Someone who has lived in Houston all their life said it always get hot right before a hurricane. Not normal hot, which is pretty bad, but HOT. With record high temperatures yesterday and today, I'm in no position to disagree with her. Went out to my car at lunchtime and it is hot, humid and still - the air has a great weight to it.
Conducted a bried experiment at lunch. It started out as an attempt to sneak out for a little food to pigeon-hole in my office, but turned into an "experiment" when I saw the condition of the grocery store. One of the two sets of front doors was closed, so traffic was limited to one side, with people at the front watching you come in and watching you leave. Empty boxes were all over the floor by the registers, people were 7-8 deep in each line, carts full of the weirdest assortment of the remaining food in the store. Lots of chatter, a great deal of energy in the lines, cashiers and sackers working furiously to try to get folks through.
Where are all the courageous restaurant owners? IHOP - closed, Chili's - closed, McDonalds - closed. My bank was closed and the ATM was turned off. Most gas stations either have taken the numbers down off their signs indicating no gas, or put up zeros. Those that have gas had cars at every pump and lines of cars waiting into the street.
The hospital is much more calm today, with the hectic work of admitting patients and setting up their charts completed yesterday. Staffing is still a concern, as the nursing agency we use to supplement staff called at 1:00pm to say all their nurses had cancelled and were either evacuating or committed elsewhere. We've seen the staff split into two groups: one who are dedicated to being with their patients, and one who are dedicated to being with their families. I cannot feel any malice toward those who have refused our request to come in, but am very grateful for those who are here for the duration.
Our food supply truck made it in last night, but our nursing supply truck has called to say they aren't coming. We have a good amount of inventory on hand, and what we don't have we will re-use after washing or improvise. So the good news for patients is their nurses are the most passionate of the bunch, but the bad news is we may run out of supplies.
Crazy stuff going on already. A nurse came with her bird insisting that we keep it in the hospital or she was going to keep driving north, with the bird. So we are bird-sitting in nursing administration. We are offering to keep caged pets in the boiler room as a last resort, but so far it's just the bird. An employee called to ask if she could bring 19 members of her family with her for the weekend. Answer - only if they are all your children and your shoe is in a low-lying area. (OK, I made the shoe part up. "The little old lady who lived in a shoe" - anybody?)
The bosses are starting to get bossier, and Brad is starting to get crankier. We have the corporate COO, the corporate Compliance Officer (don't ask), VP of Quality, (again, don't ask) and 2 other corporate employees. Our local group of folks is doing great - we all work together fine. But some among us want to be Rudy Giuliani and so they are trying to tell everyone what to do. The rest of us are just trying to get our work done.
The storm appears to be headed east of Galveston, which would put us on the "clean" side of the hurricane (front left quadrant) instead of the "dirty" side (front right quadrant). I'm not sure why they designate them clean v. dirty, but the TV people are all saying it. All I know is clean is better than dirty (Mom taught me that, I think) so we're encouraged. Right now, everyone is planning on going home tonight, and then returning early Friday morning to ride it out until Saturday night or maybe Sunday. We expect sustained winds of 75-100mph (a first for me, I believe) and 10 or more inches of rain (nothing compared to the 23 inches in one day from Tropical Storm Allison)!
Still, keep us in your thoughts and prayers, as we will likely have 20-30 children here Friday night/Saturday morning when Rita gets into town. Hopefully they will sleep through the worst of it.
Shelley promised to come home and throw a huge block party if we dodge any house damage - at least we know the carpets will be in good shape for company!
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Rita 2
Okay, enough already with the "worst storm to ever hit Texas" stuff on the news. Good grief. Everybody is plenty freaked out here. Every gas station on the way home from work was full of cars waiting for gas, most stations with the digital price signs had at least one grade of gas with $0.00 indicating, I assume, they were out of that level of gas. I filled up last night with mid-grade, because most of the stations near our house were out of regular.
Sheila and the boys arrived safely in Ft.Worth this afternoon with only one incident. Sheila was stopped for speeding this afternoon. When the troopers (one on each side of the car) asked her if she was evacuating, she tried to maintain her composure (wink, wink) as she told of her husband working around the clock at a Houston hospital caring for the sick and dying, and how she hated leaving him behind, etc... As she was about to squeeze out a fake tear, a young man (it's always a young man) came speeding by at 100+ mph (Sheila's estimate). The one trooper literally tossed her driver's license back in the window, yelling "drive safe" as he ran back to his car, with the other trooper a step behind. Sheila passed them with the poor speeding lad a little further down the road, but not before she realized that he had been caught speeding in a work zone. (For Oklahoma residents other than Steve, who will be VERY familiar with the Texas Highway Patrol regulations, that means double the fine!)
You are probably seeing pictures tonight of cars lined up forever on all major roads out of Houston. Glad my family got out ahead of all that. And they closed Austin's school for Thursday and Friday, which means no bad marks on his attendance record! With more than 1,000,000 evacuating, it's already starting to feel strangely quiet.
Our hospital had 80 patients this morning at 7:00am, and 129 by 7:00pm tonight when I left. All the patients from our "at-risk" hospitals were safely evacuated, and the hospital is well prepared for the worst.
Spoke to Austin tonight, who had 87 questions about this contingency and that probability. Tried to answer them all patiently and thoroughly, because I know he is going to be anxious until he gets home to see for himself that the house and I are still standing.
Shelley, whom I adore more tonight than ever before, is anxious too, but tired and busy being brave for the boys. If I could tell you only one story about her that would shed the most possible light on her personality, it would be this. Sunday night she started freaking out about the storm. Monday, after printing hurricane preparation tips off the Internet, she had a sit down planning meeting with me to get our important documents in order. Tuesday am she went to the grocery store, Costco and a number of other places until she felt like she had all the necessary supplies. Tuesday night, after I told her I had to be at the hospital all weekend, we decided she would leave with the boys Wednesday. So up to the attic to get baby pictures, clothes worn when we brought the boys home from the hospital, all precious keepsakes. Wednesday she picks Austin up early from school and leaves Houston, fully prepared to never see her house and her belongings again. But not before she vacuumed all the floors. I suspect if time had been a little shorter, she might not have vacuumed, but I can't say for sure. And that tells you everything you need to know about, and why I so love, my Shelley.
I'm packing clothes to last through the weekend tonight to take with me to the hospital. I expect to be able to come home tomorrow night before spending the next 2 or 3 days at the hospital, but can't be sure. Brought in all the stuff from outside (lawn furniture, potted plants, bird baths) and put it in the garage. We had a lot of stuff outside, I decided!
I am hoping to be able to blog throughout the storm, as several administration computers will be running off the generator even in power goes down, which we all expect. We'll see how that goes.
Sheila and the boys arrived safely in Ft.Worth this afternoon with only one incident. Sheila was stopped for speeding this afternoon. When the troopers (one on each side of the car) asked her if she was evacuating, she tried to maintain her composure (wink, wink) as she told of her husband working around the clock at a Houston hospital caring for the sick and dying, and how she hated leaving him behind, etc... As she was about to squeeze out a fake tear, a young man (it's always a young man) came speeding by at 100+ mph (Sheila's estimate). The one trooper literally tossed her driver's license back in the window, yelling "drive safe" as he ran back to his car, with the other trooper a step behind. Sheila passed them with the poor speeding lad a little further down the road, but not before she realized that he had been caught speeding in a work zone. (For Oklahoma residents other than Steve, who will be VERY familiar with the Texas Highway Patrol regulations, that means double the fine!)
You are probably seeing pictures tonight of cars lined up forever on all major roads out of Houston. Glad my family got out ahead of all that. And they closed Austin's school for Thursday and Friday, which means no bad marks on his attendance record! With more than 1,000,000 evacuating, it's already starting to feel strangely quiet.
Our hospital had 80 patients this morning at 7:00am, and 129 by 7:00pm tonight when I left. All the patients from our "at-risk" hospitals were safely evacuated, and the hospital is well prepared for the worst.
Spoke to Austin tonight, who had 87 questions about this contingency and that probability. Tried to answer them all patiently and thoroughly, because I know he is going to be anxious until he gets home to see for himself that the house and I are still standing.
Shelley, whom I adore more tonight than ever before, is anxious too, but tired and busy being brave for the boys. If I could tell you only one story about her that would shed the most possible light on her personality, it would be this. Sunday night she started freaking out about the storm. Monday, after printing hurricane preparation tips off the Internet, she had a sit down planning meeting with me to get our important documents in order. Tuesday am she went to the grocery store, Costco and a number of other places until she felt like she had all the necessary supplies. Tuesday night, after I told her I had to be at the hospital all weekend, we decided she would leave with the boys Wednesday. So up to the attic to get baby pictures, clothes worn when we brought the boys home from the hospital, all precious keepsakes. Wednesday she picks Austin up early from school and leaves Houston, fully prepared to never see her house and her belongings again. But not before she vacuumed all the floors. I suspect if time had been a little shorter, she might not have vacuumed, but I can't say for sure. And that tells you everything you need to know about, and why I so love, my Shelley.
I'm packing clothes to last through the weekend tonight to take with me to the hospital. I expect to be able to come home tomorrow night before spending the next 2 or 3 days at the hospital, but can't be sure. Brought in all the stuff from outside (lawn furniture, potted plants, bird baths) and put it in the garage. We had a lot of stuff outside, I decided!
I am hoping to be able to blog throughout the storm, as several administration computers will be running off the generator even in power goes down, which we all expect. We'll see how that goes.
Rita
For the second time this summer, my family is evacuating in the anticipation of a hurricane. It is an understatement to say that this time is a little different.
I found out yesterday that the hospital has activated its disaster plan for weather effective immediately. We are asking all staff who are able to come to work Friday to bring with them clothes and personal items to last three days. We are providing childcare in the hospital for those employees who need to bring their families with them. We are accepting patients from the Triumph Hospitals closer to the Gulf of Mexico, specifically Clearlake, Victoria, Baytown, Channelview and possibly Downtown. We are licensed for 115 patient beds, but may see 125 patients or more in the hospital this weekend. In addition to patients, we are anticipating dozens of staff and dozens of patients' family members and dozens of staff's family members in the hospital over the weekend.
We do not expect to be in store for major storm damage. The storm surge does not threaten this hospital, but does potentially threaten the ones I mentioned. We anticipate a loss of electricity and localized flooding or tree damage/debris which will make travel to and from the hospital too dangerous or perhaps impossible for our staff.
I was just notified that there is a Code Yellow in place, which means no employees may leave the hospital unless cleared through the command center. Patients are being transferred starting this morning, because the local authorities are expected to commandeer all ambulances later today for evacuations.
I want to stress that I am not expecting to be in any danger from Hurricane Rita. I am going to be spending the weekend at the hospital coordinating staffing and supervising the care for staff's family members. Since I have to be at the hospital this weekend, Shelley and I agreed last night that she and the boys should head north. We don't want either of the boys to have a childhood memory involving sitting in the dark for hours while 100 mph winds rage outside. She hasn't decided yet whether she's headed to Tyler or Fort Worth. She has her cell phone with her if you need to reach her. They are leaving early this afternoon to avoid getting stuck in heavy traffic with everyone who is having to leave Galveston. We packed precious baby clothes and pictures in the car last night just to be extra cautious.
Saying goodbye to them all this morning was really tough. Braden has no idea what's going on, which is exactly the way we want it. He's getting to go bye-bye to visit aunts or grandparents and that's all good. Austin was in tears when I hugged and kissed him goodbye. I'll keep everyone updated as I can.
I found out yesterday that the hospital has activated its disaster plan for weather effective immediately. We are asking all staff who are able to come to work Friday to bring with them clothes and personal items to last three days. We are providing childcare in the hospital for those employees who need to bring their families with them. We are accepting patients from the Triumph Hospitals closer to the Gulf of Mexico, specifically Clearlake, Victoria, Baytown, Channelview and possibly Downtown. We are licensed for 115 patient beds, but may see 125 patients or more in the hospital this weekend. In addition to patients, we are anticipating dozens of staff and dozens of patients' family members and dozens of staff's family members in the hospital over the weekend.
We do not expect to be in store for major storm damage. The storm surge does not threaten this hospital, but does potentially threaten the ones I mentioned. We anticipate a loss of electricity and localized flooding or tree damage/debris which will make travel to and from the hospital too dangerous or perhaps impossible for our staff.
I was just notified that there is a Code Yellow in place, which means no employees may leave the hospital unless cleared through the command center. Patients are being transferred starting this morning, because the local authorities are expected to commandeer all ambulances later today for evacuations.
I want to stress that I am not expecting to be in any danger from Hurricane Rita. I am going to be spending the weekend at the hospital coordinating staffing and supervising the care for staff's family members. Since I have to be at the hospital this weekend, Shelley and I agreed last night that she and the boys should head north. We don't want either of the boys to have a childhood memory involving sitting in the dark for hours while 100 mph winds rage outside. She hasn't decided yet whether she's headed to Tyler or Fort Worth. She has her cell phone with her if you need to reach her. They are leaving early this afternoon to avoid getting stuck in heavy traffic with everyone who is having to leave Galveston. We packed precious baby clothes and pictures in the car last night just to be extra cautious.
Saying goodbye to them all this morning was really tough. Braden has no idea what's going on, which is exactly the way we want it. He's getting to go bye-bye to visit aunts or grandparents and that's all good. Austin was in tears when I hugged and kissed him goodbye. I'll keep everyone updated as I can.
Monday, September 12, 2005
Hey Amy - You Want Duh Wrestle?!
Seeing post-facelift Kenny Rogers on TV day and night promoting "TimeLife.com Superstars of Country" has been fun, because it reminds me of the concerts we went to when I was a wee lad: Barry Manilow, John Denver, Kenny Rogers, B.J. Thomas, Amy Grant. Amy Grant was still just a teenager when I saw her in concert (with Dayna Bridges - aaaaaagh!), and I may still carry guilt from the dark, powerful, adolescent longing I felt for her even while she was singing contemporary Christian songs on stage! John Denver put on the best concert of the group, though I can remember thinking during the Barry Manilow concert "every single song he's singing has been a #1 smash hit in the last 12 months - how is that possible?"
Of course, I loved seeing KISS live the best, even though Dad nearly got into a fight with some stoned loser at the Lloyd Noble Arena which would have ruined everything. At some point I remember him telling me that "all the songs sound the same", which was asinine, of course. Until I had the opportunity to hear those songs years later, when they - needless to say - all sounded the same. I've become my father. Hoo boy...
Father to whom, you might ask? Why, to a 3-year-old whose favorite expressions right now include "zip it", "dat a bad choice", "huh-duh-doc-doc" (helicopter), "dat shark, duh cut you leave baaaaad boo boo, bad boo boo" (always 2 bad boo boos, never just 1) and various obsessive descriptions of "fie hi-dents" and "fie eh-sting-sirs" EVERY TIME we see a fire hydrant or fire extinguisher.
It may sound weird, but one of my favorite B-things right now is how he goes to the bathroom. He stands in front of the toilet/urinal, pulls his pants and underwear all the way down to his ankles, lifts the bottom of his shirt and tucks it under his chin, pushes his belly way out, and then proceeds to pee wildly from left to right, top to bottom all over the inside of the bowl. I think it's the holding his shirt under his chin that tickles me most, though that belly sticking out business is cute, too.
We spent this past weekend alone together while Sheila and Austin went to Ft. Worth to get stuff they had all planned on selling in a father/daughters garage sale but which will be donated to the folks from Louisiana instead. Braden spent much of the weekend asking "da-ee you want duh wrestle?" The answer was almost always 'yes', so we spent a rainy Saturday rough-housing in the living room.
Sheila got her hair professionally done while Austin ran around downtown Ft. Worth with his Uncle Jeff Z. Austin was able to get in a few digs about the Astros sweeping the Phillies last week, (Jeff's team) pushing them out of wild card contention, for now.
He also took several photos of Jim and Sheryl's new house in Ft. Worth (the Pecan Plantation is home no longer). Curiously, many of the shots include extremely close-up self-portraits of Austin making bizarre expressions. (Note to self: monitor the 10-year-old when he asks to borrow the camera.)
Of course, I loved seeing KISS live the best, even though Dad nearly got into a fight with some stoned loser at the Lloyd Noble Arena which would have ruined everything. At some point I remember him telling me that "all the songs sound the same", which was asinine, of course. Until I had the opportunity to hear those songs years later, when they - needless to say - all sounded the same. I've become my father. Hoo boy...
Father to whom, you might ask? Why, to a 3-year-old whose favorite expressions right now include "zip it", "dat a bad choice", "huh-duh-doc-doc" (helicopter), "dat shark, duh cut you leave baaaaad boo boo, bad boo boo" (always 2 bad boo boos, never just 1) and various obsessive descriptions of "fie hi-dents" and "fie eh-sting-sirs" EVERY TIME we see a fire hydrant or fire extinguisher.
It may sound weird, but one of my favorite B-things right now is how he goes to the bathroom. He stands in front of the toilet/urinal, pulls his pants and underwear all the way down to his ankles, lifts the bottom of his shirt and tucks it under his chin, pushes his belly way out, and then proceeds to pee wildly from left to right, top to bottom all over the inside of the bowl. I think it's the holding his shirt under his chin that tickles me most, though that belly sticking out business is cute, too.
We spent this past weekend alone together while Sheila and Austin went to Ft. Worth to get stuff they had all planned on selling in a father/daughters garage sale but which will be donated to the folks from Louisiana instead. Braden spent much of the weekend asking "da-ee you want duh wrestle?" The answer was almost always 'yes', so we spent a rainy Saturday rough-housing in the living room.
Sheila got her hair professionally done while Austin ran around downtown Ft. Worth with his Uncle Jeff Z. Austin was able to get in a few digs about the Astros sweeping the Phillies last week, (Jeff's team) pushing them out of wild card contention, for now.
He also took several photos of Jim and Sheryl's new house in Ft. Worth (the Pecan Plantation is home no longer). Curiously, many of the shots include extremely close-up self-portraits of Austin making bizarre expressions. (Note to self: monitor the 10-year-old when he asks to borrow the camera.)
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Floam!
It is definitely too early to tell if this is a flash in the pan or the real deal, but Grand 8 Marketplace is definitely moving the Floam now. I don't want to jinx them, but the commission the parents stand to earn this month with this breakout product would be payable in a check around the middle of November, just in time for Christmas. How cool would that be?
To see how they are doing it, go to Google and search for "Floam". They actually have two listings in the top seven as of tonight. It could all change tomorrow, at Google's discretion, but so far so good.
To see how they are doing it, go to Google and search for "Floam". They actually have two listings in the top seven as of tonight. It could all change tomorrow, at Google's discretion, but so far so good.
Monday, September 05, 2005
From Moonwalks to Boardwalks
Here is a group of pictures of us at NASA and the Kemah Boardwalk taken over the course of a very busy Sunday. If we look tired, sweaty, ragged or disheveled in any other way, it is due to the nature of trying to corral very busy young children all day. That's all.
We got to the Johnson NASA Space Center shortly after they opened at 10:30, and spent most of the day checking out all the interesting stuff they have on display there, from the Apollo days up to Space Shuttle information. Took an informative tram ride to the area where they train astronauts on a full-size mock version of International Space Station modules - very nice. The highlight was the hands on climbing, handling, seeing, hearing activity area, where the kids all roamed freely (under supervision) for at least an hour, probably more like 90 minutes. They didn't want to leave, either - it was the parents who were worn out by it all.
The smallest boys finally took a nap later in the afternoon, and we wound down at NASA around 4:30. Drove 15 minutes to Kemah Boardwalk, were we had a nice mexican food dinner and enjoyed the amusements, rides and ocean views until 8:30ish. The drive back to Cypress was long and sleepy, but that didn't keep Labor Day from starting around 6:30am for the "Brothers Dervish". We all look forward to the day when they are old enough to know what "share" means and want to do it on occasion with each other. For now, it may be best that there are several hundred miles separating them!
Click on the image for a larger view of us all!
PS. Since we just got a digital camera, look for more and more images on the blog, for better or worse...
Thursday, September 01, 2005
The Smallness of Man
Looking again at my post from Monday, the tone seems too jovial - almost flippant - in the face of a terrible disaster. In my defense, at the time of my post the full extent of the destruction was not yet known. I did not mean to be disrespectful.
It seems like a long time ago since that post - the sights I've seen and the stories I've read since then are horrifying. This natural disaster is of a scale I am not able to grasp fully.
But it is the breakdown in the social order that is truly terrifying. I don't believe there is anything wrong with taking water, food, diapers or medicine in the face of the deprivation the poorest citizens in New Orleans now face. But the wanton looting of electronics, jewelry, clothes; the violence committed against the first line responders (police, guardsmen, paramedics); commandeering vans from nursing homes; breaking into hospitals - why? It's disgusting, horrible behavior.
And it really bothers me that every racist in America (and beyond) is looking at the images from New Orleans and saying 'see there - those n***ers are savages'. I actually know of someone who observed 'you can take the people out of the jungle, but you can't take the jungle out of the people'. That type of behavior is disgusting, too.
There will be plenty of time to evaluate the lessons from Hurricane Katrina, and there are millions of reasons to try to figure out how to be better prepared. Impressions just a few days into this tragedy include the smallness of man in the face of nature, and the importance of public officials respecting those they represent, honestly committing all their personal resources to their work. Public service should be a humbling privilege, not a narcissistic exercise in self-promotion.
The poor, suffering people of New Orleans appear to have been failed by those elected to represent them. Shame on them.
It seems like a long time ago since that post - the sights I've seen and the stories I've read since then are horrifying. This natural disaster is of a scale I am not able to grasp fully.
But it is the breakdown in the social order that is truly terrifying. I don't believe there is anything wrong with taking water, food, diapers or medicine in the face of the deprivation the poorest citizens in New Orleans now face. But the wanton looting of electronics, jewelry, clothes; the violence committed against the first line responders (police, guardsmen, paramedics); commandeering vans from nursing homes; breaking into hospitals - why? It's disgusting, horrible behavior.
And it really bothers me that every racist in America (and beyond) is looking at the images from New Orleans and saying 'see there - those n***ers are savages'. I actually know of someone who observed 'you can take the people out of the jungle, but you can't take the jungle out of the people'. That type of behavior is disgusting, too.
There will be plenty of time to evaluate the lessons from Hurricane Katrina, and there are millions of reasons to try to figure out how to be better prepared. Impressions just a few days into this tragedy include the smallness of man in the face of nature, and the importance of public officials respecting those they represent, honestly committing all their personal resources to their work. Public service should be a humbling privilege, not a narcissistic exercise in self-promotion.
The poor, suffering people of New Orleans appear to have been failed by those elected to represent them. Shame on them.
Monday, August 29, 2005
The Glory of Old PU
Thought you all might enjoy a photo taken on the morning of Father's Day. The boys got me the Phillips University t-shirt for a Father's Day gift. As I was modeling it for them, the shame of having a dad who went to a school with a skunk as a mascot (Lil Hay) became too much for Austin. He's the one with the paper sack over his head.Sigh...
Hurricanes and Bubble Baths
We've been watching the hurricane for the last couple of days, along with most folks in the southeast part of the country. It is especially odd watching reports from towns along the gulf coast we were in this summer, even if it was just passing through on our way to Destin. I was in New Orleans 3 years ago, staying at the Hyatt hotel next door to the Superdome. There have been pictures of that hotel on CNN today with windows broken out, curtains flapping in the wind - eerie.
Few of you will know that the Superdome was the sight of my finest adult athletic achievement (post knee surgery). At a regional HR meeting, I ran a 5k race (around the Superdome several times) in under 25 minutes. I'm sure I could have run it quicker except for the 2 Hurricanes and 1 cigar I had enjoyed at Pat O'Briens the night before. That and the fact I went to bed around 2am and the race was at 6:30am - though it was already about 125 degrees with 99% humidity when the race started. I never tried to pretend those HR meetings were strictly business!
We had a wild thunderstorm come through town Saturday night, knocking out our power from midnight to 8am. Around 10:45pm, Shelley came into Austin's room (as we tried to read the last chapters of Harry Potter) and said "you have to see this lightning". It was amazing. Huge strikes hitting the ground in the distance, crackling white streaks shooting across the sky, branching off in all directions like highways on a roadmap. It rained buckets, and I was happy to have mowed and edged the yard earlier that day, knowing it was soaking up the rain and I wouldn't have to slog through it on Sunday. Concerned that food in the freezer might spoil, I finished off the pint of Blue Bell Cookie Dough ice cream, which was fine.
We had an "organizational" meeting for Austin's Cub Scout den on Saturday, though I use the word "organizational" in quotes because it was anything but organizing. The parents in this group drive me nuts, because they don't listen and they don't follow directions and they visit with each other during meetings, leaving their boys to be wrangled by yours truly. Shelley and I prepared for 2 hours for this meeting, and we would have been better off staring at the sun for 2 hours, no more good than it did getting these parents to FOCUS! (I'll never forget the soccer coach "training" I went to in Amarillo. The leader assured us the boys would not be a problem, but the parents would make us want to pull out all our hair. Turned out exactly that way!)
Speaking of wanting to pull your hair out, a few tidbits about Braden are in order. The best trick I've got to get Braden into the bath is my offer to let him squirt in the bubble bath liquid. The first several times he did this he went berserk, squirting in way too much bubble bath with lightning-quick speed. After hearing me shout at him several evenings in a row, he has now taken up the habit of squirting in a tiny amount and asking "dat penty?" I'll say "no Braden, a little more". He'll squirt in a thimble-full and ask "dat penty?" "A little more." Out comes another tiny drop. "Dat penty?" "No, a little more please!" After about 5 to 10 rounds of this, I'll finally agree "yes, that's plenty", and he strips off his clothes, hops in the bath, and shakes his hand violently back and forth in the water to stir up as many bubbles as he can given his carefully rationed bubble bath liquid. It doesn't take much imagination to figure that the bathroom is usually a wet, soapy mess by the time he's done with his bath.
Bathtime also features one of his many endearing habits. Everytime I ask him to lay down in the water to get his hair wet (or to rinse out the shampoo), he starts to babble "da da da da da..." once his ears go underwater. I can remember as a little boy being fascinated by the muffled, distant sound of my own voice while talking with my ears under water, and it obviously entertains him, as well.
And special thanks to Aunt Kerry, who is the cause of my 3-year-old walking around the house all day declaring "here comes the big bad bunny, I come duh take all your money". If you make the mistake, (which I do, frequently) of replying "I don't have any money - all I have is this circus peanut" - or block, or remote control, or whatever I happen to have - he'll say "I take dat" and he removes whatever from your custody and marches off, asking "is no one safe from duh big bad bunny"?!
Austin and I went with Jeff Zirbser (Jamie's hubby) and Gibby (Austin's best friend) to an Astros game weekend before last. Not only was Austin able to get another baseball while leaning onto the visitor's dugout after the game, but he and Gibby were also on the Fox Sports SW national telecast of the game. Our neighbor was watching TV at home and saw him and Gibby leaning onto the dugout after a post-game interview on the field, in a close-up shot of the boys that lasted a full 5-10 seconds. (He had the shot on TIVO when we got home, and Shelley, Austin and I all went over there to watch - cool!) That was after their pictures were displayed on the big screen behind center field during the game holding up the "Go Stros"** poster Shelley and Austin made. Sometimes I think that kid is living a charmed life...
**Note to Mom: "Stros" is an abbreviation for "Astros", the nickname of the Houston Baseball franchise. I know how you disapprove of the use of mascots/nicknames when referring to sports teams, so I hope this helps clear that up. Love, B
Few of you will know that the Superdome was the sight of my finest adult athletic achievement (post knee surgery). At a regional HR meeting, I ran a 5k race (around the Superdome several times) in under 25 minutes. I'm sure I could have run it quicker except for the 2 Hurricanes and 1 cigar I had enjoyed at Pat O'Briens the night before. That and the fact I went to bed around 2am and the race was at 6:30am - though it was already about 125 degrees with 99% humidity when the race started. I never tried to pretend those HR meetings were strictly business!
We had a wild thunderstorm come through town Saturday night, knocking out our power from midnight to 8am. Around 10:45pm, Shelley came into Austin's room (as we tried to read the last chapters of Harry Potter) and said "you have to see this lightning". It was amazing. Huge strikes hitting the ground in the distance, crackling white streaks shooting across the sky, branching off in all directions like highways on a roadmap. It rained buckets, and I was happy to have mowed and edged the yard earlier that day, knowing it was soaking up the rain and I wouldn't have to slog through it on Sunday. Concerned that food in the freezer might spoil, I finished off the pint of Blue Bell Cookie Dough ice cream, which was fine.
We had an "organizational" meeting for Austin's Cub Scout den on Saturday, though I use the word "organizational" in quotes because it was anything but organizing. The parents in this group drive me nuts, because they don't listen and they don't follow directions and they visit with each other during meetings, leaving their boys to be wrangled by yours truly. Shelley and I prepared for 2 hours for this meeting, and we would have been better off staring at the sun for 2 hours, no more good than it did getting these parents to FOCUS! (I'll never forget the soccer coach "training" I went to in Amarillo. The leader assured us the boys would not be a problem, but the parents would make us want to pull out all our hair. Turned out exactly that way!)
Speaking of wanting to pull your hair out, a few tidbits about Braden are in order. The best trick I've got to get Braden into the bath is my offer to let him squirt in the bubble bath liquid. The first several times he did this he went berserk, squirting in way too much bubble bath with lightning-quick speed. After hearing me shout at him several evenings in a row, he has now taken up the habit of squirting in a tiny amount and asking "dat penty?" I'll say "no Braden, a little more". He'll squirt in a thimble-full and ask "dat penty?" "A little more." Out comes another tiny drop. "Dat penty?" "No, a little more please!" After about 5 to 10 rounds of this, I'll finally agree "yes, that's plenty", and he strips off his clothes, hops in the bath, and shakes his hand violently back and forth in the water to stir up as many bubbles as he can given his carefully rationed bubble bath liquid. It doesn't take much imagination to figure that the bathroom is usually a wet, soapy mess by the time he's done with his bath.
Bathtime also features one of his many endearing habits. Everytime I ask him to lay down in the water to get his hair wet (or to rinse out the shampoo), he starts to babble "da da da da da..." once his ears go underwater. I can remember as a little boy being fascinated by the muffled, distant sound of my own voice while talking with my ears under water, and it obviously entertains him, as well.
And special thanks to Aunt Kerry, who is the cause of my 3-year-old walking around the house all day declaring "here comes the big bad bunny, I come duh take all your money". If you make the mistake, (which I do, frequently) of replying "I don't have any money - all I have is this circus peanut" - or block, or remote control, or whatever I happen to have - he'll say "I take dat" and he removes whatever from your custody and marches off, asking "is no one safe from duh big bad bunny"?!
Austin and I went with Jeff Zirbser (Jamie's hubby) and Gibby (Austin's best friend) to an Astros game weekend before last. Not only was Austin able to get another baseball while leaning onto the visitor's dugout after the game, but he and Gibby were also on the Fox Sports SW national telecast of the game. Our neighbor was watching TV at home and saw him and Gibby leaning onto the dugout after a post-game interview on the field, in a close-up shot of the boys that lasted a full 5-10 seconds. (He had the shot on TIVO when we got home, and Shelley, Austin and I all went over there to watch - cool!) That was after their pictures were displayed on the big screen behind center field during the game holding up the "Go Stros"** poster Shelley and Austin made. Sometimes I think that kid is living a charmed life...
**Note to Mom: "Stros" is an abbreviation for "Astros", the nickname of the Houston Baseball franchise. I know how you disapprove of the use of mascots/nicknames when referring to sports teams, so I hope this helps clear that up. Love, B
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
La Porta Chicken
Since we just had this again this weekend and enjoyed it thoroughly, (its one of the very few meals we don't have to coax Braden to eat, spaghetti being the other), I thought I'd share this recipe with the world!
La Porta Chicken
(Named for a restaurant by the same name on the San Antonio Riverwalk)
Serves 4
Ingredients
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
chili powder
Guacamole
4 avocados
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 lemon
4 Tablespoons picante sauce
1/2 Tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
Fresh fruit
Directions
1. Sprinkle chili powder on the chicken breasts before cooking them on the grill. Allow to cool slightly, then slice into bite-size pieces. Set aside.
2. Make the guacamole by using a fork to mash together the avocados, garlic powder, juice of 1/2 lemon, picante sauce and cilantro. Add salt and pepper (or more of the other ingredients) to taste.
3. Combine chicken with guacamole in a serving bowl.***
4. Serve with bite-sized pieces of seasonal fresh fruit. We like pears, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, apples, white grapes and/or kiwi fruit. (Try to include the kiwi fruit - it just looks so cool.) 3 or 4 choices of fruit should be plenty.
Serve with tortilla chips and picante sauce (obviously!) and a bottle each of cerveza w/lime for the adults.
The only way to make this dish any better is to eat it outdoors on the patio.
***Since the boys don't like avocados (Braden calls it "crock-amole"), we let them have the grilled chicken without the guacamole. No extra work for Sheila or me and the boys get some protein with their fruit.
La Porta Chicken
(Named for a restaurant by the same name on the San Antonio Riverwalk)
Serves 4
Ingredients
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
chili powder
Guacamole
4 avocados
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 lemon
4 Tablespoons picante sauce
1/2 Tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
Fresh fruit
Directions
1. Sprinkle chili powder on the chicken breasts before cooking them on the grill. Allow to cool slightly, then slice into bite-size pieces. Set aside.
2. Make the guacamole by using a fork to mash together the avocados, garlic powder, juice of 1/2 lemon, picante sauce and cilantro. Add salt and pepper (or more of the other ingredients) to taste.
3. Combine chicken with guacamole in a serving bowl.***
4. Serve with bite-sized pieces of seasonal fresh fruit. We like pears, blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, apples, white grapes and/or kiwi fruit. (Try to include the kiwi fruit - it just looks so cool.) 3 or 4 choices of fruit should be plenty.
Serve with tortilla chips and picante sauce (obviously!) and a bottle each of cerveza w/lime for the adults.
The only way to make this dish any better is to eat it outdoors on the patio.
***Since the boys don't like avocados (Braden calls it "crock-amole"), we let them have the grilled chicken without the guacamole. No extra work for Sheila or me and the boys get some protein with their fruit.
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