Labor Day 2025

Nothing like kicking off the weekend with chores. It’s inevitable. Yvette got after it as soon as she woke up. I treated myself to a quick breakfast and coffee before settling into my cleaning duties. First, I needed supplies. Quick run to Home Depot and it was time to clean.

My mission was to clean our bathroom—emphasis on the shower—and reseal the base of the toilet. The clear silicone used previously was looking rather nasty, and I could tell a few areas were no longer properly sealed. The shower took the most time, as it tends to do. In that moment, I told myself again that I really need to deep-clean it more often.

Later in the day, I ran a few shopping errands for my mother. My brother was in town, and we were both cooking on Saturday night. After dropping off the groceries, we did a little sightseeing. It’s amazing how many memories I have scattered around this town and how they suddenly spring up. Moments frozen in time.

After a stroll down memory lane, Chris and I decided to grab a beer. We stopped by the new Lake House Pizzeria. What a nice place! Definitely somewhere I want to take Yvette for a date night once the weather cools down. A nice outdoor dining experience with a sunset over the water. I think it would be so romantic.

Chris and I got to work cooking the meal. I wanted most of it ready by the time Yvette and Teegan arrived. We made rigatoni with vodka sauce, grilled chicken thighs, broccolini, and a caprese salad. It might not have been the most inspiring meal we’ve collaborated on, but it was nonetheless fantastic—if a bit simple.

After dinner, we did what we usually do as brothers: roast one another. In this setting, it seemed easier to roast me. Yvette and Teegan probably didn’t feel like they knew my brother well enough to start teasing him. I took it all in good spirit. It was a fine night. I miss these family gatherings and want to have more of them.

I wish Yvette and the kids could get to know my brothers better. Hopefully, they will in time.

Sunday was a great day—fantastic weather and more fun with my brother.

Yvette, Lola, Alaya, and I met up with my mom and Chris for lunch. He really hasn’t had much time with the little girls, so that made it even more special. The food at Zero One was great. I finally tried the orange-glazed salmon I’d been eyeing on the menu for a long time—and it did not disappoint. Chris and I enjoyed a good local beer to wash down our meals.

After lunch and a trip to H-E-B, I headed to the bar for a couple of hours with my brother. We went to Parrot’s Head Tavern. I saw a lot of familiar faces I hadn’t seen in quite some time. People came up to me saying things like, “What are you doing here? It’s been a while!” Yada yada yada… the usual pleasantries and small talk.

While it was nice catching up, things have definitely changed. I’m no longer that “bar guy.” It’s not what it used to be for me. I’m a family man now.

Back when I was going through my divorce—and even up until I started dating Yvette—I spent a lot of time in bars. I know I went too often, but that’s where I knew people. I made friends at happy hours, be it either sitting at the bar or working behind the bar. It wasn’t necessarily about the drinks—though they didn’t hurt—it was the people I needed.

I headed home to prepare for dinner when it started to rain. That evening, I was grilling burgers and hotdogs. I got the grill going and threw the dogs on before the hungry guests started arriving. We were expecting eight adults and two babies. Chris stopped by for a beer—but just one. He had hung around the bar a bit after I left, so one was probably enough.

It turned out to be a really nice evening, full of fun and good food. Everyone seemed to enjoy the burgers—honestly, I think the hotdogs became a backup option. If you had to choose, which would you go for? Well, unless you’re Lola. She wanted the hotdog.

As for me, I made a burger salad. No need to sabotage myself with the extra carbs.

I enjoy having company over from time to time, and I was glad Chris stopped by. It had been about a year since he last came over.

Warfare. An Alex Garland film I tried to see in theaters two weekends in a row—but both times, it was already sold out. You might remember me complaining about this and ending up watching other movies instead. Being a war film, it makes sense: the air force base nearby was probably buying up most of the tickets.

Well, the film was great—if not deeply unsettling. But that’s the point. War isn’t pretty. War is horror. This movie doesn’t glorify it. It doesn’t make you want to enlist. There are no real heroics—just people doing their damndest to survive. It’s brutal and unrelenting in its portrayal of how quickly things can go FUBAR.

Another win for Alex Garland—easily one of the most exciting writer/directors working today.

Labor Day—we all slept in. I rolled out of bed just after 11 and made my way to my mom’s. Chris made breakfast: bacon and sweet potato egg tacos. He basically had a salsa bar set up. You could have a different salsa for every bite. Why? I don’t know.

I have to admit, I’d never thought to try sweet potato with eggs or bacon. But the end result was damn tasty.

After breakfast, we sat down and watched the original Highlander. It was on TV, so I felt obliged to watch it with the family. Classic trash movie from my youth. And when I say trash, I mean the best kind of trash.

You’ve got one of the greatest actors of my age, Sean Connery, playing an Egyptian named Ramirez. Rumor has it he was drunk most of the time while filming—which sounds right. You can tell he was having a blast with it. The only other actor who really shines is Clancy Brown, a king of genre. He must have gotten the same memo as Connery.

I’ve been watching this piece-of-shit, movie since the ’80s, and I still love it. It’s fantastic!

Labor Day was the final day for the pool—our last chance until next summer. I might have badgered everyone into making one last trip. I wanted Alaya to have a final swim day. And she really made the most of it. For whatever reason, she was in the mood to have fun. It’s almost as if she knew it was the last hurrah for the year.

To make it even better, they finally had Yvette’s piña colada. Every time we went over the past three months, they were out. I was happy she finally got her drink. I guess you could say we closed the pool out on a high note.

I’d been trying to watch Exodus: Gods and Kings all weekend, but it just wasn’t happening. Finally, Monday night, I found the time and quiet to watch it. I’d never seen the film in its entirety before—and I really liked it.

The story of Moses has been ingrained in me since I was a little boy. I’ve watched The Ten Commandments starring Charlton Heston more times than I can count. Exodus was a great modern interpretation of the biblical story—updated for the times with strong acting and impressive special effects.

Crazy I didn’t see it when it came out.

It’s hard to believe that summer is almost over. The autumn equinox will be here before we know it. You can already feel the difference in the morning temperatures—nice and brisk. The afternoons are still a living hell, but a beautiful morning makes all the difference. Sets the mood for the day.

I need to start getting all my fall décor out. That’s what I want to do: really enjoy the season. I want more fall beverages, too. I’ve had two of my favorites beer so far, but I’m craving more. I suppose I should look up a good autumn cocktail that doesn’t involve pumpkin spice. I hate that shit—as you all know.

Pumpkin spice: the devil’s concoction, if ever there was one. And now, I’ve got something new to bitch about, all thanks to that damn spice. Once that repugnant trend took over, it seemed to open the floodgates for other spices to invade the market, gleefully attaching themselves to sacred products and creating unholy abominations.

Right now, the worst offender is pickle spice. I guess it crept in slowly, but damn if it isn’t everywhere you turn at the grocery store—chips, beer, crackers, fucking cotton candy. It’s out of control.

The week can be summed up with two words: long & shit.

I might have had a little bit of a weekend hangover come Tuesday—just from spending time with my brother and it being a long weekend. I didn’t want to get out of bed. Work was crazy, and we were short-staffed. This is becoming pretty normal. Jesus…

Wednesday after work, we had a birthday celebration for Aunt Gloria at Yvette’s grandparents’ house. It was fun, and I was so happy to see her grandfather up and out again. I’d worried about how he’d do after his hospital stay, but from what I could tell, he was doing okay. We had wings, cake, and lots of laughs.

These family gatherings used to frighten me—I’m not a social butterfly. But now, I feel very comfortable. I am the only white boy in attendance, though. I never really notice those things until someone points them out.

Thursday was a FUCK of a day.

It started with a headache that lingered until I went to fucking bed.

On the way to work, I walked out of the house without my keys or my wallet. I got all settled in at work before I realized I also left without my phone and my insulin pump. Lola and Alaya were going to the park, so they dropped both items off.

Speaking of the park—that went sour real fast. While they were there, some homeless man’s dog (that wasn’t on a leash) jumped up on Alaya, scratching and frightening her. Of course, Lola freaked—anyone would’ve. She took the girl to the clinic just to be safe, and thank God, all was fine. I stopped to check on them both and Alaya was just having another adventure.

A report was filed with Animal Control, and a citation was issued to the pet owners—a violation of the city ordinance that requires all pets to be on a leash. That’s about all they can legally do. The dog didn’t really show signs of aggression, so it wasn’t at fault. The pet owners were.

It was just a damn long Thursday… and I still needed to do my expense report.

Friday arrived, and it was glorious. Not only was it the bookend to a long damn short week, but the weather was absolutely fucking beautiful. It felt like fall had finally arrived. The sky was overcast, and the temperatures were mild enough for me to enjoy a little time outside. Everyone seemed to be in a much happier mood. It solidified my decision to start putting out the fall decorations.

The day began with a comedy field trip to the hardware store—a mission that had been initiated on Tuesday and was finally underway. We’d had complications coordinating everyone’s time all week long, so we struck out bright and early that morning before distractions could cause further delays. I honestly didn’t know what the guys were working on, but I had the vehicle and the cash.

It was a trip with people I genuinely enjoy talking to, which is, of course, a damn plus. I told them about the time some baby-dick asshat called the president’s office and reported me for driving a university vehicle erratically—completely false accusations, mind you. We all agreed that once someone sees those campus decals, they immediately think lawsuit. It was also unanimous that calling the president’s office directly was a total bullshit move.

Anyway, they were both just happy I was the one driving—and not them.

I finished my expense report, we had a nice surprise rain, and everything that was wrong settled into place, finally.

That evening, we had Noah, Nadia, and Niles over for dinner. Yvette made some of her wonderful lasagna, and I made some green beans. I was feeling the weather, so I picked up a few Samuel Adams Octoberfest beers. Such a fantastic beverage—and such a beautiful night. I actually wanted to spend my time outside.

I keep thinking about the passage of time. Watching these little babies try to communicate might have something to do with it. It’s hard to believe that their parents weren’t even in this world 25 years ago. I now, sadly, think about that endless sleep more than I ever did. Maybe it was my own little brush with mortality over the summer that’s brought these newfound feelings to the surface.

They have an open door to life ahead of them still, and my door is only slowly closing.

Not trying to be morose, but this is how I think.

Happy Friday!!