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A few weeks ago Mitzy and I discovered a pomegranate tree with a few stray pomegranates still clinging to its branches. The tree was, and still is, in what appeared to be a fairly neutral area at the end of the cul-de-sac. We pilfered the easy to reach ones, then went back a few days later to get the harder to reach ones. We got three all together and they were yummy.
I discovered yesterday that Dungeons & Dragons online is now free to play. So, the price is right.
I'm having trouble with motivation this morning. It's overcast again and dull gray clouds are bumbling around outside.
I have a co-worker who speaks in a very loud voice, I don't think he does it on purpose exactly, just that his voice carries. A lot. Soon I shall put on head phones and listen to music while I try my hand at report development again.
Last week Mitzy's oldest niece took her driving test in Mitzy's car. This meant we took my car in to work. Right around the Whole Foods area of Gaston I felt something go wrong. There was a brief odor of 'burnt'. Instead of pulling over and inspecting the car for possible faults I applied my usual tactic when dealing with potential problems, I ignored it. Eventually I learned that the fan belt had broken, after the car finally ground to a halt right outside of the parking garage. I found it interesting how the symptoms manifested over time as I continued driving after the initial happening. The first thing I noticed was that the power steering and power brakes went, this wasn't a deterrent to driving as I grew up driving a car without these niceties. As time went on the power started to go, the lights on the console and on the radio began to dim, and the windshield wipers began to slow. This all culminated with the gauges going limp, and shortly there after the car finally stopped for good. At first I thought that the battery had gone out, as that happened shortly after I bought the car, but after pushing the lifeless hulk to a parking meter and opening the hood it was pretty obvious what had happened. There's only one belt in my car. They call it a serpentine belt, and I kind of dug that. I think this is pretty common now-a-days. My belt was wildly shredded, and small bits were all over the place under the hood.
I've been pretty lucky with my car, it hasn't given me any mechanical problems in the ten years, and almost 90,000 miles, that I've had it. This means I have no mechanics, nor do I know of mechanics. I don't deal well with conflict and adversity, especially when I can't ignore it anymore, or get the situation to a point where I can safely ignore it for some time. This means I was briefly panicked as I tried to figure out what to do. After going over a lot of ideas and schemes in my head I decided to be practical, so I checked the Better Business Bureau's website for a local auto shop with a good rating. I found a place with an A minus rating that was kind of close to my neighbor hood, and was also on the way home, The White Rock Pit Stop. So I called them and arranged for a tow and repair, and they took care of everything for a reasonable price. I lady that works in another department checked with her husband, who is a mechanic in East Texas, as to what he would charge to replace a serpentine belt, and his price was almost the same as the one I was charged.
They were very nice and professional, and while I do realize that replacing a belt is not a monumental task, they still got it taken care of by the time I got off work. They also recognized that I was well past due for an oil change, and called me make sure that it was okay that they did it. I won't go into that, since it involves some embarrassment on my part, but I appreciate the heads up on work that needed to be performed that wasn't a part of the original issue. They also recognized that my clutch is in need of some work, and he provided me a quote on the work with no pressure or hard sell. I like that too. They're also a local and minority owned shop, so I liked that as well. What started off as a stressful day was resolved with a minimum fuss, and I was very satisfied with the results. So if you're in the East Dallas, White Rock area, and need a mechanic I'd recommend you give White Rock Pit Stop a try.
Oh yeah, and Connie passed her driving test on the first go.
It's Wednesday, so I felt I should put down my memories of the weekend. It was an unusally busy one filled with activities. On Friday night we went to a rock -n- roll show at the Lakewood Theater that was titled the Hot Klub reunion, but that didn't hold any meaning for me, we were only going because our friend's husband's band, The Big Guns, were playing. Come to find out that the Hot Klub was the divey hangout for the Dallas punk scene back in the late 70's and early 80's, so they had a long list of bands that had frequented the place back in the day reuniting to rock our world punk style. Before the show we tried out a new restaurant that is located in spot that has seen many new restaurants come and go. I was feeling a little under the weather, so I had a bowl of Minestrone soup, and Mitzy had the same. The food was good, nothing to go crazy about, and the service was energetic. Of note was the obligatory before-meal bread, only in this case it was a pizza crust dusted with Parmesan cheese, I've never experienced anything of this nature so I thought it was a nice change of pace. After a quick dinner we enjoyed the show, but cut out around 11:00 since we were getting tired, but we got to see The Big Guns, Ball of Wire (both Mike's bands, one current, the last old), and the Barry Kooda Combo which was fun...Barry is an old Nervebreakers guy. Despite ending early it was a fun outing.
Saturday we got up later than usual and went to the White Rock market, I bought some local honey with the cone still in it, but other than that we only visited with our co-worker who had setup a both. Saturday was also State Fair day for us, we were supposed to meet up with a Meetup.com group that we're members of, but we were pretty lazy and didn't get out to Fair Park until around 3:00. The original meet up time being 1:00, but with a venue like that I didn't really see the point of trying to maintain a group as what I wanted to see probably wouldn't have been the same as others. We did see a portion of them later in the evening, but they were headed out, so we only talked for a bit. I've never been a big fan of the Fair, mostly because I see it as just a big money pit, but this year I tried to play along a little more. I had found an article in the Dallas Observer listing the "award winning" foods this year, so I felt like I had a game plan of sorts, and that added to my sense of being able to enjoy myself. I purposefully let go of my frugality and decided not to worry about the money, and I think that all worked out pretty well, as this was probably the most I've enjoyed the Fair. Getting to see the Killdares, a celtic rockband that I've been a fan of since the late 90's, was a big help, and they were just as awesome as the last time I saw them more than a few years ago. We staid for the parade, and then we rode the huge Texas Star Ferris Wheel, neither of which I've ever done before, and that added to the novelty. The ride was 12 tickets each ($6), so we had to get a few more from the booth, then some couple offered us almost 40 tickets for $10, so I took that deal, and I was glad that I did because it led to some good eats later.
As far as the food went I really enjoyed the Fried Sweet Cornbread Shrimp in Jalapeno sauce (at least I think that's the name), and the Twisted Yam on a stick (though I like my Yam spicy and this was sweetened with sugar and Cinnamon). All the hub-bub this year was the Fried Butter, and after waiting in line forever to get some I was disappointed to some extent. What you actually got was more of a fried biscuit that had lots of butter on it, and while it was good I didn't think it was worth the tickets and the wait combined. After the Ferris Wheel ride we got some roasted corn on the cob, and that was really tasty, but what I really had been wanting was coming up. And that was the absolutely most awesome thing that we had out there, the Fried Chocolate Covered Strawberry Waffle Balls, and oh my fucking gawd were they super delicious. Both Mitzy and I agreed that they were like an orgasm in your mouth, or maybe that was just me, but they were by far the most scrumptious balls I've ever had in my...um...mouth.
I think Mitzy could have left several hours earlier, but we ended up getting out around 9:30 or so. We were both exhausted, but I think we both really enjoyed the time spent, and Mitzy was an extreme trooper in that her little feet were killing her by the end of it all.
Sunday was a little more low key, we cleaned house a little, watched Mad Men, and started our first fire in our fireplace ever. We took the opportunity to make smores.
To bottom line it in a nuts and bolts sense, if, after giving banks hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars at once on the threat that they might go bankrupt, we are actually still arguing over whether or not we can afford a small fraction of that per year for a government-run health insurance plan, then who the fuck are we?via Rude Pundit
Barak Obama, the 44th President of the United States of America, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for Peace today. Already the criticisms have started, about how he isn't qualified for this, how he hasn't earned it, how it is all based on his promises and expectations. I for one am extremely proud and encouraged by the presentation of this award to President Obama, and it refreshes the sense of purpose and hope that I felt when he was first elected. I find comfort that there are those around the world that still see the promise not only in our President, but also in the United States as a whole. That despite our very poor behavior of recent years, and all of our troubles here at home, that the world is, in a sense, telling us that it's okay, keep trying, we still believe in you. Quite possibly the Nobel committee is awarding this to show that the world community hasn't given up on the U.S., and that they are not only willing to have us back, but are eager for us to show real leadership in solving issues that effect all of humanity.
I hope that the eight years of George W. Bush and his administration are a book end to a very long era of Imperialism and exploitation that has been carried about by Western nations for the last three or four hundred years. We have to be, at this point, ready and willing to move past these old ways of thinking so that we can move forward as a planet and not as a group of petty nations. Much has gone wrong lately and there are huge problems that need to be fixed, and I admit that I've felt pretty despondent lately, but I still see those small rays of hope seeping in through the edges of the door to our collective future. I'm not sure where we're going, or if it will all work out in the end, but right now I feel pretty good about our chances.
I feel a little bamboozled by it all. My expectations had been for an epic Oktoberfest celebration the likes of which can only be pulled off by a small Texas town that was originally settled by Germanic peoples. I had expected that we would be at said festival for a long period of time, drinking beers until the gears were lubed sufficiently as to allow for dancing. So not only was the Oktoberfest not epic in scale, but the group members I was with were not woo'ed by the alluring Germanic gaiety and pageantry, such as it was. I shouldn't bemoan and belittle the Fredericksburg Oktoberfest, because it was an honest effort that had many appreciable qualities, but having skipped the Addison Oktoberfest I had set my expectations pretty high. I had put all of my chicks in a singular basket, and most likely I had also placed all of my cards on the table.
I was disappointed by the lack of an overpriced commemorative mug of any kind, and the German beer was terribly over priced at twice that of domestics, six Yankee dollars compared to three. That having been said, the domestic selection was stellar, so that made up considerably, but I didn't find this out until late in the game. I would say the food was descent, though I would rank Addison's affair a little higher for no other reason than pure speculation on my part. It was festival food, and that's really where you have to set your bar, so in that regard it was very functional. The rain wasn't their fault, and while it was a detriment to general mobility about the small festival grounds I think it made for a nice cozy opportunity under the main tent. Meaning that with everyone forced under the cover it provided, the party atmosphere was amplified in a way that can only be achieved by pushing lots of drunk people together under the premise of polka and oompah. The chances of many chicken dances was high, and I was eager, but sadly my cohorts didn't agree, and when the deluge slackened we departed. I was a little crestfallen, but I saw no advantage in pressing battle.
Overall Fredericksburg is a great little tourist trap nestled in the Hill Country, and I would unwaveringly endorse your patronage of the place. We staid well out of town at a place called the Tin Star Ranch, and our accommodation was an old ranch house kind of structure, that was rustic and country in all the right ways. The atmosphere, as rainy and soggy as it was, provided a restful respite at the end of the day's activities. It was so quiet and peaceful, and both mornings we woke up early to walk around and take pictures. We saw lots of deer, cows, horses and one buffalo. Also, goats.
It was a good trip and we had a pretty good time, it was a nice weekend get away, even though the travel time is pretty exhaustive from Dallas at about 5 hours. This was my first real foray in the depths of the Hill Country and I see what all the talk is about, it really is a beautiful part of Texas, and I hope we get a chance to explore it again.
So today I learn that I'm destroying the planet every time I take a shit. Awesome. On the other hand a cold shot of water to the ass may be just the thing...a solution for many problems.
Making a roll of toilet paper uses 1.5 pounds of wood, 37 gallons of water and 1.3 KWh of of electricity.
I would post the video from the site, but I feel like you should get the full affect, or is it effect?
Also, I'm going to an Oktoberfest celebration in the Texas hill country and I'm looking forward to that. If things go according to plan I will eat some German food and drink German beer, and then I will drink more German beer. Those are my goals.
Also also, Mitzy pointed me to this site: Projects Abroad. If I understand correctly you can give them money and they send you to some point on the Earth to do volunteer things for like a month or two. Seems very interesting, and now I question my direction in life. Well, again.