The Good Thing About The Good Side

Well TS Humberto upgraded himself to a hurricane and then decided not to visit Houston. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Not sure how I lost track of what was happening but I read that around 1100P last night the warning was lifted for Harris County.

Humberto decided to go east and made landfall on High Island. Because it went east and NoRO is west of the hurricane, we didn't get any rain. We're on the good side of the storm. In fact, it was pleasant this morning when The Calvinator and I went for our morning stroll.

I was a bit late getting to Memorial Park 'cause I figured it would be pouring down rain this morning and set the alarm for later than usual. Instead of dripping with sweat by the 1/2 mile mark, I didn't start sweating until the 1 mile mark. THAT'S how I know the humidity level was lower than usual.

Humberto should be a reminder to all of us on the Gulf Coast. He popped up out of nowhere and within 24 hours went from being a low pressure system to a hurricane. There was a run on the grocery stores yesterday afternoon. I think many people were concerned about getting stuck at home due to flooding. Why didn't they already have their supplies?

I'll say it again: "Don't let your guard down. It's still hurricane season."

Strange coincidence...I'm doing a Tropical Depression Party (#46) on Saturday at Legacy's Resale Store. If Humberto had formed a few days later, I might have had an unexpected guest. Guess my timing was a bit off.

Ramblings Of A Caffeinated Mind 4.1

Yesterday marked the peak of hurricane season. Still too early to say, "The coast is clear." Remember, it was around September 23/24, 2005 when Rita made landfall and wiped out the rest of southwestern Louisiana and The Golden Triangle of Texas.

Today marks the 6th Anniversary of 9/11 (the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon). I got a snippet of the ceremony held near Ground Zero in NYC and it really got to me.

I had a meeting today and then went to lunch with AttyHou. On my way back to NoRO I heard Green Day's When September Ends. There are several songs that put a lump in my throat and that is one of them. Included on this list is: Seasons Of Love; Alone Again (Naturally); On Eagles Wings; Be Not Afraid; and Rainy Days & Mondays. There are more songs.

Yesterday was a fun day. I made my way to The Galleria to wish Neiman-Marcus a 100th Happy Birthday! They were giving away their famous cookie. Of course I strolled around N-M like I belonged there.

The cookie had its own special shopping bag.

Close-up of the cookie (before I ate the whole thing).

A small tin of mints (for after an office visit).

I had to get a look at the N-M exclusive Prada shoe. I think it was only $995. Pocket change for an oil tycoon. They had a really nice looking shirt by Robert Graham for about $180 or so. Don't worry...I didn't buy either item.

I did stroll around The Galleria. Purchased a new protective cover for the iPod nano. It is red just like the nano.

And of course I had to make my obligatory pilgrimage to the mother ship...Nordstrom

I did do a 3 mile run first thing in the morning and get this...I actually made it to LeFittes to do some weights. It was a quick workout 'cause Everyday Italian and AttyHou wanted to go out to dinner. It's always nice to return to the scene of the crime so we went to Cyclone Anayas. The last time I was there I was a bit tipsy when I left. Not last night though.

I had to be sure to eat my Neiman-Marcus cookie before I went to bed. I know. That can't be good for the body but it sure tasted good.

There she is...

As mentioned in a previous post, in the olden days this would be the day that the new Miss America would be crowned. To refresh your memory, the pageant was started to keep tourist on the Atlantic City Boardwalk for a few days beyond the Labor Day holiday. The pageant originated on September 7, 1921 and was originally named the Atlantic City Pageant. In 1922, the name was changed to Miss America Pageant.

Like clockwork you could always count on Miss America being crowned close to my birthday…until they moved it to later in the month and then changed the month to January or February or something like that. Let’s get to the point of my rambling.

On September 9, 1961 there were two things happening. Hurricane Carla was pounding the Texas coast and the new Miss America was going to be crowned. Linda Jacklyn Loftis who was originally Miss Ft. Worth went on to become Miss Texas and was favored to win Miss America. My mother was having labor pains and wanted to see if Linda would be crowned as the new Miss America before she would leave for the hospital. As it turns out, Miss North Carolina (Maria Fletcher) was crowned that evening. Miss Texas was 3rd runner-up.

I have romanticized the story and tell people that I was almost born at home because of the Miss America Pageant. (I was actually born the next morning at 6:58A in a hospital.) And even though Ft. Worth (Haltom City) is nowhere near the Texas coast, I have romanticized it and said that the change in barometric pressure induced my mother’s labor pains.

Many times in my life I have pondered aloud, “No wonder I turned out the way that I am. What choice did I have? I was born during the weekend of a hurricane and the Miss America Pageant!”

For various reasons, I used to have an obsession with the Miss America Pageant. Texas always sent contenders to the pageant and usually they ended up in the Top 10. The first Miss Texas to be crowned Miss America was Jo-Carroll Dennison. She was Miss America 1942. So you can imagine the screaming that happened in my house the evening of September 11, 1970, when Phyllis George was crowned Miss America 1971!

I remember the headline on the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram the next morning was something similar to: By George, she did it!

And then 4 years later, Shirley Cothran did it again! And this is where the story gets good.

OK…so my sister and I sang in a choir at church. It was a small group; a folk choir. Because it consisted of guitars and voices we would practice at different homes ‘cause we really didn’t need to be in the church.

So one night we’re at the McMullin’s home. The McMullins were very active in the Miss Texas Pageant association/system/corporation/whatever and were chaperones. During our rehearsal Shirley Cothran, THE FORMER MISS AMERICA...I’ll repeat that…THE FORMER MISS AMERICA…comes walking into the living room and tells us that we sound really good. They never told us she was in the house!!!! I was stunned. And just in case you’re wondering, no she wasn’t walking around in a tiara or a beaded gown. She was just as normal as normal could be.

Anyway, I outgrew my obsession with Miss America shortly after everything blew up with Vanessa Williams, Miss America 1984A. (That isn’t a typo.) It really had nothing to do with the scandal. And don’t get me wrong…I’m a big fan of Vanessa Williams. Talk about someone who was handed lemons and rather than making lemonade she poured some vodka on them and now look at her, she’s Wilhelmina Slater on Ugly Betty!

My obsession with Miss America was quasi-renewed when I moved to Houston and would attend Miss Camp America. They held this event the same night as Miss America and it was truly one of the best events in town.

So that’s the story. Guess it also sorta explains my obsession with hurricanes. And to let you know how big of a nerd I can be, I used to memorize the list of major hurricanes that hit the U.S. I used to know the name, the year and where it hit.

Go ahead and say it, “You need a life.”

Have You Ever....

...done something but really don't remember doing it?

I went running this morning. Did a three mile jaunt around Memorial Park this morning but I really don't remember much about the run. I do remember that my knees were really bothering me. I actually started feeling some knee pain during yesterday's spin class at LeFittes.






It's been a roll of the dice as to who is going to be teaching. Connie was on the schedule but the past few times I've been expecting her there has been a substitute. I know she will be leaving soon for America's Finest City so that is prolly why the schedule has been a bit cattywampus.

Anywho...it was a typical Connie spin class. Sweat. Swearing. Grunting.

...really wanted a specific type of food?

I had a meeting tonight at Legacy. It was short and productive meeting. When we finished I ran an errand and even though I wasn't hungry at the time I kept thinking about green beans from Pronto Cucina on Montrose Blvd.

Ran the errand, chatted on the phone with Joe & Helen and by then I had worked up a hunger for green beans. Now it was not only green beans but I wanted the roasted chicken breast and garlic mashed potatoes. So my happy @ss trotted over to Pronto Cucina. BTW...it was good food.

...just felt really irritated?

I don't know what my problem was today. I don't have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) but I couldn't finish anything I started. (Well I did read the paper.) And the thought of having to deal with a couple of people today was really working my nerves. And then I found out some really odd news about someone that I thought could be trusted.

Don't worry. I'm fine. Maybe it is the alignment of the planets and the stars and the moon and Hurricane Dean being in our hemisphere. Speaking of Dean, here is a satellite image.

That's it bois & gurrls. I need to get ready for Top Chef.

Ramblings Of A Caffeinated Mind 3.5

I thought I'd give you some updates before I do my normal ramblings.

1. Headache - I passed out on the couch last night holding my head. Woke up and went to bed and had a restless night. (see below for my odd dream last night) This morning when I woke up I could feel some drainage going down my throat. I never thought this could be sinus related. Feel a bit better today.

2. Hurricane Dean - Hurricane Dean came in south of Cancun with 160m.p.h. winds. It is heading into the Bay of Campeche and will then make landfall between Tampico and Veracruz. I really feel for those folks in Mexico that are bearing the brunt of the storm. I heard a talking head say that this will be the third strongest storm on record.

3. Running - I met RunnerOne this morning at Memorial Park. He asked how I was doing and I told him about my headache and he immediately diagnosed it as sinus problems. I told him about my odd dream last night (see below) and that is why I was feeling tired.

We didn't run around the park. He surprised me and took me to the track. We did an 800m warm-up and then did 6x400m sprints. Based on the sprints I was running an 8:00 minute mile or less. HA! Now if I could do that for 26.2 miles I'd feel really good about myself.

4. Jimmy Martin - I'm really disturbed about this. (See my post: Missing Person). Like I stated, you never expect to see someone that you know on one of those fliers.

So those are my updates. Here's what else is on my mind.

America's Finest City

This past Sunday was the running of America's Finest City 1/2 Marathon. I have done this run three times and I absolutely love it.

San Diego is one of my favorite cities even if I didn't have good runs doing the Rock 'n Roll Marathon. The weather is great. The scenery is wonderful. And the people are beautiful. I remember the first time I ran Rock 'n Roll I made the observation that the spectators looked better and were in better shape than the participants! Here is proof of the pretty people.

Brad is a catcher for the Houston Astros. During the off-season he lives in San Diego which is where his kids and wife live.
According the Health insert in yesterday's Houston Chronicle, in the off-season Brad lifts weights three times a week and does aerobic exercise (running, biking, Stairmaster or elliptical machines) five or six times a week. He also likes to hit the waves up to five to six times a week.

OK...with the exception of surfing I do all that and I don't LOOK LIKE THAT. :-(

Dream

Oh boy. I had a doozy of a dream last night. Here goes.

I was doing a triathlon at Benbrook Lake in Ft. Worth. For the swim portion of it we had to swim through a sewage pipe. However, when we exited the pipe there wasn't enough water for us to continue our swim so we were in a holding pattern waiting for more water. Everybody is just kinda standin' around and I have to pee. So I go to the restroom and pee and come back to the group and they're still waiting for water to be released from the damn (and I still have to pee).

The water is finally released from the damn and we have to swim upstream (like salmon). I'm holding my own with the group.

Once we finish the swim it is time to start the run (and for those of you who know about triathlons this is outta order 'cause you're supposed to bike after the swim). However, before we could actually start the run, we had to play a game of Dodge Ball followed by a game of Kick Ball.

I was so p!ssed off because as a kid I hated both of those games. So I suck it in and start heading toward the games (and I still have to pee). That is when I finally awakened and REALLY had to pee.

Have a good day everybody.

Ramblings Of A Caffeinated Mind 3.4

The Headache Continues

OK. It hasn't been a constant headache since Saturday but this afternoon it started coming back. Barometric pressure? Need to have my eyes checked? The heat? I don't know.

All I know is that a swarm of tsetse flies must have attacked me because I took a 1.5 hour nap today and I'm getting sleepy and I have a tinge of a headache. UGH!

I had every intention of getting to Memorial Park early this morning. I went to bed last night at 900P but didn't wake up until 645A this morning. I never sleep this much!

Tsetse flies I tell ya!

Hurricane Update

OK. Hurricane Dean will strike south of the U.S. border. This was a good drill. As mentioned in a previous post, we are approaching the peak of the season. And to prove it here is a graph of when things peak. As you can see, we won't be out of the woods until some time in October.

Here is a satellite image of Hurricane Dean taken earlier today:

OK bois and gurrls...The Calvinator needs to go for a quick pee and then I need to get to bed. I'm meeting RunnerOne in the morning at the park. Let's hope I wake up!

Dodge A Bullet

Yesterday's headache pretty much knocked me off my feet. I had to run a couple of errands and of course walk The Calvinator but beyond that I was worthless.

At some point I passed out on the couch and missed a party. I did wake up in time to find out that the strike zone cone for Hurricane Dean was getting squished...I guess the correct term is "getting more narrow."

I slept later than normal for a Sunday so I hurried to the telly to find out the latest. I hope this doesn't come back to bite me in the @ss but I'm certain the Texas upper Gulf coast has dodged a bullet.

Dodge The Bullet by Wayne Zebzda

Here is a satellite photo from this morning:



Here is a close-up of Hurricane Dean. If you look at its aesthetic value, it really is quite pretty. I doubt that the people in Jamaica find anything aesthetically pleasing about this.
Here is a look at the 8 different models:


We may not get any rain from this storm.

I did something different today...different from normal Sunday routine. I did go to the office but not to LeFittes. I went to 1030A Mass at University of St. Thomas. They have a really cool chapel on campus. It doesn't hold many people but it was packed today; SRO.
I was really impressed with the choir. Eleven people including the organist. I'm not really big on organ music but they did a really good job of striking a balance of the organ, guitar, clarinet and voices.

SIDEBAR: I have issues with organ music at Mass. You see, I played guitar for many years at different churches for Mass. I never got a good vibe from the organists at any of the churches. It's my issue to resolve. Plus, I haven't played at a Mass in a few years so I really shouldn't make generalizations and should put the issue in a helium balloon and let float out of my life.

Anywho, here are some pics of the chapel. I didn't have my camera with me so I copied these photos from some different websites:

The Fabulous Miss Jolie Shay sent a distress flare this afternoon. (She has a flare about her.) Her car was sputtering and wouldn't move. I'm not a mechanic but I play one on tv so the best I could do was offer her companionship while she waited for the tow truck and then give her a ride home. I took some photos of the car being towed away "just in case" the driver doesn't make it to the dealership with the JAG-U-AR. (I can't figure out how to send those photos to my email address to post.) They sent out a "special" tow truck for the car.

OK...I'm gonna scoot. I have a tinge of a headache.

Humedo (translates to Humid)

I just returned from a walk with The Calvinator. I swear the humidity index has to be around 1000%. Believe it or not it is only at 59% with a current temperature of 87 degrees.

What makes it feel higher than that is the fact that the ground is soaked. I checked on Buffalo Bayou earlier today and it is below its banks. I really wanted to get a picture of it when it was really full.

I did try to get a run in yesterday. I went to Memorial Park around 400P. There was a sprinkling of rain...no big deal. I was listening to Madonna's Confessions On A Dance Floor on the iPod and I thought I heard thunder. Then I thought I heard it again. Sure enough...just as I finished 3 miles it poured down rain. End of the run.

I'm not big on thunder and lightning when I'm in a 1500 acre wooded park.

I thought I was going to be smart this morning and get in a long walk with The Calvinator. Looked out. Coast is clear. We start walking. Sure enough...it starts to rain. And me with no umbrella. I made him hurry with his pee and poop and we get back to the house, towel him off and it stops raining. UGH!

I imagine a cartoon drawing of the two of us and a black cloud is over us and it is only raining on us.

This is a satellite image of Hurricane Dean which is now a Category 2. Still too early to tell what will happen next week. Hurricanes are so unpredictable. It's prolly time to do an inventory of supplies in case we get hit next week. Let's see....vodka (a). I'll worry about the other stuff tomorrow.

The Sky Is Falling

So the first part of today did not go as planned. Here was the plan:

1. Get up early and do a 5 mile run

2. Shower and clean up

3. Take The Calvinator to doggy daycare

4. Go to the office and read the newspaper

5. Head west on I-10 to suburbia to check out a store for my paper supply

6. Meander back inside the loop (ITL) and have lunch

Here's how it played out:

At 3:57A CDT, I was awakened by loud claps of thunder, lightning and rain. I wasn't sure how long the storm was going to last but I knew it was going to prevent me from getting out to the park by 500A. I guess at some point I turned off the alarm.

I got out of bed around 530A or so and it had stopped raining. Anthony Yanez at your education station informed me that the tropical disturbance is now Tropical Storm Erin. Erin will make landfall on Thursday between Corpus Christi and Brownsville. Galveston-Houston will be getting rain and storms. This morning was just a preview.

OK. Not to sound like Chicken Little but Tropical Storm Dean will probably make its way into the Gulf and not dog leg and go north. This storm will probably be a hurricane in a few days. UGH.

Satellite image from this morning. TS Erin is on the left and TS Dean is on the right (east of the Lesser Antilles.)

We went for our walk and while we were walking I started the debate in my head about running today. So I decided to take The Calvinator to doggy daycare and then go running.

OY! It was a 3 mile three sweater run. The park was wet (duh!) and the sun was peaking through so the temp was rising along with the humidity level. It honestly felt like I was wearing three sweaters and pallet of bricks.

I cleaned up and went to the office. By now I'm thinking that the traffic in suburbia should be OK so I did a quick read of the newspaper and headed west.

On my way to the store, I saw a mega-Garden Ridge so I stopped in and boy did I get thrown for a loop! The first thing that greeted me was rows and rows of Christmas trees and decorations. I'm sorry but mind isn't even thinking about Labor Day and I see Christmas trees. It honestly started to make me dizzy. So I left. On the way out I did see Halloween decorations.
To make myself feel better I went to Panera. I was still a bit overwhelmed by the Christmas trees so I ordered a Frozen Green Tea (with whipped cream)...Largo. I figured Largo went with Large Asso. Just put the whipped cream on both of my thighs. I took two Asiago bagels with me for future meals.




I made it to Archivers. The entire time I was on this trek I kept humming Suburbia by Pet Shop Boys. I'm not being critical but I will say that I didn't fit in with most of the people in 281 that I saw today. As Sugar Land Stuart has repeatedly told me, I'm too urban. (I take that as a compliment.)

At this point I wasn't sure what traffic was going to be like heading back ITL. I really wanted to go to Kohls 'cause I've never been to one but I didn't want to chance the traffic with all of the construction on I-10.

Made it back ITL and got to St. Anne's in time for the 12:00P Mass. The church was full which really surprised me. For the non-Catholic readers, today is a Holy Day of Obligation. This means we are obliged to attend Mass and celebrate The Feast of the Assumption.

from Catholic Encyclopedia:
This feast has a double object: (1) the happy departure of Mary from this life; (2) the assumption of her body into heaven. It is the principal feast of the Blessed Virgin.

Other than some web surfing, I don't have much else planned for the day. I was at LeFittes yesterday to do weights so I won't be going there this evening.

Don't Let Your Guard Down

from Houston Chronicle:

While still predicting a busy 2007 hurricane season, government forecasters on Thursday slightly brightened their outlook, calling for 13 to 16 named storms, including seven to nine hurricanes, with three to five of those intense.

For those of us living on the Gulf Coast or even on the Atlantic coast, this could sound like good news. This has been a quiet season (knocking on wood) but please remember something...

Sept. 10th (my birthday (hint hint) is the peak of hurricane season. As a reminder, here are some storms that have hit in August and in September: Hurricane Katrinia and Rita in 2005; Hurricane Andrew in 1992; Hurricane Alicia in 1983; Hurricane Camille in 1969; Hurricane Betsy in 1965; and Hurricane Carla in 1961. I'm just saying...

OK. This combined with all the talk this week about jambalaya with Everyday Italian is making me think I may need a Hurricane this weekend. Maybe if I drink 1 (or 2) it will keep the evil spirits away. In other news...
I took The Calvinator to Memorial Park early this morning. We had a long 35 minute walk and he was quite happy. Not as many people are there on Friday's 'cause they're all going to be out there tomorrow doing long runs. However, Yoga Boi was there doing yoga and then running later.

I don't like to take The Calvinator there in the mornings 'cause his paws get wet from the dew and then the dirt turns into mud on his paws. However, it is going to be a scorcher here in the Bayou City and I know how much he loves the park so off we went. He was FILTHY but content.

We then hung out at the office. We were by the front door and he was the official greeter. He has a tendency to put a smile on faces.

The downside to all of this activity: he got a bath when we got home. However, I made sure that he got several of his favorite treats while he was getting bathed. You know, sorta like being at a spa. Speaking of bathing...I need to hop in the shower. Even though we walked, it was 79 degrees with high humidity and I worked up a sweat.

Have a good weekend everybody!

Hurricane Season

High anxiety. No...not the Mel Brooks movie.

June 1 marked the beginning of Hurricane Season. I never really worried about hurricanes until I moved to Houston in 1992. And that was a couple of weeks before Hurricane Andrew slammed Florida and headed into the Gulf.

So for the past 15 years I get a knot in my stomach when the forecasters start with their predictions. This year Channel 2 KPRC the Education Station stated that they will NOT scare us. I think everybody did a good job of that with Hurricane Rita in September 2005.

I was one of the 2.5 million residents who fled when Rita was predicted to be a Category 5 heading toward Galveston-Houston. I wasn't worried about flooding but I was worried about the wind damage and the possibility of being without utilities after the storm.

So I loaded up the car with items that couldn't be replaced:

• photos that my parents had given me of my grandparents
• photos of friends
• some clothes (including one pair of: Kenneth Cole shoes; Cole-Haan shoes; Diesel shoes; New Balance running shoes; Puma shoes)
• one bottle of Silver Oak Cabernet and one bottle of Cakebread Chardonnay
• and of course my best buddy and companion Calvin (see above photo)

I guess I was naive in thinking that it would be a short trip so I didn't take much food or water and I paid the price for that later. With limited water and a small supply of Power Bars, Clif Bars and Calvin's food and treats we left Houston at around 400A. It took us 27 hours to get to Joe & Helen's house (aka my parents) in Haltom City.

Calvin was a real trooper (except for the time that he tried to jump out the window of the car and I had to grab him by the tail). I rationed the water until I was able to purchase some in the wee hours of the morning from a vending machine in the middle of who-knows-where.

Gas was a valuable commodity. It reminded me of a Mad Max movie.

I've tried not to second guess the decision to evacuate because I know what was in my mind when I made the decision. The next time a Category 5 is heading for me I may leave sooner than later. I'll definitely take more water with me and a variety of snacks.

In the meantime, I need to stock up on my hurricane supplies. Which reminds me of a news story from a few years ago that was forwarded to me. On the eve of a hurricane that was due to make land fall in Louisiana, a resident who did not evacuate was asked if he had his hurricane supplies. He replied that he had his loaf of bread, beer and cigarettes.