This guy can't BUY a break!

It was at the State Fair of Texas about a year ago that Big Tex, the giant cowboy statue that welcomed visitors at the front gate, caught fire and turned crispy critter.  It seems the motor that moved his jaw when he "talked" shorted out.  (They never offered an explanation of why his crotch ignited, although rumors were ripe.)

It was big news at the time, and many people around here were truly saddened.  (I personally thought the whole concept was pretty cheesy.)  Money was raised for a new Big Tex, and he was ready for this year's fair.   

Several days ago at lunch I had the TV on and was (sorta) watching the local news when I happened to glance over to see this:

My first thought was, "Holy crap....he fell over!  THE SUM BITCH FELL OVER!"  *we just can't have nice thangs!*

Turns out the Fair ended its 3-week run last weekend and workers were taking him down and back to storage.  *Whew*  I'm not sure people around here could handle the trauma of losing another Big Tex so soon.

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I don't get all this fascination with cowboys.  I really don't.  While there are still some working cowboys in Texas (mostly in west and south Texas), they're rare, and you're more likely to see them working out of 4-wheel drive trucks or even helicopters than on horseback.  They dress the way they do for a reason.

What you will see here are what we jokingly refer to as "urban cowboys".  These are city people who wear boots (dirty, never polished), Wrangler jeans, shirts with snaps instead of buttons, belt buckles the size of hub caps, and of course cowboy hats.  But the funny part is, they wouldn't know what to do with a cow or a horse if their life depended on it.  

I understand honoring your past, and we in Texas have an exceptionally colorful one.  But to re-live it every day?  I mean, do you see ordinary people in Boston walking around wearing 3-point hats, coats with long tails, and shirts with ruffles?  Or people in San Francisco walking around wearing....OK....bad example.

Oh well, to each his own.  As long as there's not a run on LL Bean "looks good fresh out of the dryer" T-shirts, I'm happy.  :)

S

Yacht racing on the high plains, and I was there!

So last night K went to an "Arrivederci, love you / mean it" party for one of her co-workers who is going on to law school, leaving me home alone to fend for myself.  That didn't bother me at all as I actually enjoy my own company and had a plethora of books to read, a big-enough TV to watch, and more than one bottle of vino.

While channel surfing I stumbled across one of the Louis Vuitton Challenge Cup races from San Francisco.  This is the series of races that determines who the challenger will be versus the reigning champ Oracle boat in the America's Cup (yacht racing).  I was absolutely mesmerized by what these things can do!

This is Luna Rossa, the Italian entry.

What I didn't fully understand until they explained it last night, if the skipper is really on his toes and can balance his boat just right, these 72' catamarans can actually rise out of the water, riding on just a couple of curved foils (like underwater wings), the hulls never touching the water.  This reduces drag and enables them to go well over 40 mph. 

It seems to me they're as much airplane as boat.  It's like watching a ballet, the dancer precariously balanced on her tippy-toes.

I think things like this appeal to me so much because they are unlike anything I'll ever see here in Dallas, Tx, USA.  It's sort of like downhill skiing or the luge in the winter Olympics.

I wonder if people who live in the mountains ever just sit around and think, "Oh man, I'd love to see people walking on flat ground, just standing there....sweating.  I wonder if there's a cable channel that shows cool stuff like that?"

Have a great Saturday everyone.  I've gotta get going....I have a big day planned.  I'm gonna stand here on flat ground....and sweat.  :)

S

Bacon Bacon, and More....WITH EDIT

Have you heard the latest twist to the life or death saga of Bacon Bacon, the San Francisco restaurant that specializes in dishes that contain that special male aphrodisiac?  Some residents of the area had complained of the smell of bacon permeating the neighborhood and had succeeded in having it shut down.  *gasp*  

Yesterday the court allowed Bacon Bacon to reopen if they uprated their ventilation system.  I should hope so.  If there was ever a reason to rally....riot even....for a cause, this was it.  Those anti-bacon types better not try any of that nonsense here in Texas!  We love our bacon, and we have the waistlines to prove it.

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I understand Edward Snowden, the guy who stole top secret gubment info and fled to Hong Kong (who then shipped him on to Russia) is about to make his move again.  He's been holed up in the Moscow airport for a month, and I'm guessing is smelling pretty ripe by now.  So far the only countries who say they will take him are a couple of banana republics in Latin America and Venezuela (not much better).

Can you imagine what 'ol Ed is thinkin'?  "This has NOT worked out like I thought.  I'm gonna spend the rest of my life in Bo-f__king-livia, swatting flies and selling souvenir 'Che' t-shirts to tourists.  Crap!"  

Smart career move, Ed.

EDIT:  U-turn....the f__ker is staying in Russia.  (Not a safe place, Ed.  "Bad things" can happen to people there.  *wink* )

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This is a follow-up to a post of a few weeks ago where I suggested that some kind of immigration reform needs to be implemented ASAP.  The main argument for just rounding up undocumented workers and escorting them back across the river is that they are taking away jobs from legal Americans who need work.

I received an email from my patterned concrete vendor yesterday pleading with all their customers to please be patient with them.  It went on to say concrete was in short supply, they had jobs backed up for 3 weeks, the concrete companies couldn't hire enough drivers, they themselves couldn't hire enough employees, etc.

If you're wondering, this ^ is specialty patterned concrete.

OK all you native born Americans of whatever color you might be who were shunted aside by illegals who got that job meant for you.  You say you want to work?  Here's your chance.  You're up.  The hiring signs are out and the pay is good.

*Waiting....*

*Still waiting....*

Have a great weekend everyone.  Stay cool.  :)

S

It's all about appearances....and money

Now that's what I'm talkin' about!

This small house is in San Francisco, a locale where real estate is in short supply.  They're used to creative designs like this being plopped onto postage-stamp sized sites.  Except for the fact there doesn't seem to be any provision for car parking, I'd love this.  But here in Dallas, Texas when you say you want a small house this is what people think you're talking about:

This one actually appears very neat and lovingly maintained, but it isn't the sort of place that will turn heads when you're standing at the building permit desk asking if a zoning square footage  exception can be made.  That isn't actually the process, of course, but you say "small" and they just seem to automatically think this and reach for their "DENIED" rubber stamp.  McMansions bring in lots of property taxes; these don't.  That's as far as they can think.

Maybe I need to think more creatively:  I could present a front view that looks like the Palace of Versailles, but have it propped up with 2 x 6's like one of those movie-set facades.  Then behind that could be my little 1000 square foot house.  Think they'd catch on?

And here's how I'll pay for it:

Anyone remember the 'ol Swear Jar?  (Did anyone besides me NEED a swear jar?)

The idea was when you catch someone swearing they have to put a coin in the jar.  When the jar was full the money went to something fun or to a charity, whatever.  

OK, so here's my idea to pay for my new house:  I'll put "Lie Jars" all over Washington, DC.  When a politician tells a lie they'll put a quarter in my jar, and wah-lah....free house!  'Course I can't use little jars.  I'll need 55 gallon barrels.  Lots of 'em.  And with the money left over I'd be very philanthropic....I'd pay off the national debt or something.  Shoot, I'll have $16 trillion dollars by Easter.  What do you think?

S

Our wedding day, December 14, 2006

This time of year most people are laser-focused on the holidays, but at the Lowandslow household we have something a bit more personal to celebrate, too.  It was six years ago today that K and I said our "I-do's".  And like 'ol Blue Eyes sang, "We did it our way".

K and I met by extreme chance online back in Ought Six.  That's when I signed up for my free Journal Space account.  Not really understanding what I had, I started surfing it to take a look around.  That's where I saw a picture posted by dkmcb (male? female?) of a dandelion.  dkmcb asked what it was as they were coming up all over dkmcb's yard.  I answered and told said person how to control them.  (Yes, "Better living through chemistry".)

A few days later I found another post by dkmcb saying a painting project was planned and asking how to keep brush marks from showing in fresh enamel?  I answered that, too.  (Penetrol)  Said dkmcb contacted me asking how I knew these things?  (As a homeowner for 30+ years I'd pretty much seen it all.)

Think about it....if I'd logged on to Journal Space a few seconds earlier or later I probably would not have seen dkmcb's dandelion photo.  Now THAT'S fate!

Correspondence revealed dkmcb was a female from near Ft. Worth, Texas, temporarily trapped in the frozen north of Minnesnowta, her move back south approaching.   We became "smit" through JS.  It soon became obvious to us both there was "something" there.

Fast forward to autumn 2006.  We were together by then, and as patience had never been a virtue either of us possessed, we decided to make "us" permanent.  Both of us are very private people uncomfortable being the center of attention.  Hoping friends and family would understand, we decided to just take off for a romantic destination and get married.

Finalists were picturesque places near Jackson Hole, WY and Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA.  Turns out that by our chosen date, December 14, the Jackson Hole destination was closed for the winter, but further research showed Carmel would be perfect.

K-the-online-shopper found our hotel....The Tickle Pink Inn.  Huh?  "That sounds like some kind of sleazy 'No-Tell Motel'".  (Turns out the original property was owned by the Tickle family.)  We flew into San Francisco, picked up our rental chariot for the week (a mighty Ford Taurus), and headed south to the Monterrey Peninsula.

Once we found the semi-hidden turnoff and climbed the long winding road up to the top of the hill, we found the Tickle Pink Inn to be truly special.  WOW!  What a view!  (See it here if you like.)  Our very nice room had an intimate balcony overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  We spent many hours sitting out there listening to the waves crashing on the rocks below.  We'd even leave the sliding door open a little at night to hear it then, too.  It was the perfect "white noise" to go to sleep to.  The staff was gracious, our room service breakfast delicious, and the evening "wine and cheese socials" were nice, too.

We took day trips down the Pacific Coast Highway to Big Sur and the Hearst Castle at San Simeon, and of course enjoyed all the sights in/around Pebble Beach.  We found several quaint little cafes where we'd sit for hours at sidewalk tables eating and drinking....so nice!  

And Carmel-by-the-Sea....what a story-book place!  (This was the town where Clint Eastwood was mayor, before he took to talking to empty chairs. :)  The town was all decorated up beautifully for Christmas and the temps were comfortably cool but not really cold.  

And there was an entire area near downtown filled with whimsical little houses like these, much appreciated by an architecture aficionado like myself.

Our big day finally arrived.  We had an appointment with a non-denominational minister at "The Chapel in the Woods".  It turns out it was more like "The Building With Some Trees Around it Right Next Door to the Strip Shopping Center."  K saw it the day before when we made a dry run and was devastated.  I told her to find some place else....it was OK with me.  But the minister (a lady) seemed nice, so we (K) stuck with our original plan.  As things turned out the inside was decorated beautifully with lots of Christmas cheer.  All turned out well.

A funny moment:  As we were getting back in our car to leave the minister ran out yelling to us, "Oh Scott and Kelly....THANK YOU...THANK YOU...THANK YOU!!"  It seems the $100 gratuity she just found in her envelope over-and-above the normal fee was apparently not customary in California.

All things considered, it was a perfect, private ceremony, and a perfect way to launch a perfect new life with a perfect new mate. 

Six years later and things just get better and better.  Life is very good!  I love you K.  Happy Anniversary.  :)

S