up early the next day to meet Jill's brother for coffee at the hotel he was staying at. In case you can't tell, her brother is a big guy:
Speaking of Jill, I finally used the potatoes she brought back from a friend's garden on one of her recent trips. Some of the potatoes were purple:
I decided to make mashed potatoes, hoping to get a purple tinted creation. Unfortunately, the purple color boils out of them.
I served the potatoes with an orange salad and roast chicken for lunch:
I think it was Albert Einstein who defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. If that's the case, then I've lost it.
I've spent much of the weekend rebuilding Jill's MacBook Pro laptop. The episode started a month ago when she spilled her drink all over her keyboard. Afterward, all she could type were numbers, as all the letters were replaced by commas (,). I told her she probably needed a new keyboard. And I told her I could replace it using a variety of youtube videos. The gesture was sincere, but then I discovered that newer Mac laptops utilize an uni-body construction. This meant that the keyboard was not going to be very easy to replace. Actually, it's about the hardest thing you can replace on the Mac (all parts attach to the upper case). I had to order a replacement upper case for the computer and then transfer every part from the old upper case to the new upper case. An added bonus to a new upper case is that it included a new track pad - which is good, since Jill's old one worked only about half the time.
If you're a pro, it takes about an hour to install a new upper case. Not being a pro, it took me about 4. I had to watch videos over and over again and also reference service manuals and other documentation. Anyway, after 4 hours, I managed to move all the parts over and attach the display housing (with the screen) to the new upper case. I pressed the power button on the laptop, and it booted up. And then the screen started to get very bright. And then the track pad stopped working. Quickly, I shut the computer down. And then I went about removing every part I just installed and then installed it all back again. And this time it did only take an hour (I guess I'm a pro now). Well, the computer booted up again, and this time the screen stayed stable. So I started up Microsoft Word and started typing. "q", "w", "e", and "r" all typed fine. However, "t" did not work. In all, about a dozen keys were still acting up. I reasoned that maybe I had mis-seated the keyboard cable or the connector was dirty, so I went about removing the logic board and cleaning the contacts with compressed air. That seemed to help, as only 6 keys were acting up now. Emboldened, I opened up the computer again and cleaned the contacts with isopropyl alchohol (91%), and then I sprayed the keyboard connector with compressed air for an extra long time. Expecting success, I reassembled the unit and turned on the power. And this time nothing. As in nothing happened. It wouldn't boot. I tried plugging in the power cord. I tried holding down the power button for a really long time. I tried pressing random buttons. Nothing.
I feared that I had bricked Jill's computer, so I called and gave her the bad news. She told me to put the Mac aside and not worry about it for now. I told her I would, but I also tried re-seating the connector one more time. Luckily, the computer booted up. The keyboard still had a number of bad keys. But I put it aside as Jill suggested. So that's how I spent my weekend thus far.
On a more successful note, Dustin and I helped at Bikes for Kids earlier in the week (along with a small team from Dell). Bikes for Kids will give out 750 Trek bikes to kids this year. It's a pretty cool charity. Since Dustin and I have more advanced bike skills, we were tasked with setting up the brakes and shifters on the mountain bikes. In 3 hours, we each finished about 12 bikes. Not bad.
Oh, and one more unsuccessful note, Mollie and I went out to dinner at Afin Thursday night. They are in the space that used to be Korea Garden (across from the Yellow Rose). The cuisine was Japanese tapas (think Mikado). The remodeled interior looks good. Unfortunately, the food did not match the decor. And the music was this horrible Lady Gaga beat that droned on and on. And on...
Maurie had tickets to tonight's Michelle Shocked show at the Cactus (and kindly invited me along). We managed to get seats 3 rows from the stage. Great show. It's probably been 20 years since I last saw her. She's quite the showman now, engaging with the crowd, acting up, and being very comfortable with herself in general. And she also seems very happy with where she is in life:
A bonus song near the end brought her dad up on stage, where he led the band in a rousing rendition of This Land is Your Land. Here's a quick video in case you weren't there:
After the show, I picked up a copy of Short, Sharp, Shocked that I misplaced years ago. Michelle offered herself up for a picture, which I happily obliged:
This past weekend was a busy weekend. Friday, I won tickets to the Lykke Li taping of Austin City Limits, so I invited Mollie along. I had never heard of Ms. Li, but she and her band put on a great show.
Afterward, we had dinner at Taverna nearby. Honestly, it was the best meal I've had in a long time. The most tender roast pork over a bed of red pepper mashed potatoes and a side of asparagus. Dessert was a chocolate mousse pie thing that was simple and amazing. It had been a few years since I've been to Taverna, but I definitely want to go back.
Saturday, I woke up at 3:30 AM, so I could pack my car and set up at Mellow Johnny's for their annual Mellow Swap. Think Velo Swap, but on a micro scale. My sister volunteered to help out for the day (in return, I "volunteered" to chaperon her students when they go to the Latin state competition in San Antonio next year). It took me a couple of trips to haul all my stuff there. In hind site, I should have left the bikes and frames at home, but you never know what people will be looking for at these events. Turns out they're looking for cheap stuff. I sold a bunch of used stems, handlebars, water bottle cages - stuff in the $5 to $10 range. All told, I probably sold $800 worth of parts. It was all stuff I really had no use for, so $800 for 10 hours isn't so bad. MJ did provide burgers and New Belgium beer for lunch, which was a bonus.
I also ran into old friends and met some nice people at the swap. The guy who set up at the table next to me was the former British national road champ. He rides for the Rapha Condor cycling team and was selling off outdated kits (jersey, bibs, vests, etc.). Apparently, Rapha revised his jersey 6 times this race season and wouldn't let him wear the old designs. I wish I could remember the guy's name, but I was amazed he was about 6'-2" and wore a size small. Needless to say, I did not pick up any of his excess kits. Oh, wait, I found the guy on the Rapha team site. He's Kristian House. Super nice guy. And he apparently wins a lot.
Speaking of cycling teams, Team Radio Shack was also there selling off their gear, including team bikes and clothing. In case you didn't know (or didn't care), Radio Shack is combining with Leopard Trek next year to form a super team that will include the Schleck brothers, Cancellara, Horner, and Klöden. It'll be called RadioShack-Nissan-Trek. Catchy name, yes?
Saturday night, I went to a musical at The Vortex theater with Maurie and Julia. It was the final show of Sarah Silver Hands. I wish I could tell you what the musical was about, but I kept falling asleep throughout the show. Julia liked it, however, which was the main thing.
To make up for my inattention, Maurie, Julia and I went to see Puss in Boots in 3D at the Alamo Village Sunday afternoon. Now, that was a good film. Funny. And the 3D effects were really well done. I especially liked the floating dust in the bar scenes. It was so lifelike. Amazing.
Jill's on the last of her 3 stops for this trip. She's in Two Rivers, Wisconsin for a week, but should be home soon. Hurray! This long distance thing sucks.
First a quick garden update, then a recap of pre-Halloween activities.
My cukes are staging a comeback, but my basil doesn't seem to want to give up any of it's newfound territory. Thankfully, the purple beans continue to ignore the feud and continue to produce plentiful harvests:
Maurie and her daughter (and her daughter's friend) and their dog stopped by for a visit last night. The two girls decided to decorate my sidewalk with holiday themes:
Jill was in Baltimore last week (at Washington College), in Minneapolis this week, then off to Wisconsin next week. We manage to stay in touch by email, text, and phone calls (post run this morning):
While Jill is away, I'm taking care of her 3 cats. Mavis (the black one) likes me a lot. The other 2 (Baxter and Claude) tolerate me:
This afternoon was Sean and Amy's annual pumpkin carving party. Sean outdid himself this year with 40 cake balls on a stick and a prosciutto and cheese skull:
This is what the skull looked like after people helped themselves to tasty bits.
Afterward, we retreated to the living room for some serious pumpkin carving:
I went with the angry, upside down jack-o-lantern (no time for an intricate design):
Unfortunately, we didn't get to stay long at the pumpkin party because we had to be at Pete and Maria-Elena's for an Austin Shakespeare event. Their house was the perfect setting for a few of the Bard's soliloquies. It was a nice evening to be outside, and Pete and Glenn's home brew was also excellent.
I was suppose to have dinner with Mollie Thursday night. However, I found out Lyle Lovett was playing a sorta impromptu show at Gruene Hall that night, so I asked if we could go to that instead. Despite the 2 hour drive getting to Gruene (traffic), I thought it was a wise choice:
We didn't have much time to eat prior to the band taking the stage, so we grabbed a quick bite at Cantina del Rio. They had a nice patio outside. My green chile cheeseburger and fries were excellent. Her fish tacos were so so:
Lyle was his usual dry humor self. He told lots of stories and played about 2-1/2 hours. His backing sextet was spot on and included: Russ Kunkel, Viktor Krauss, Keith Sewell, Luke Bulla, John Hagen, and Mitch Watkins. It was my first time in Gruene Hall. It's small. And very white. I think I was the only non-white person there. Not that I noticed.
Like I said, the show was excellent. We were about 30 feet from the stage and had a great view. Here's a quick video that I shot:
PS - Happy 40th Birthday, Mollie
The reason I only rode the metric century at the Livestrong ride on Sunday was because I had to catch a flight to Midland later that afternoon for Glady's funeral, and I needed time to pack.
The flight to Midland was uneventful. June and Shawn (her sister) met me at the airport that night and took me over to Shawn's boyfriend's place where I'd be spending the night. After a nice dinner and some reminiscing conversation, I was ready to hit the sack.
The drive from Midland to Floydada took about 3 hours. This is what the drive in looked like (you gotta love the big sky):
June comes from a farming family with roots in the area. The area is flat, and I understand the soil is rich. June and her aunt are looking for their old farm:
And here it is:
And this is Floydada, population four thousand or so:
The funeral took place at the grave site. It was a cool, sunny day and a strong wind blew. The funeral home set up a canopy for the 20 or so people who attended. The local Baptist minister said a few positive words, as did some of her family and friends. The whole ceremony lasted not much longer than 30 minutes.
Afterward, we retreated to a local restaurant for lunch. I had a chance to say hello to Gladys' twin brother, Glenn. The twins could not have taken more divergent paths in life. Glenn grew up with polio and later became the mayor of Amarillo and a successful businessman. Gladys was always the pretty one in the family who had more difficulties in life.
After lunch, June and her aunt dropped me off at the Lubbock airport for my flight home. Lubbock is only an hour away from Floydada and offered me a chance to get to Austin sooner than if I flew back out of Midland.
I had a couple of hours before my flight, so I ordered a sandwich and a beer from the airport bar. Sitting on my stool, I saw the horizon quickly getting darker and darker. Pretty soon, the large picture windows of the bar started shaking violently, the fire alarm sounded loudly, and the warning strobes fired off. Not know what to do, I ate my food and drank my beer while the sky choked with dust and went black. I did not, however, rush to the windows to take pictures and film videos. Even I'm not that foolish. I left that to the news stations and those who post on youtube:
Well, the powers that be shut down the Lubbock airport because of the debris from the dust storm needed to cleared off the runway. I was told I would be put on the next flight out to Austin - the following morning. Understand that it was only 6:00PM when I was told this. I had a long night ahead of me in an airport with limited facilities.
After sitting around for a couple of hours, the opportunity came up for me to take the last flight out of the airport - to Dallas. I jumped on that, figuring Dallas was closer to home than Lubbock. The plane arrived in Dallas around 10:00PM. In Dallas, I found a flight to San Antonio that left at midnight. And since San Antonio is closer to Austin than Dallas, I took that one also. Unfortunately, there wasn't a flight from San Antonio to Austin at 2:00AM, so I called Jill and asked if she'd come get me. She did - and I am forever grateful. We got back to Austin around 3:30AM. But I avoided spending a night in an airport, which no one ever wants to do.
