It was an invasion. We were not adequately prepared. We couldn’t match their numbers. The sheer volume of them was astounding. Where did they come from!!! They came at me like a shooting gallery from all sides. I dodged left and right. I swatted the air. They almost wrecked my golf car 4 times!!! I’m talking about the f***ing grasshopper on campus! Good lord are they awful. One flew right into my face and landed in my crotch. While I was frantically trying to get him out of there I almost high centered the cart on a damn boulder!!! My passenger even was attacked on one of our trips. She wants to burn them all and I’m down with it. I never liked the little turds. I liked them less after viewing Bugs Life. When I see a bird on campus consume one I cheer them on. Good job, friend!!! Eat them all!! May the seal of God protect us from the plague. I’m understanding why they were part of Revelations in the Bible. Apparently they are also whores.

The week really dragged on. I wasn’t kept very busy. I spent some time in the museum. I cruised the campus. I chatted with friends. Visited my momma. Cooked as usual. Had some cocktails because of life. Finally got a little much needed sleep. Talked about inappropriate things in the office. HR nightmare are we. It wasn’t a great week but it wasn’t bad as it progressed.

Friday rolled around and as I was leaving my house I notice one of my oak trees basically broke in two. I had a 20ft portion of tree too large for me to move just sitting in my yard. Great. I got my weekly burrito. Always something to look forward to. It’s like a reward for making it through the week. I basically spent the first hour of my day on campus but away from my office chatting. I was also unsupervised. Not like my boss is breathing down my neck. Besides, my coworkers know. When I finally did get to the office I hadn’t missed anything. Pretty much the daily theme, nothing happening. After an hour of this I jumped on the cart to check the mail room. During this time I offered a ride across campus. Basically delivered a person to another department. She also needed a burrito. After that I went and chatted with another friend. It was a good hour before I was back in the office. Lunch was near. The afternoon was pretty much the same, nothing happening. 2 hours in a jumped back on the cart for another mail run. Really, I just needed out to pass the time. Talk about a slow day, but it was also a really really good day. Anyway, cheers!! Have a nice weekend.

Jalapeño

For lunch Saturday I went with pizza. Two pizzas. I had to.

Dinner was sesame chicken. Spicy as all hell.

Brunch. What a mess. I was given free fries and I decided to make breakfast cheese fries. What a fantastic concept. Just place some scrambled eggs on top cheese fries. Yummy.

Spicy broccoli beef.

Bibigo steak and some snap peas.

BBQ chicken thighs w/ sweet corn.

Grilled onion and chicken thigh. Nice stir fry sauce I added. Sprinkled with habanero. Delicious.

Spicy Sweet & Sour chicken.

Nachos! I was inspired by a picture.

Time, days & weeks have lost meaning in my mind. If you were to ask me what happened on a certain time I wouldn’t be able to tell you the month at this point. I’m scrambled. I suppose it happens to everyone at times. Where they spin away from the normal constraints of time. Where the mind doesn’t recognize yesterday from a week ago. It’s lack of sleep. When you don’t sleep, time isn’t real anymore. I can’t sleep. So I’ve lost all sense of time. I couldn’t likely tell you if what I did yesterday was yesterday of last week. It’s getting pretty bad. F***ing insomnia. I’ve kind of lost all give a f***’s. In a week that mushroom grew.

I solved a puzzle. The curator for the museum needed help and I obliged. What we thought needed to be done didn’t work and I couldn’t let it leave me. I had to solve it. It was one of the more satisfying things I’d done in a while. It just took some thought. I couldn’t get my mind around the first f*** up. How does cutting an inch make and object bigger. Mystery. But I figured out how to make it work. Puzzles. I like games. It was a game in my head.

I bloated myself this week. The Physics department. I followed my nose. I found lasagna and Texas toast and salad. No one was around. I decided f*** it. Of course a professor saw me toward the end. He was also following his nose. It turned out he and I ended up running into each other at the food bar the next 3 days out of coincidence. I found that funny. More or less the Physics/Geology department fed me all week.

I resumed my duty as shuttle boy. Facilities guys saw me moving all sorts of ladies here and there. I was questioned about it. It’s hot outside. If they need a ride & I’m not busy why the heck not. Save some time and keep them from getting sticky gross. Have they never thought to offer a ride? Seems a courteous thing to do. Am I just that hospitable? In all honesty, it gives me something to do and I enjoy the conversation. And I’m out of the office.

Friday. It finally rolled around. I awoke in a land of confusion. Work was rather comical. We had our traditional burritos. This has been going on for almost a year now. What should we do for the anniversary? The burrito I got was extra. I had to eat it with a freaking fork. Let’s just say lunch was not needed. Boy howdy the day drug on. Burning time at a snails pace. By the time it all ended I really could of used a drink.

Jalapeño

I made me some delicious Italian nachos.

Brunch for dinner again. This time I tried my own take on the avocado toast. I topped min with a devil egg salad and some jalapeño.

This meal was so difficult to make. Jamie gave me the recipe and I immediately thought failure. But I succeeded. Ground chicken and secrets.

Leftovers repurposed into lettuce tacos.

Chicken Alfredo over broccoli. I added some super hot jalapeño and spinach. So good but it kicked my a**. Not the most attractive meal but fantastic.

It was National Orange Chicken Day so that what I made. It’s been a while since I’ve done the stir fry.

I worked with what I had. Made a double green chili burger. Why not. I felt disgusting. It was delicious. Kill me.

Cocktail of the Week: An aged beer. almost 3 years.

Ever taken a Tuesday off? I did this last week. It might have been the best thing ever. Monday’s can be horrible. I had a horrible one. I took Tuesday off. My lord. The rest of the week was a breeze. I might start taking more Tuesday’s off. You all should do it.

I don’t have much I feel I should write about. I could but I kind of don’t feel the f***ing need to. I drove around with no breaks. Saw my nephew Teddy all week. He was my rock. Stuck in the office f***ing sucked. Took my Teacher Ed friend on the the golf cart for mail. Stuck for over and hour and had a cold burrito. Nothing to write home about. But I must post a blog on Friday so here I am. Enjoy the motherf***er!!!

Jalapeño.

BBQ grilled pork belly. Basically more bacon. With deviled egg potato salad. It was gross. It was amazing. Filthy.

Teriyaki steak and broccoli.

Fajita chicken with some green hot sauce I made. Hot as heck.

Ahi tuna lettuce tacos. I made a sriracha Mayo and sweet soy reduction. Topped with a mango pico. It was super refreshing.

Chicken mushroom stir fry.

Cocktail of the week: scotch

Woke up around 5AM to the glorious sound of rainfall and thunder. It let OUT!!! Over and inch in a very short amount of time. I eventually settled back into before for a few hours. My dogs decided it was a good idea to chase squirrel in the rain and mud. They were drowned dirty rats. I got up to it still raining and gloomy. I could tell this would be a good day. I took a little drive and tried to float away a couple of times.

A single plan for the day, go to the campus museum. Not that I’m not there fairly often anyways, but Teddy really was excited about the rocks and the dinosaurs. The curator and I have sort of become friends so she was expecting. I think she liked having a familiar face around. I arrived before they did so we chatted for about 20 min. Nice young lady. What am I talking about, she is a baby at 31. I heard Teddy & cut the conversation short. He was blown away. It was a great time. Everyone was impressed with my fathers exhibit. Teddy had a real good time. It was certainly a good time.

Met them for lunch afterwards. The bloody marry I had was basically a meal in itself. Bloody marry bar? I’m not a big fan but my mother and brother made them look good. I honestly ordered on just for all the snacks that came along with it. Bacon. Green bean. Okra. Cheese. Sausage. Onions. Shrimp. Hell, I should have not ordered a meal after that. I only ate half of my fried green tomato BLT.

After lunch I went home for a little while and found myself in a bad fog of loneliness. I decided to go see a friend for drinks. She lifted my spirits and convinced me that happiness was a burrito from Taco Bell. I will not argue that. It was happiness

After the burrito I FaceTimed and got pissed. In turn, I got drunk. It wasn’t a good evening. But it was illuminating. I’m seeing things with fully open eye for the first time in years. The veil has been lifted. I am more aware of my surroundings. An understanding has settled upon me. I did my best and cooked some Mongolian beef. Cooking is therapy.

Woke up on the fourth in a funk over the prior nights BS. I laid on the couch stewing. Lots to stew upon. I’m glad it was overcast. The sun is oppressive. Pretty sure I woke up a little bit crazy. I was not someone anyone would want to be around. Toxicity. Lady at HEB asked if I was okay. lol

For brunch I made myself a sandwich. Avocado Mayo mix, tomatoes, bacon, egg, cheese & hash browns. Side jalapeño. It was delightful.

My brother came by while I was making some hot sauce. You would have thought he was dying. Was it that potent in here? I didn’t think so. He helped me with some shrubs I needed to trim. It required me get on a ladder with a power tool and I didn’t trust doing it on my own. It was a simple task for him. He did bring some local beer which I was thankful for.

I tried to make a trip to my mothers for burgers and the weather turned. It got dark. I felt it in my bones, rain was on the way. It f***ing let out. Had an inch in 20 min. I couldn’t clearly see across the street. I had a river in my yard. A lake. It was insane!!! I needed it. Restore some sanity!!! It’s always a mood booster. Glad I didn’t clean the floors.

Once it gave up I went to my mother to be with the family. My other parents showed up. I talked to my other dad for hours. Made my f***ing evening. These two raised me part time. Great talking. My brother made some hot dogs and burgers. I don’t know how anyone could eat hot dogs after watching thing competition this afternoon. America!!!

Hope everyone had a happy 4th of July. Mine ended up being a lot of fun. I stayed long enough for fire works and made it out quickly enough to avoid traffic. Good times with the kids. Love them. Real morale boasters. Cheers, folks.

It’s Friday and I don’t have a dang thing written. That’s okay. Sometimes it’s fine to not talk. The week went by rather fast. We had a good amount of rain finally. It made me happy. The rain. Wednesday my brother and his family came to town. It was a good time seeing the kids. The weekend should be fun. Might make a weekend blog? Maybe. Depends on my energy level. Kids, you know. Campus life was entertaining. It’s nice to have friends. Leroy was a work of art. Lord have mercy. I really wasn’t too busy so I made the most of my time and just did whatever I wanted. One note of concern, I have something wrong with my right thumb. It burns, itches and the skin is peeling. Stress? Can that be the culprit? The f***k if I know. I could use some sleep.

I sure played taxi service a lot this week. People needing rides across campus. Yvette on her mail run. Jamie (needy b****) to the museum. Pregnant woman to her office. I was running people all over the campus. I don’t mind because it worked as a distraction and got me out doing things. These people don’t get to cruise in a golf car everyday.

HAPPY F***ING FRIDAY!!!! We got a half day!!! With rain in the foreseeable forecast, I’m optimistic. I went to lunch with family. They were impressed. Had drinks with some campus friends at the bar. Shared laughs and stories. Was not planned, it just happened. Look at me being spontaneous. The rest of the day I spent running errands and playing with the kids. Building a rocket ship. I wanted rain. It teased. I got some sprinkles. Rude.

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Song of the Week: Uncertain Smile by The The

Jalapeño

I went to lunch with my mother Saturday. It’s probably been since 2019 that I’ve had lunch here. Crazy.

For dinner I made a green sauce and some carne asada. Both turned out to be delicious.

I skipped brunch because of a road trip with mom so I just made it for dinner. A breakfast bowl with chorizo potato’s and eggs.

Lettuce tacos. Again.

No menu this week and just winging it. Chicken thigh with Cajun seasoning I acquired from a friend with peppers and onion. Over a bed of beans. It was delicious. It was a little like meal I made in college in Lubbock. just a step up with the seasoning.

Brother, sister-in-law, nephews came to town. We wanted Chinese. The place we wanted closed early. I convinced them to try a place I love, Ban Moon. It was a hit.

Cajun? Maybe. I’ve got a taste. So I used the same from earlier in the week. This time the chicken was over red beans and rice. I wanted more of a meal I’d already had. Haha

Lunch with the family. They were impressed. I was still full from the Friday burrito so I could only eat one. Snack for later.

Grilled sweet and sour chicken.

Every day of the week I was a day ahead in my head. We all know the feeling, but has it happened to you everyday of the week? I found myself constantly trying to do things as if I were a day ahead in the week. I almost took out the trash a day in advance. I almost went to get Friday burritos on Thursday. Let me tell you something, it sure made the week seem THAT much longer. Waking up each morning thinking I was advanced and the sad realization later that I was actually a day behind. To feel defeated so many times. It was crushing my “want to”.

For whatever reason, I was not the only one on campus suffering from the phenomenon. At least two other I know on campus were on the same boat. Why don’t I ever wake up on a Friday thinking it’s Thursday? That would be a great sensation to know I was actually ahead of my minds dilemma.

It was a pretty s*** week in all honesty. I didn’t care for a lot that happened. Work was extreme and life was s***. I was happy Bekah was able to finally get away from her job. Soul sucking s***hole that it was. Bittersweet because she had some good friends and had put in some good time. Leaving ain’t easy. She had a last day and a first day all in the same week. Proud of her. I hope a new scene treats her well. I’m supportive for all her adventures. She seems to like it so far. Two days in.

Fridays are not supposed to be busy but this one was. I needed sleep and I had “no want to”. Drained in all ways possible. Vacant eyes. Vacant as the sea. Need to toss some coins into the sewer at the bottom of the wishing well. But as the day progresses and I reached it’s conclusion, a zen like clam overlapped me. I felt at peace. Maybe it was just exhaustion but it was nice. I picked up some nachos that ended up being a snack and saved for and even later snack, popped a beer and just chilled. Decided to grill some spicy Asian whatever the f***k. Shockingly a lot of actually good movies were to be found on TV. I jammed out some. The puppies got some of that ahi tuna that was planned for last night. They seemed happy as can be. Nothing exciting. Just a mellow mind. Happy Friday to all and a great weekend on top of it!!! Cheers!!!

Father’s Day. It’s weird once you no longer have a father or are a father yourself. You’ve been celebrating this day most of your life, getting together with family. Usually full spread BBQ. Maybe shuck some oysters. It was most often a cooking event with our family. Suddenly you just don’t do a damn thing. I suppose the family could have continued but that didn’t happen. So this day that you are prone to celebrating just becomes another f***ing day. I woke up and mowed the lawn. Dad would have been proud. Made brunch for Bekah and sister-in-law. I sure did cook out. I had drinks. I listened to some of his favorite Neil Young. I suppose I celebrated him in my own way. Unfortunately it’s just not the same without him and the rest of the family. I guess this is what happens. A sense of sadness when the days roll by. Ah, life.

Jalapeño

Hash brown eggs Benedict. Hash browns with melted sharp cheddar, avocado spread, shaved ham and an over easy egg. Everyone liked this one.

Chicken fajita lettuce tacos. Delicious.

Once again, burger lettuce tacos. You have noticed all the lettuce tacos. It’s a thing.

Crab cakes and salad.

Zachos

Ham and swiss lunchable. It was going to be ahi tuna lettuce tacos but sometimes life likes to throw a wrench at you and you do what you have to do.

Some grilled Asian chicken with jalapeño and grilled zucchini because you know I have a lot of zucchini. Chicken was f***ing perfect.

Cocktail of the Week: Adult Cherry Limeade

I have NOT been sleeping. That insomnia I’ve talked about? It’s making it’s self known again. My eye has twitched for at least a month. Lovely, let me tell you. If I seem foggy brained it’s because I am. If I do not remember a conversation it’s because the off button was hit. I’ve been the walking dead. I might not appear it, but I put on a good show. Look close next time you see me. Look at that left eye. Maybe you will catch a twitch. Ugh.

What do you do, you ask? You just f***ing go with it is what you do. I have a sleep cocktail? It puts me down but doesn’t keep me down. Drinking? Questionable. I have narcotics the doctor supplies me with for these troubles. Do I take them? No. I don’t want to be reliant on them. From prior experience, once you go down that road you can’t find dreamland without them. I’ll admit to popping one out of dire frustration. You do what you gotta do. You would think I’d crash out of pure exhaustion but that’s not the case.

I have had dreams in which I’m viewing myself from above sleeping. They are the most peaceful yet disturbing dreams ever. I say disturbing because who wants to see themself drooling on a pillow. And because it’s just not happening!!! I’m not sleeping!!! The dreams are taunting me. It’s just cruel!! Is my subconscious just having a good laugh? Mean b******.

Cure this eye twitch.

The week started off with a surprise, bad weather. I was looking at the radar thinking WTH. Where did this come from. Suddenly the weather radio goes crazy barking at us and all sorts of alerts pop up. My phone told me to seek shelter I was going to die so I decided to be a little late going into work. I drove in the rain and eventually went home to wait it out. We didn’t actually ever get anything but a nice gloomy morning and some much cooler temperatures. Rolling thunder was a relaxing background noise to enjoy. Nice light sprinkles. It was peaceful for a Monday morning.

My office was also treated to a cake thanks to Jamie. Bruce wanted one for his sweet tooth and she came through. Made Janine’s morning. She was trying to start a diet and just had a single hard boiled egg for breakfast and she was treated to delicious cake. Pretty funny how that happens. Heathen coworker cut into before I could get a proper picture. Beast. Moving paper comes with a heavy price.

By the end of the day we finally got some rain. Once again, unexpected. But it came down and out of the East. It thundered & lightninged. Weather radio went crazy again. . It was beautiful. It was measurable. Bekah was irritated because we had started a movie and I bailed out of excitement. I’m sorry, you can pause a movie but not a storm.

I’m still adjusting to Jimmy being back at work. It hasn’t been a month yet and he was pretty much gone for 8 months caring for his wife. I feel his grief for her, it’s palpable in the office. But the change he brings to the office. It’s noisier. It’s stinkier. I’ve already had to type 911 in Jabber for a rescue call. ALREADY!! Poor guy, but I just can’t on some days. Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy…. “Eye’s rolling out of my f***ing head”.

For a week stuck in the office, the weeks I hate the most, it was actually pretty great. I was able to escape a few time and visit with friends across campus. I couldn’t complain. After work the plan was to hit the couch after dinner and watch a new horror film that was released on this date. Take it easy because we have a lot to do Saturday. Well, Bekah had other plans and hit the bar for almost 3 hours. Adjustments made, we still hit the couch and watched that movie. Cheers!!!

Jalapeño

Chilaquiles verdes. Oh my lord I over did it. Carb overload. The meal itself was amazing. Probably could have used one egg, in retrospect. I was a bloated mess. Sooo good.

Pizza casserole? Sure. What a healthy Sunday.

Pulled pork lettuce tacos. Third meal with this pork and it’s just as good.

Salmon and broccoli cheese. The Broccoli was the real treat.

Chicken yakatori with some miso snap peas.

Bekah made some red enchilada chicken. It has been a long time.

Burger tacos. WTH, why not.

Cocktail of the Week: pina calada buzz ball?? New to me.

So it’s that time of year, summer camps. You have basket ball camp. I wanted to have a seizure just hearing all the bouncing balls. You have skills camp. Robots and s***. Writing camp. Sounds like someone made mommy and daddy mad. Band camp!! Everyone’s favorite, that and camp. With the COVID restrictions lifted everyone gets to have fun again. We all so sadly missed the camps last year. Such a glorious time to be alive.

In truth it has very little effect on my life. I don’t share a building with camps. My dear friends that do, they are overwhelmed with joy. I see them and they are all smiling like the Cheshire Cat. It must hurt their faces to be that happy. You can certainly tell that having a year without camps must have been traumatic. Summer camps are the drug they need to make it through the year. Who doesn’t need a drum line right outside the window at 8AM to motivate you to make it through the day. So blessed they are and probably don’t even know it. How jelly I am. Super jelly. They have it so well made sharing buildings with a bunch of noisy little kids running around encouraged to make more noise. Sad the camps have to eventually end.

With summer camps upon us summer decided to finally show itself. It got HOT and disgusting. It was oppressive. All the worse because the week before was so beautiful. I just don’t 100 degrees. Bekah is excited by the idea. She is a monster. Only a monster could get excited about being outside when it’s that hot. Being in water is another thing. The days I wish I had a pool and than I remember why I’m glad that I don’t.

So the rest of the week I was all on my own. Bekah took off to New Mexico with her sister for mother-in-law birthday . I’m sure they will have a great time. I was already bored. I’m not used to being alone on a work night. WTH!!! The Hotel bar is closed.

Friday finally arrived and I got up to get burritos for everyone. The day was surprisingly nice, minus the heat. I had a fun day. No angry Leroy storming around and cussing. That’s it’s own kind of fun but after a while it gets old. Janine and I just joked around most the day. My blood sugar was whacky so I at things, like wa wa melon, that I can’t usually eat. Yellow one at that. I’d been eyeballing them at the store for a little while. Delicious and refreshing on a warm summer day. I played taxi for a couple stranded friends in the heat. That’s all she wrote. Have a happy beautiful weekend!!!

Reflections are only your memories.

Jalapeño.

Steak bites with peppers and onion, grilled asparagus and potatoes.

Zachos. Thanks again to Jamie & Derek for their garden. You just cannot make these with store zucchini. It isn’t happening. Not how I’d like it anyway. For the first batch of the season I went with fajita chicken & beans. Topped with cheese, lettuce, tomato & jalapeño. Delightful.

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I made Pad Thai!!! With chicken. It was just a last min deal. Damn was it good. The chicken I made surprised even I. Warm. I eat warm when Bekah is gone.

Cheese tortellini w/Italian sausage and homemade sauce. I was afraid the Italian sausage would over power so I went with breakfast sausage after getting some advice. I’ve gotten my noodle fix in. It was amazing and I’ll be making it for Bekah.

Birthday Jam: “State Of The Art” by Jim James

It’s been a bit since my birthday fell on a weekend. Oddly I was kind of disappointed that it did. I’d gotten to like coming to work and hearing everyone wish me happy birthday. I wouldn’t have thought that I’d like the attention, but I have some really great campus friends. Makes you feel kind of special. They don’t call it a family for nothing. I was in a little bit of a funk but by the end of the day I got a surprise! Giant cookies!! Cake!! Balloon!! A PINWHEEL!!!! (If you read this blog you know I’m easily entertained.). I have some amazing friends. Although, considering all the sweets that they gave me I wonder if they don’t have some kind of insurance policy against my life. You know, diabetic. Their kind gesture really turned my day around.

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Bekah got us a little bed & breakfast downtown to make it feel like we were elsewhere so after work I went home and got something together. I said we can’t go to places that we normally go. I don’t want it to feel like just another weekend.

So the place was pretty awesome. We had a kegerator in the lounge. Free beer!!! They put balloons all over the bed, a bottle of wine and a small cake for it being my birthday. Like I needed more cake. Haha. We moved everything in and had some beers.

Follow this up with some strolling around downtown and a little bit of dinner. Dinner was pretty great. I don’t know how I finished the burger and onion rings but I did. I left bloated on food and beers. Off to a good start.

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After dinner we shambled a few blocks back to our state of residence. From their more drinks were consumed and just good times. Bekah ended up falling asleep and I found myself alone in the lounge drinking free beer. I’m not against that. I made it to midnight. 40 I was. That being said, this old man needed to go to bed.

I slept in but it seem Bekah did not. I woke to an empty room. God d*** was this king size bed comfy. I’m not going to like my own bed after this. So bekah came back. She surprised me with a burrito!!! Just what I needed. And my birthday wish came true. She kept asking what I wanted and I kept saying a pony. Well, she got me a pony. lol.

We walked around down town. Made our way to the “downtown” museum. Pretty good experience with some nice art. I’m a fan of art. I was told I’m a geek while taking pictures of the clouds when we left. I do take lots of cloud pictures. Am I a geek? Probably. From there we just moved around downtown. Weird stores, refuel on drinks, more walking.

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Late lunch pizza for 2 and we ordered 3. The beers were good. It was about 4 when we finished. Dinner at 6? Haha. Lord. Bloated weekend.

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I also got a cake!!!!

So we roamed the town some more. Weird little shops and random watering holes & food. No direction. Oh. Let’s get some beans. And a old fashion!!

Dinner was entertaining. We went to Bekah’s old stomping ground. Her old boss was working the bar. The mayor of our little town. Bekah hates her. So it was great fun seeing them chat it up. I must also note that Bekah had the musician (if you can call him that) sing me happy birthday. Highlight of my day, let me tell you. No one even sang along. Rude.

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We walked/stumbled back to the room. However you want to look at it. The night had pretty much ran it’s course. We had a few more drinks and just a general good time. I had a good 40th birthday. I didn’t know what to expect out of the weekend but it was all good. Just wondering around downtown. Drinking and eating. Conversation with random people. My wife Bekah did a good job. And I got a pony!!!!

Sunday it was time to pack up and head home. I figured I’d have one last beer in the lounge. Why the f*** not. I liked the smile I got from the old fellow I met late Friday drinking when he wondered in for some coffee. I could tell that if he had been younger and didn’t have to travel he would like to be joining me.

We got home and had some drinks with the sister-in-law. She had been staying at our house while gone keeping Samson the cat company. Her own little stay-cation. We went for brunch. I was feeling my age. Actually, I wasn’t. I was feeling pretty good. I had some chicken and waffles. I wondered if my sister-in-law wasn’t about to kill my wife. Bekah was pushing buttons being as obnoxious as humanly possible. I’d have been okay with it. Given a high five. Lord.

Made it back home and she crawled into bed. I went and got a box of Mac & cheese. Dinner prep. It’s going to be hot. I don’t like that. Summer had to come. She came late.

I really missed our dogs. Being at home without them is just kind of sad. My mother said her birthday present was taking care of them it’s tooooooo quiet without the 2 goofs. I’m sure they had themselves a good time. Bekah said they were so excited when she dropped them off. It makes me happy. They were sooooo happy to get home. And I was sooooo happy to see them.

I still had one more day off. You didn’t think I’d not take an extra day for my birthday weekend, did you? I was all alone. I decided it was the perfect time to mow the yard. The humidity just about killed me. I needed a swimming pool.

It took me forever to decide on lunch. I eventually decided on BWW’s. I wanted some hot wings. It wasn’t until 3 that I had lunch. Screw it.

I left me late lunch and went to see a friend working happy hour. I was only gone for a bit and had someday. Dinner was easy. Made some fajita chicken wraps. And that concludes our birthday weekend. Hope everyone had fun!!!

Time is a river and it only flows one way. Enjoy it!!!

Oh I’m 40. Well, at midnight. A little self reflection. As a child growing up we all see a place we want to be in our future. What is the percentage of people that reach that point compared to those that do not. I wonder? I know I didn’t. This is not a bad thing. I had many of things I saw myself doing. I geeked out on rocks and dinosaurs and Indiana Jones. I was a little artist. I could paint and draw. I liked to write. I drew pictures of rivers & roads. I built structures. I had sandcastle skills. Architecture & engineering. Geologist, paleontologist, author, etc… My dads adventures. I saw myself out in the field being adventurous. What happened.!! Lol. We would have slide show nights where he would show us picture on the projector and tell us stories of what was going on. I lived for those nights. Hey, like Indiana Jones, I work for a university. I guess that part became reality.

Where you desire to be in life as a child might have ended up being a much worse spot for you. Really, just enjoy where you are or do something to better yourself. I had a much more adventurous heart when I was a child. Children have hero’s. Fictional or real life. They see themselves becoming that person. The lens of what a child see’s through, obtaining that life is all very possible. They don’t understand adulthood or the trails to reach it. It takes work. Financial means. Support. Not that I lacked in the adventures. I had my own in my 20s.

Everyone should dream for themselves. Dreams are good. Failed dreams are good. Without dreams, what does one aspire for? And for a percentage they do come true. And when they fail it’s perhaps for the better. Things fall into place an align the way they are meant to. I’m happy even though my dreams as a child didn’t come true. I can’t imagine Bekah not with me. These damn dogs and cat. The people that I work with on campus. The house that I live in. Everything I’ve done, good and bad. I’m not perfect. I’ve got flaws. I’m happy with that. I cannot imagine giving any of this up. The people. The experiences. Everything. How you look at your life is in your hands. Can you throw those dreams away and still be happy with it?

Now I wonder: is it in the human condition to be happy or are we destined for unhappiness? Try pleasing everyone. It can become a chore. But I like to try and I like my life. I think unhappiness is an internal demon. Just learn to not give a f*** and, hey, you might find yourself in a better place. That doesn’t mean give up on everyone. But if toxic people come into your life, f*** them. You are done. They were not meant for your pandering. F*** them. You don’t be miserable because someone else it. That’s their fault. Misery loves misery. Coexisting shouldn’t have to be a chore. JUST DON’T GIVE A F***! Don’t give the person the satisfaction of stealing your joy. You got this!!! If anything, feel sorry for them. Happiness is in the doing. The making. Be happy!!

Anyway. That was cheerful. I believe my weekend blog will be a little brighter. It’s my birthday.

It’d be remiss of me not to mention that for the first week of June it was been unseasonably cool. I’m talking in the 70’s cool. We also got some nice rain. I’ve been pretty content. Actually, I’ve been ecstatic. I sat outside a lot and was eaten alive by mosquitoes. Great times.

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Jalapeño

Leftover pulled pork sandwiches. That was some bad a** pulled pork. The sandwich hit the spot.

Tex-Mex lettuce tacos. Perfect summer meal. I might actually like them better than the real thing.

Buffalo chicken legs. I’ll never perfect these until I get a smoker. Really, even then they won’t be as good as the ones I’m trying to mimic. But oh well, we enjoy them.

Cocktail of the Week: A drink. Any drink.