Saturday was a trip to Dallas. Lola, Tee & the baby had to fly out at 6AM Sunday morning. I k ow, what a convenient time to depart all thanks to their father. You see, they were off to visit him in Atlanta, Georgia. The ride I wasn’t 100% looking forward to simply because it hurts like hell to be in a car. To make matters worse, I forgot to take pain meds before departure. we stopped just before the interstate to right this wrong. Anyways, the day was a nice one. The wind was nowhere near what it was the day before. Small blessings.

We didn’t make the best time even with just one stop. The traffic was consistently awful. I will say, regardless, I had a good time. The pills that I purchased during our one stop made the second half of the trip much more enjoyable.

Once in Dallas we all agreed that a very late lunch was needed. We stopped at an In-n-Out Burger. It had been 13 years since I have eaten at the establishment and boy did it satisfy. I was in California for my cousins wedding. It was the same year I started working at the university. The same month, to be exact. That was before on could find the food chain anywhere other than California. I had an animal style burger, of course. How in the world could I not. It’s the only way.

The hotel was nice. It had a resturant and bar, beautiful pool and some very nice spacious rooms. It seemed they were having a Saint Patrick’s Day party the night we were staying. That’s always fun. I look forward to people watching later.

Yvette and I left the kids in the room and went exploring the hotel and the adjacent lot, which had restaurants. We were thinking of getting something to go and having it in the room. I found a beer and liquor store and picked up some local Dallas brew. Community. I’ve had it before and it only felt fair with us having passed by the establishment on our way in.

A shopping spree, multiple Resturant stops and it was time to kick back and relax around the hotel. Yvette and I went to grab some food in walking distance. They didn’t give it to us to go so we had a dinner date. A place called Texadelphia. It was really good and it was fun. We walked back to the hotel and went to the room. I decided to people watch. I ended up at the bar talking to the bartender. Kindred spirits, bartenders and I. I had a drink and a beer. The conversations I heard were absurdly stupid. Drunk travelers. Did I mention the Saint Patricks Day party that was going on? No? Well, it was a big thing and it was exclusively African Americans. They were all decked out. I’m talking some expensive looking green suits. They had the entire ballroom area booked and the party was going on until 1AM. I rode the elevator with a Leprechaun. They told me the real party was on the 7th floor after the downstairs party was over. I didn’t even want to know. After having my fix I went upstairs and went right to bed

Sunday we woke up at 4 am to get the kids off to the airport. It’s amazing to me how much traffic on a Sunday morning is moving around already. The airport surprised us by being rather busy. Oh yeah, spring break. They got their baggage checked in and we left them at boarding. Unbeknownst and very lucky for us we got a free pass. Because the baby was on board they got priority which meant they cut ahead of about 100 people waiting for security. The flight was actually at 6:35 so that was a real blessing. Yvette and I waited around until we heard from them that they had made it through TSA and had found their gate before departing back to the hotel for a little shut eye.

I like the complimentary breakfast at hotels just to people watch. It’s always fun to listen to the other conversations. Half of which that morning seemed hungover from the Saint Patty party the night before. That after party on the 7th floor must have been a real banger. The meal was your typical hotel shit. Choice of eggs, sausage, and a variety of carbs, none of which were very good. Just bland free food. Like I said, it’s not the food I like. I got what I needed and ate downstairs while also making Yvette a meal to go.

On the road again. The traffic was much more even flow and we really only encountered one area bottle necked, which we quickly detoured. Good conversations and just a damn pretty day. Yvette decided to take us on a little adventure for lunch. A place called Underwood’s that was a little out of the way but she wanted me to try it. The place had been around since 1946 and she could t believe that I’d never been. It was like a time capsule. Old school cafeteria line with trays and all. They serve the meat position while you help yourself to the sides and fixing plus desserts. I almost forgot how that even worked. It was really a fun experience and the food was great. Another first time experience with her.

We made it home and decompressed. Yvette ran to her folks for a bit and I ran out to my mom’s. Neither of us were very hungry and we were both pretty tired. We watched the current episode of the White Lotus and made our way to bed. The house was so damn quiet I wasn’t even sure I would be able to sleep.

St. Patrick’s Day! Monday was the day of the Irish. With my little bit of Irish heritage I always celebrate and this year was not going to be any different. Nothing crazy, of course. I am now 43, but with the kids out of town we decided to have some fun. We had already planned to make Monday a date night before we even realized what the day was. Why not go out and have some drinks and a little to eat.

On my way home I stopped by Parrots Head to see my friend that was working. He is a good man and he always gets really festive. This year he was not at all disappointing, he had a green beard and Leprechaun green hat. After having an obligatory green beer I went home.

Yvette and I got ready for our outing, Shenanigans. She looked amazing and needed to show off the new hair. I must have looked like a bum next to her that night. We had an Irish whiskey shot and a few beer with our magic mushrooms. We both love fried mushroooms and as far as I know Shenanigans is the only place in town that still serves them. It was a good time. I ran into 3 bartenders I had not seen in a long time and that was also kind of cool. It was a lot of fun getting out. Call it a date night. Of course I had an Irish meal planned for dinner so we only snacked.

I was asked to be on a staff senate committee. To decide who best deserves the presidents awards for staff excellence. My friend Brit reached out to me months ago because they were having trouble filling it. I said I would think about it and when eventually asked again I said yes I would do it. My focus is on leadership & innovation. I had to fill out a rubric grading the nominees. Some of these people, I’m sorry to say, are not what I would deem worthy of any type of reward. At least from my perspective, they were not that great at the job that they were assigned to do. Some of the nominations really had no examples to give that proved they were able to accomplish the tasked needed. Is it fair to give low scores to those you know do their jobs and work hard because the nomination wrote such a poor letter for them? From the criteria, that is how I must score people. It’s a shame. I mean, you can fluff someone with praise all you want, but come on, how hard is it to give just one good example of what they have done to better the team. I spent a few hours on this, reading and scoring and writing up my reasons for the scores. It was something different but I don’t think I’ll agree to this again if asked.

This was the first real week Yvette and I have had alone since we got married and I will say that as much as I missed the kids around and how eerie the quiet was, I sure liked our alone week. It was good for us both, I believe. Hell, what if we found out we really can’t just be alone with each other? It was a fantastic week together. Thursday was our last night at the house together and we made it special. We had that drive to Dallas ahead of us the next day so it wasn’t too late. What a week, though. I think I appreciate and understand my parents more by just having a week without kids. It’s something I never understood completely and now I sure do.

Friday it was on the road again. Back to Dallas. The kids flew in Saturday morning bright and early. We decided it would be easier to just take a vacation day and drive early rather than wait till after work. Really a bitch the flights that their father booked. The most inconvenient of times. Oh well. I went and got us breakfast and gas while Yvette cleaned a little and finished getting ready. Some McDonalds. Yay. Always a good quick breakfast. Reliable.

The drive was my first big travel drive since I had hit my head. I was a little worried. It ended up being rather fun. I missed the days of driving and or the longest time I was uncomfortable getting back on the road.it really wasn’t all that bad. Once the traffic got bad I just found someone to cruise behind and we had a good 40 min together. Sadly, our relationship didn’t last and I was alone again..

We stopped at a local brewery on the way in. Martian House. Funny thing, they make most the prickly beer that is distributed around the great state of Texas. We had hoped they had a little to eat but alas, they were just a taproom. No less, I had myself 2 beers and passed the baton over to Yvette to drive the rest of the hotel. Bummer that it happened to be rush hour but we didn’t have much further to do.

We picked up a little booze and checked in. Our last night alone and all. We were staying at a different hotel this go round and the surroundings were so different even if in the same area. Much more homeless people, which was sad. It doesn’t worry me so much, but I sure didn’t want Yvette to go to the car after dark. I mean, when you pull into the hotel you are staying at and a man is sleeping in the parking lot it’s discerning. The hotel was really nice though. It’s just downtown living. You have to expect that.

We went out to have a nice night on the town. We didn’t want to eat anything we could find in San Angelo. We found a cool place called Maple Landing. Heard good things and it was a fun little establishment. Surrounded by upscale apartments that you will see in any of these cities these days. What was clearly once a quiet little neighborhood was appropriated. Oh well, I am not a social justice warrior. Dinner was good and the drinks were even better. We went back to the hotel and relaxed and watched some March Madness

Happy Friday!!

Jalapeño

Leftover pulled pork BBQ tacos.

St. Patty’s Day Sheppard Pie. I make it once a year.

Texas whiskey glazed pork belly burnt ends w/ beans and cheesy pepper squash.

Homemade pizza and wings. Mango habanero and buffalo.

Carnitas verde.

Pork belly taco with some vinaigrette slaw.

Saturday was fucking cold again. We woke up and the sun had gone hiding behind the damn clouds. Boooooooo. Baby shower day. I had to run to the Post Office to ship off a eBay sale and a run to Target for a gift bag. Very last minute and all on me.

The party was for Noah, Nadia and Baby Niles. The turn out was really great. Hell, I helped serve the food and we damn near ran out. To say it was a little unstructured would be putting it lightly. The important thing was that the parents of the upcoming baby had fun and I could see that they did. That is key. I’m petty sure everyone had fun. Shame it had to be a bit of a chilly day since we had a lake house rented out. Damn the luck.

After the shower fun we got home and saw Teegan off to his Junior Prom. The guy looked sharp in his suit. I was proud of him. My mother let him borrow her car so he could pick up his date with some real style.I could tell he was a little nervous but I recall my first prom. What a time that was. After he was off Yvette and I decided to go get a cocktail and a little snack. I knew she needed to relax after the baby shower. That night I cooked for us and it turned out to be a nice relaxing evening. Saturday was nice once the work was over with.

Sunday we took on the damn time change and it was kicking us all in the teeth. Even Alaya seemed thrown by it. I got up and made us a breakfast pizza. Chorizo and potato. I was very happy to hear from lola that this pizza was my best one yet. I might not agree with that assessment but I was very happy to hear it from her being she is a picky eater. It was a safe bet that she would enjoy it considering it’s all her favorite burrito fixings.

Mickey 17. I’ve liked the films by Bong Joon Ho. Parasite won him a best Oscar but Snowpiercer and Okja were the two movies that have made him a must see director. Okja had me questioning myself ever eating meat again. Such a powerful film and I get a little teared up just thinking about it. This film was more in line with those, being that it was also si-fi. Robert Pattinson is an actor who went from joke to exciting in a matter of just a few movies. Let’s just say he did well here. He plays an expendable. A man whose job it is to die and be reprinted. I really don’t want to say much about the film because it’s one which the less said, the better.

Walking out of the movie at 6 o’clock I was fulling expecting dusk to be upon us but it was not. Damn the time change. I was assaulted by bright skies and blinded. It will once again take me a long while to get in the groove of this new time. I ran out to my mom to drop off her car and get a ride back home before settling into the Sunday evening weekly shoes. It is kind of nice watching something that you cannot binge.

Monday was a Monday X 10. The time change would have been bad enough but thanks to my damn dog Owen we were woken up around 4 to him raiding the pantry. Somehow the doors didn’t close and he helped himself to 2 bags of chips, marshmallows, baby food and a box of banana pudding mix. The powder combined with his drool made a past that had to be scrubbed off the floor. I was on my hands and knees cleaning up a mess in the wee hours of the day. I suppose it was better than coming into a surprise when I was in the motions getting ready for work, I was so pissed at that dog. to add to my fury, the bastardized had the nerve to start howling after I let him outside forcing my to let him back into the house.

The day was just a slog. When the work day was finally over I realized how I like this time once I get used to it. You still have a good portion of the ay ahead of you and don’t feel as rushed to get things done before settling into the evening. So I was grilling burgers that night and the first thing I did after work was season the ground beef. After that we took the little girl up to the band practice field to play. She really likes the turf that they laid. I have to admit, so did I. It is so soft. I could easily take a nap in the shade on a nice day. I ran some more errands before settling home and grilling the burgers. Noah and Nadia came over for Yvette’s shrimp po boys. I must admit that they are damn good, it’s just way too much bread for this diabetic. I made myself a burger salad and the house was full of laughter. I will say that Monday ended a hell of a lot better than it began. Happy Monday!

The week just kind of lumbered on. My boss was away on a whiskey trip in Arizona so it was relatively quiet in the office. The weather was beautiful, if a little windy. Damn the wind. Regardless of that factor, I did spend as much time outside as I could. I think I finally started to get my groove back come Wednesday. Not 100%, but still a heck of a lot better than I was Monday. The campus was gearing up for some Spring break. Good lord, this time of year just brings back memories of the year 2000 when we were all sent home for the pandemic. Crazy that we are 5 years removed from that. The world literally changed and my life changed. It as a major turning point, for better or worse. How time does fly.

It that time of year where it goes from cold to hot real fast. Thursday was beautiful. No wind. Yvette and I took a nice walk on campus with the little girl. it was a lot of fun and we might have selfishly gone too far because the baby got a little tired of the stroller on the way back and wanted to be carried. Next time make it a half trip down our mall. Oh well. It was fun. She never cried and she had fun as well. It was decided that on nice night we need to start going on walks with the baby girl.

Let’s talk about the wind. It’s that time of year, March. It is expected to be windy but GOOD LORD has it been bad this year. We have had 2 days where the weather channel was forecasting hurricane force winds in west Texas. We had 3 major dust storms. I mean dense brown fog like storms where the visibility was nil. A lot of the dirt stems from the lack of rain. Everything is so damn dry. I remember this weather from my Lubbock days and how the first time a haboob blew through I was in disgusted awe. I didn’t want it to travel back to my home town and this week that’s exactly what it felt like. Damn the wind, seriously. I have not been able to breathe right for almost 2 months and every time I start to get better some shit like this blows in. The joy. But my lord, the havoc this storm brought upon Texas. Live lost and so much property damage. To see the wreckage left behind on the highways was just devastating. In don’t really know what kind of preventative measures could be made other than just closing down the highways in advance but no one really knew just how bad it was going to get. 100mph gust in Texas.

Our little town was once known as the “Wool Capital of the World” so we have a thing for sheep. Businesses around town can pay to have a sheep processed and painted by an artist and have displayed in front of their establishments. I thought it would be fun to seek out all the sheep, if possible. I like art and this will be a new hobby. Kind of like finding all the Korink seeds in Zelda. Anyhow, when I have the time I plan to find them scattered around the town and photo them. Expect to see some sheep in my galleries for a while to come. I know that there are at least 100 of these little guys scattered throughout our town. The first one was easy, it being on the campus which I work. I hope you enjoy my efforts as much as I.

Jalapeño

Green chicken curry for Yvette and myself. It turned out amazing.

Orange chicken. Extremely hot. I added ghost peppers.

Hamburger salad.

Teriyaki pineapple shrimp.

Jalapeño!!

Grilled chicken with country style gravy, grilled okra and paprika butter corn. Oh, and a bunch of red jalapeno.

Pulled pork baked potato w/ okra.

Looks like it was free for all dinner. I used a leftover chicken breast and made some green chili verde over rice.

Some actors are a part of your life. Gene Hackman was one of those actors. I realized he was in a lot of my favorite movies but it wasn’t until his death that I realized just how many GOOD movies he was in I saw over the years. O many I still have not seen. This week I will be watching my favorite and some I have never seen.

It was as if I grew up with him through the 80s till the early 2000s when he retired. The magnitude of good films that he did is astonishing. Lots of these films I remember him from are straight up classics. Unforgiving. I watched the movie some so so many times with my father. Some of the best quotes ever. “I don’t deserved this…. To die like this. I was building a house.” For those that know. Might be not only one of my favorite movies but also one of the best movies ever made. I think the impact of his death hits harder due to the circumstances being iffy and he having lived a peaceful retirement from the Hollywood scene for 20 years. Having been out of the light for so long was respectful. He was always on my mind but hearing he passed hit me hard because he wasn’t.

Saturday I worked on the side years. I’m trying to get it cleaned up before th spring growth kicks in. It will be future parking when it is all said and done. Later once Teegan and Yvette realized I had spent 3 hours in the sun they came and got me out. Teegan and I departed to go get drive a car he might be interested in. The vehicle was rather awesome. I had never heard of the feature which keeps the vehicle in a lane if you take your hands off the wheel. Teegan liked it and we had fun. I’m so happy he likes doing these kind of things with me. I don’t think I can portray how happy it makes me.

My first movie in honor of Gene Hackman I watched The Conversation. One I had never seen but thought that I had. A dark story be Francis Ford Coppola. It’s a little more relevant today. It’s about a surveillance guy that might have bitten off a little more than he can chew. It’s dark yet entertaining. The scary part is thinking how much more advance we are when it comes to keeping tabs. We can go to the store and buy a device that bugs a car so you know where it is at any time. Fuck that.

Sunday I woke up and cooked some bacon and made some potatoes for everyone. A little minimal cleaning and a trip to the store was in store. Yay. I turned on another Hackman movie, this time The Royal Tenenbaums. Truly Hackman swan song to cinema. He is such a likable asshole in the film and it’s amazing. I watched it with the kids who had never seen the movie and they even found it funny. I mean, how can one not. It’s hilarious.

We met my mom for some late Sunday lunch. I do mean late. It wasn’t until about 2 that we were seated and it was more like 3 before we actually ate. We went for some Japanese steakhouse hibachi. Alaya was having such a blast watching the show. She likes fire maybe a little too much.

After late lunch I worked on the side yard for about an hour before departing to Target to get a little Easter Bunny for the little girl. I really didn’t get to do a lot of errands around the town because I kept busy in the yard and Sundays late lunch ended really late. After running around I stopped by my moms and visited for a little while. I like our visits. That night I came home and grilled up some burgers, air fried some fries and made a quick slaw. We watched the new episode of The White Lotus and we went to be.

Unfortunately that night I had one of my sleep walking episodes. As I’ve stated in blogs past, I have many sleep disorders. I have been sleep walking since at least 10 years of age. Anyways, Lola found me. She came down the hall to get the baby some formula somewhere between 2-3. The foyer light was on, which threw her off a little. The fridge alarm was going off notifying that it had been opened to long. Not unusual. She came around the corner to the kitchen and the front door was standing wide open. This freaked her out. That when she saw me unresponsive but mumbling on the couch. Rightfully so, she freaked out. She went and got her mom thinking something had happened to me and she might be next. That someone was in the house. No, it was just me. For whatever reason I opened the front door and left it that way and went back to sleep in the living room. Scary because what if the dogs had gotten out or someone had let themselves in.

I felt so embarrassed by the episode. I knew it was only a matter of time before this happened with them living with me. I was terrified of that happening and it finally did. I had told Yvette that I occasionally sleep walk but in all this time together she had never been witness. I apologized to everyone. I really feel so powerless. I don’t know what I do. Usually it’s just roam aimlessly and end up laying down somewhere other than my bed. I have gone outside a few other times, once locking myself outside in my underwear. No good scenario. Lucky for me it happens few and far between. Yvette suggested we child proof the door which might deter me. It’s not a bad idea but it’s embarrassing to think about.

No Way Out. Another movie I had never seen with Hackman also staring a very young Kevin Costner. Pretty much a political thriller. Hackman once again playing a conflicted man who is clearly…. Whelp, I’ll let you watch it. It was a movie that impressed me and I’m not sure why I’d never seen it.

The week started out rather unexpected. My coworker had a family emergency so I was pulling double duty at work for the week. Kept me busy. I maxed out my university credit card last week and had to get the limit bumped. Good thing because I’m was burning money again this week.

The Replacements. This is just a fun movie. Keanu Reeves the year after he blew up with The Matrix. Gene Hackman delivers as the retired coach to work the “replacement” players into a team that can play ball. This came out while I was still just a baby so I have fond memories growing up with it. This movie has some really great moments and I struggle to believe it came out 25 years ago. Lord, I’m getting old.

Tuesday was just disgusting. We were all awoken around 2AM with our phones blowing up declaring a Tornado Warning had been issued. A funnel cloud had been spotted south of town. I looked at the radar and determined we were in no real danger. It was windy and we had a little hail but that was really about it. Well, that wind never let up it only got worse. We were expected to have 60-70mph gust throughout the day., You could see the dust in the air early on. Not a good sign. By noon we were in the middle of a full blown dust storm with visibility down and air quality just utter shit. It was a brown dense fog. I lived with this in Lubbock and it was as bad as I ever saw it. It never let up until dusk arrived. I mean, it was terrible outside.

Wednesday might have been the most beautiful day in the world. Clear blue sky with NO wind. Everyone was in an amazing mood and so happy to not have a repeat of the dust storm. I mean, the day was about as opposite as they could get. Yvette and I even had a little picnic under some trees. I enjoy having a picnic with this beautiful lady.

The Firm. This is more of a Tom Cruise vehicle from the early 90s, but Hackman was a key character. The movie I really never gave much a chance back in the day but as the years have gone I’ve grown to enjoy it. Hackman is fantastic. Once again, an unsavory character. He loved playing those types. Charming.

Unforgiven. One of my top 5 movies. I think I might have talked about it enough in my intro to this blog. Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris & Gene Hackman. Three of the best actors alive, sadly one less. The power of this movie. Amazing. A real meditation on this history of violence in America. How the foundation of the country was build on violence. How no matter how much we step away from it, we are capable of coming back to it. More straight forward is the idea of aging. Do we really change that much when we get older or are we just trying to be changed? Hackman has such menace in his eyes. Seething with the threat of violence behind every glance. When he does let it loose it is truly a horror. You watch his character and you know he believes what he is doing is the right thing when you know it is not. It is clearly why he was nominated and won the academy award that year. He is a spectacle to behold and all the while terrifying. Such an amazing actor.

Happy Friday!!

Jalapeño

I was going to just make Korean BBQ chicken with rice but it turned into a real meal. Noodles, broccoli, carrots and snap peas.

Burger, fries and slaw.

Roasted green chili chicken thigh over rice w/ cheese & pico.

My first attempt at chicken spaghetti with some broccolini.

Leftover chicken spaghetti spiced up with a side salad.

Red enchilada chicken bowl with black beans.

Garlic butter steak and some creamy Alfredo shells with Italian broccoli.

Saturday I went a saw a movie, The Monkey. It was based on a Stephen King story I read way back in the early 90s. I have always been a fan of his material I I will always support his movie adaptations in the theater. I was really curious how the hell this story could be adapted to film but I liked the director and trusted his judgement. The movie was absurd in a good way. I laughed out loud a few times. The deaths were just hilarious and unrealistically funny. I’d say it was really only loosely based upon the story by King and I was okay with that. I don’t know if a better film could be made from the source material. Yes, it was a horror but it was also a damn comedy for people that are into the genre. Cheers!!!

National Margarita Day! After the movie I dropped off some groceries to my mom and picked up Yvette. NMD is our day. You see, it should have been our first date but I was too foolish to see she might have been hinting that I take her out. What I did do is bring her a premixed margarita and went out to get my own. Yeah, idiot. Our first date ended up being a month later on her birthday but it should have been on NMD. Anyways, we have ever since celebrated the day by going out and getting a margarita and joking about how dense I was at the time.

Sunday was a beautiful day. The sun was out and the warmth was nourishing to us all after the cold streak that we endured. Yvette and I spent the majority of the day running around to various stores gathering what we might need for the weeks meals and whatever household furnishings that we might need. I think most the town was actually stepping out of hibernation because it was rather busy. Witnessed some utterly stupid driving. Hard to imagine how these peoples event were able to obtain a drivers permit for the roads. Scary.

That night I was a grilling machine. Noah and Nadia came over for the feast. I had 3 1/2 pounds of chicken thighs, 2 sausage links, okra and a nice pasta salad that Yvette made. Noah brought some Boudin. I had honestly never prepared that. It’s a rice sausage and it did cook a little funny compared to what I am accustomed to grilling. Rather tasty when complete. It was a fun night and I do enjoy the family feast. It’s good to have them over and I was so excited about grilling all week long now that we have the weather for it.

The week started off as they typically do. Sometimes I feel like I’m living the movie Groundhog Day. Wake and repeat. That’s almost how work is these days. At least the job I was doing on Monday kept me out of the office and driving around town paying various bills throughout the day. It was beautiful with highs reaching the 80s. I joked that it was kind of hot after a week of fringed temps.

Tuesday was a weird day. For one thing, I think I might have over medicated myself during the early morning hours. Gabapentin. I take one before bed every night to help with the neuropathy but I am pretty sure I woke up and took another in the middle of the night thinking that I missed my dosage because my head was high in the clouds. I know how that feels because I’ve accidentally done it before. It’s a weird feeling to be there but not really there.

The day started with a request from a service tech to find him a capacitor. We had a conversation and he told me exactly where I needed to go to find the device. Well after driving across town and circling the said location looking for the place with my eyes and my google I finally parked and went into a neighboring business to ask them where I needed to go. Turns out the establishment went out of business years ago. Wow. I knew a little back story on this tech because his wife and my mother are friends. The poor mans mind is slipping. It made me sad more than anything else. I have lived that life with my father. I really liked this tech and this was the first time seeing first hand that he was starting to slip mentally.

Hump day I woke up feeling amazing after a wonderful nights sleep. I had a lot of motivation and “want to”. I powered through the Damone morning and took no prisoners. I even had a morning meeting that was about 40 min of my life I will never have returned. After lunch, my day took a dark depressing detour into hell. Some people. I hate having a seesaw of a day. I still count the day as a positive. You can’t let people get you down and you can’t hold expectations high of anyone.

That evening after cooking I made myself a drink and sat outside for a good while to just relax and enjoy my evening. Disconnect from everything. I am still trying to become a person that isn’t living alone. I spent the last 3 years living alone and the last 2 months living with people so at times I still need that alone time. I don’t know how anyone would think that could change overnight. Lord, it took me a while to figure out living alone, why would it not take me a a second to live with people again.

The transition was so much smoother than I thought it would be. Honestly, as an introvert I have always needed some alone time. I love having this house full of folk, but that does not change me and me needing a little time to adjust and find my me time. It is easy though. Everyone that knows me seems to think that I am doing a really good job. I think I am doing a good job. You introverts can relate. We don’t have to be around people. We feel good in our own skin, but we love people and also love being around them. It makes no sense to someone that isn’t one of us.

It helps that my family are such wonderful people to be around. I just love them. The little girl brings so much joy every time she smiles. I became a family man and I love it. It isn’t always easy, of course. Decisions I use to make on my own don’t always work. I must consider how the others will feel or be affected by what I decide.

For example: cooking. Deciding on meals. Cooking is not as simple. There is a picky eater under the roof. I like to experiment and constantly try new things. I get bored of the same things all the time. Often at work when I have downtime I am looking at new recipes on the internet. In the past I would decide on dinner right at the moment I found a recipe that called my name. Not so much anymore. I need to make sure everyone will like it. My new challenge is looking for meals that we all agree on and it’s been rather fun. The kids also have meals that they like to have in rotations, so I’m adjusting to that as well. Sometimes it would be months before I would eat the same meal again. I still make sure to have a couple “new” meals a week. Often that means two meals are being cooked on a given night but that’s no big deal.

Friday finally rolled around and I think everyone was ready for it. I had only a handful of things that I needed to take care of to complete my work load for the week and I was thankful for that. Well that easy landing didn’t happen. I maxed out my work card and it could no longer be used to complete my job until I had my limit bumped, which was eventually done. It was no problem staying busy because of all the strange unplanned BS that kept coming up during the day. Oh yeah, we had an earthquake. It sounded like someone was breaking into my house. What a day. Weird as it was I kind of liked it and it made 5o’clock roll right on.

After work I made a trip to purchase some patio chairs, pick up some med and I cooked for us. A drink felt good. Cheers and happy Friday!!

So one of my favorite actors passed away. Gene Hackman. Always looked the same in every movie through every year. Movies that have impacted my life and mean much to me over the years would be Superman, Unforgiven, The Replacements, The Royal Tenenbaums and The French Connection. Such a talented actor that always made a movie good. Rest in peace.

Jalapeño

A weird take on a breakfast burger. I usually use chorizo mixed with beef but I had some breakfast sausage. It wasn’t something that I’ll be making again.

Marry Me Chicken Orzo.

Breakfast mini open faced omelette w/ jalapeño poppers, pigs in a blanket and tots.

Sunday I made chicken thigh, sausage, grilled okra and Yvette made a pasta salad. It was a family feast.

I grilled some Caribbean pork ribeyes with some sweet ginger broccoli as the side.

Homemade ginger sauce!!! Hibachi steak, shrimp, chicken and veggies. I had steamed rice and Yvette made fried. Family dinner.

Fish tacos.

Chicken fried steak by Yvette.

Creole Cajun pasta with shrimp and sausage.

Saturday was a very pretty day. I woke up with some extremely high blood sugar due to my pump having some issues. It looked like the injection needle bent and therefore was not administering me any insulin which was a bad thing because I indulged for our Valentines date night. Bummer. I was well above 300 and had to resort to taking it the good old fashion way, a long ass needle. Oh well, I got it down and set up a new pump. Most of the day was running around knocking out errands and I enjoyed every bit of it. It was nice and it wasn’t going to be like this most of the week, if the forecast is to be believed.

That night we watched “The Menu”. I don’t know how to classify it. It’s a cooking foodie movie? It’s a horror? It’s a comedy? It’s all of the above. It’s a great movie. Great acting. I love it. Perfect after our 4 course meal on Valentines. Ralph Fiennes is great as the chef. You are somewhat sympathetic for him even though he is plying a psychopath.

Sunday was a sleepy day. We all slept in. I made a little avocado toast with an egg salad. We cleaned some and eventually made our way over to Yvette’s parents for some beef and chicken fajitas. Of course it was a damn good lunch.

After that fun I ran by the house to drop off some food for Teegan and I meal prepped the chicken thigh for Sunday dinner. Once complete and ran to Sam’s, Home Depot & HEB. Lord. The weekend went WAY too fast. After all that was complete I stopped by my mom, who wasn’t feel 100%, to visit and see how she was doing.

That night I cooked and watched a movie called “The Gorge”. A romance horror? That’s kind of how my mother explained it. She liked it. I liked it. It was a sci-fi horror romance. I enjoyed the chemistry between actors. It was by coincidence that the same actress, Anya Taylor-Joy, was also in the Menu. I won’t give away any real plot details. It was pretty straight forward with a good ending. The creatures were creative enough. I have to say we need more romance horror mash ups. Why the heck not?

So the week was once again going to dip into the cold temps. It sure did dip. Just talking to people on the campus it was clear many didn’t plan on showing up. They had time they could use so why the heck not. I honestly thought that was a good idea if I had not already used some last week going to Austin. The cold isn’t all that bad anyways. All I was concerned with was the cold hindering my ability to live. Last thing I needed was a power outage.

Besides having to be out in the elements, the week was okay. These arctic blast were not things I grew up with all that often. We did get the cold but rare was it -6 windchill. I just don’t have a lot to wear in this kind of cold, just layer up.

For Wednesday I decided to make something arm for breakfast, jalapeño poppers. I woke up early, started the oven and went about my usual morning routine. The peppers baked for 25 min and smelt amazing. I knew Yvette & I wouldn’t be able to eat them all so I packed some on a plate and brought them to my old coworker, Sarah aka: Janine. She works on campus again in my general area so I thought that would be nice. She said it made her day. Yay. It was a warm meal for such a cold cold day.

The Killer. A fairly new David Fincher film that premiered on Netflix back in 2023. It does not seem that long ago that I first watched it but time has been funny since the year 2000. I at least feel that way. A lot has happened in my life. Anyways, the film is actually really enjoyable. I believe I liked it better upon second viewing because I knew what I was getting. A contract killer with a stick code fubar’s an assignment. Nothing goes well for him after. Or does it? I guess it depends on how you look at things. He is certainly forced out of his stick life guidelines. I suppose it’s a more reflective film than straight out action, which one expects when watching a movie circled around hitmen. I of course just love all of Fincher’s films so I am biased.

If you have not noticed I have been watching a lot of movies. I get in the mood. It’s cold and I just have not wanted to do much else.

Friday rolled around and it was still a chilly bitch outside. I had a very quiet morning and a very very busy afternoon . I had a lot to do in a short window. Although it did make the time pass, it was also very annoying. I kind of like a little bit of a chill Friday. Oh well.

After work we went to the grocery store to gather supplies for the evenings meal. Yvette and I were having soup and I was making Tee some pineapple chicken teriyaki. It had been a little while since I made a good soup and I was rather excited. It takes a little bit of time and prep and I was down for that. I missed my soup days. I also found it fun making a completely different kind of meal that was a stir-fry. I’m sure the aromas in the kitchen had to be interesting to whomever walked in. Mexican spice and Japanese. Wow. After dinner it was time to catch up on our little show called Yellowjackets. I built a small fire and we had a nice quiet evening. Yay that.

Happy Friday!

Jalapeño

Spinach & mushroom scrambled eggs.

Steak fajita bowl.

Avocado toast with some egg salad.

Grilled stir-fry sesame chicken.

Chipotle chicken bowl,

Ravioli alla Vodka with some Italian baked pork chop and asparagus.

Made some Naan pizzas. Everyone had a personal. I choose pepperoni, jalapeño, mushrooms, black olive, sun-dried tomatoes and spinach.

Carne al Pastor tacos w/ Fidel.

Chicken tortilla soup.

Saturday was weird. I woke up in a good mood and got a fairly late start to the day. I ran some errands. It was bloody hot. Yvette ran her own errands. She wasn’t having the good day that I was. Shame, really. I grabbed stuff for dinner and a pineapple I later carved for Teegan. My main goals for the day was to clean the bathrooms and get some home defense to fight off the roaches that have gotten bold with the weather. I usually try and keep up with that but I ran out and had been busy with other things. Not that the roaches were bad, but still. I’d rather not see any.

The evening approached quickly. It’s crazy how fast a day will fly by when you are doing things that you enjoy. That evening the weather changed on a dime.The wind picked up and it went from 94 degrees to a mere 54. I was determined to grill and already had all the fixings for it. Be damned if the weather was not grilling weather anymore. I made some yummy teriyaki chicken and pineapple fried rice. Good stuff for Yvette, Tee and I. It was still so quiet in the house without the little girl.

I put on a horror movie. Final Destination 5. I had really only seen the first 2 in the franchise. It’s all about the elaborate deaths. Very little substance. I have to say, I rather enjoyed this one. Just good dumb entertainment that you don’t need to think about.

Super Bowl LIX. The 59. Chiefs vs Eagles. I hate the Eagles so of course I’m going for the Chiefs. I mean, I already like them well enough. I am a loyal Mahomes fan. He did go to Texas Tech. I watched the game at Yvette’s parents and they all hate Mahomes. That’s what happens when you are a winner, everyone gets tired of hearing about you. He has already had 3 Super Bowel wins so it was easy to hate on him. They made all sorts of treats for the game. Ribs, pulled pork. The list goes on. I think the game is more show than an actual sporting event. It was fun for everyone though.

There is something to be said about being the only person at a party going for a team. I was the sole Chief fan. Boy did I get shit from the family. I had fun and can take it. I’m not that big a fan so I really didn’t care. I understand the hate. They were sick the Chiefs and Majomes. I suppose I was the same way towards the Patriots when they were winning. Tom Brady the worst player on earth and I really only didn’t like him or the team because I was tired of hearing about them winning all the time. Well the game was boring and one sided. The Chiefs got spanked. I ate too well and was getting sleepy from the lack of excitement. We left a little under 3 min left of the game and one more score was made but it still didn’t matter.

Once home it was packing time for the first college tour. Here we come University of Texas. I have to say I have always hated UT but it Tee ends up going I will quickly become a fan.

Monday we worked through lunch and took off at 4 to hit the road. Work was a little crazy short staffed but we managed. The road was something crazy. Of course the weather had to turn on us. It was damp and really foggy all the way to Austin. I mean, unreal fog. We got to town hungry and went for wings with my brother and his girlfriend. Had a couple beers and came back to their place to crash. The tours started early the next morning.

Of course that Tuesday morning was a day forecast for heavy showers. 1-2 inches. Typical. Rain or shine the tour must go on. I mean, these are scheduled far in advance and people travel great distances to attend them, of course they continue. I thought it will be an interesting time dancing in the rain. I had foreseen this and packed us all umbrellas and what I hoped was a real rain jacket. My university supplied it as one but I never really put it to the test. I will report back. I must admit the idea of wearing another university’s apparel on a university tour seemed lame. It was either that or get wet. Oh well.

We actually got pretty lucky when it came to the actual campus tour. It stopped raining about 5 min before and started up again about 5 min before it ended. We really didn’t get all that wet. The tour guide was good. We saw some nice landmarks and got a nice feel for the university. It was interesting seeing a tour for another campus. I need to talk to my people in Admissions. I actually liked the weather being how it was. We wished we could have seen more than the buildings that we were able to see but we did not get that luxury with the rain. The only time we actually got wet was when we went out on our to find the University Co-Op & bookstore. Our feet were drenched.

The drive back was not as bad. It was heavy rain for about 30 min but lessened up and eventually just became a heavy due. We passed on lunch for a little joint out of town about half-way home called Cooper’s BBQ. Fantastic food. Teegan had never been and I think he was at first not sure what to make of the place. It’s a Texas staple and of course he liked it. We tired a little bit of everything. Chicken, pork tenderloin & ribs, chopped brisket. The works. We left bloated, happy and impressed..

I was pretty excited for Teegan. I honestly am excited abut the prospect of him attending UT. It is a good school, despite all the terrible things I have said about it over the years. It’s also much closer to us and it has my brother and a pretty campus. I know her has not made up his mind yet, and that is a good thing. I hope that I can help with whatever he finally decides upon. I am proud of him. He is a smart kid with dedication and options that I never had. Upon 24 hours later getting home we just got a damn pizza for dinner. What a 24 hours.

Wednesday rolled around and it was back to work. I talked about the trip and everyone seemed kind of excited for us. I actually had a good day back at work in the middle of the week. Yvette once again was not having a good day. I think she has too much going on and needs to mellow out some or we need a vacation. I hate seeing her so wound up tight. Relaxation is central to a healthy life. I found a bit of booze helps me. Call me an alcoholic, but I feel much better and healthier being relaxed. I don’t need a heart attack from stress. Anyways, we had hopes after work to look at a car for Teegan. A car that we had been speaking to the dealership about. Well, 3 min before we left they send a text that they sold it. Fuck. Let’s add to Yvette’s stress. We went to HEB for some dinner and I went to get my Cholesterol meds. We all ate. I guess it was a good evening. A lot of “What can one do”? Nothing. You can take life into your hands but life will never be in your hands. Just learn to roll with it. Stress is one of the most common causes of death, BTW.

Thursday was rocky. Don’t ask me why, but it was. I never understand all things. It was fucking cold again. 22 degrees when I woke up and never made it past 44. I went about the day just waiting for the evening. Yvette had her service awards and I honestly couldn’t wait to attend it with her. I never went to my own but I was happy for her and excited to go with her. I like doing things with my wife that I never did before. I did some digging to see if she would be in front of people and sure enough she would. She wanted to know how she needed to look. She needn’t worry because she was the most stunning woman to walk across that stage. We had a nice little meal and complimentary drinks. We sat at a table with a bunch of IT guys. Some I have know for 20 years. It was funny, honestly. I saw some people I had no idea had been there so long, and others I thought had been there longer. I think we both needed the evening. A fine distraction from some of the cards felt in life and the bullshit that it carries. I do love this woman.

Valentine’s Day. I wanted this to be special. It was a long busy week. I had this day and night planned for a while. All our years together had just been me cooking a romantic dinner at my house, as it was back in those days. Well it really wasn’t anymore. It wasn’t a place we could just spend time alone now that the kids also share a roof. Looks like we needed to go out. Also, I was excited about finally taking Yvette out for V-Day. I had reservations made a month ago.

We got dressed up. Her in a dress and I in a suit. The dinner was a 4 course meal with only two entree options. The environment was beautiful. I think that might have been the most relaxed dress up dinner we have ever had. It was a lot of damn fun. My mom made a damn fine cheese cake to finish off the evening. I over did the carbs with that damn danish. Oh well. Once a year.

Happy Valentine’s Day and happy Friday!!!

Jalapeño

Breakfast baked potato. Sunny egg, bacon, cheese w/ green onion & jalapeño.

For dinner I made some Pineapple fried rice and teriyaki chicken thighs on the grill.

Traditional English Breakfast.

Pluckers in Austin. Buffalo lemon pepper chicken.

Yvette made chili and I made noodles. Cincinnati chili.

Campus service awards. Yvette was up for her 5 year and we attended. This was the first time I had ever been to one of these events. I skipped mine. I will say the food was rather nice and the open bar even better.

Happy Valentine’s Day. Yvette and I had a 4 course meal.

The weekend was rather nice. The usual chores around the house. I was finally willing to venture outside and take care of some long overdue yard work such as cleaning the patio and trimming plant life back. It had been rather cold throughout most of January and February ushered in some much desired warmer weather. I think we all rather enjoyed the warm sun. Alaya really seemed to like it.

I went to go see a horror movie in the theater solo. It has been a little while since I had done that? Maybe a month, haha. “Companion”. I had high anticipation s of it being a good film. The reviews were in and the score was high. I picked a spot to watch the film and once entering the theater realizes I didn’t like the spot. I found another one and kept my fingers crossed that no one would come claim the seat. I was in luck. The movie began. I was not thrilled. I had seen to many previews and knew to many plot twist. That’s the problem with movie previews. I was not happy with the movie. It was kind of lame. The story could have been good but they failed it. I left thinking I wasted time and money. I wondered how it had such a high score.

That Saturday moon and Venus. What a treat that was. On my way home I also noticed some doors on a campus building wide opened. Two hours later they were still opened. I sure did call the campus police and notify them. I felt it was my duty. How the hell no one noticed or reported before blows my fucking mind. Bad security? I just hope no one snuck into the building. I assume it was negligence on someone a part. Clearly whomever was allowed into the building that day did not double check to make sure the doors were all closed and locked. Oops. Yvette sent some emails to some people she also felt needed to know. It’s all been reported now.

Yvette and I thought we might have an evening to ourselves but we were wrong. Lola and the baby came back and we made a fire and we cooked some s’mores. It was a lot of fun and the weather was perfect. I cooked many of them and ate more than I needed. Alaya was loving the warm e[weather. She liked looking at the fire dance away in the pit. It was a beautiful evening. I like the way this week looks. I want to grill as much as possible.

Sunday I woke up and made a feast. I made ham, mushroom chipotle cheese omelets with some hash brown tots and pigs in a blanket. It was a meal that everyone seemed to enjoy. Even Alaya had a good time with it. Of course, it was Groundhog Day so I had to watch the classic movie with Bill Murray. It was the first of many viewings of the movie that Sunday. BTW, Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow. That means we have 6 more weeks of winter. It sure didn’t feel like that Sunday. It reached 81 degrees and the forecast ahead looked even warmer. That really means nothing here in the great state of Texas.

Noah decided it would be a good day to have a fish fry. He had a LOT of catfish from his fishing venture and brought it all over to Yvette’s parents to fry up. We had fired fish, shrimp, hush puppies, slaw and corn. Oh, some fires for good measure. For some reason Yvette thought that I didn’t like catfish. So the misunderstanding comes from the fact that I will not pay for catfish. Maybe I am a fish snob, but I will not fork over cash for those bottom feeders. This does not mean that I do not like them. Honestly, Yvette probably had never seen me eat catfish. I will also say that knowing where the fish came from makes them taste better. It was a lot of fun. We also decorated some valentine cake. I made a heart for Yvette. I guess this is a valentine tradition that I missed that they do every year. As proof in the below picture, I am a little rusty when it comes to decorating a cake.

That night I was having Noah and Nadia over for some brisket and sliders. I was all prepped for the meal. I have to say that at the time the thought of food was rather repulsive. I was so bloated and had eaten so much during the day. I ran the store and grabbed food for the week and went out to my moms to grab some frozen steak we would need. Came back home and started the food. The brisket had cooked for 8 hours and was fantastic. The sliders turned out fantastic with the Hawaiian rolls. Everything was great. I was o happy they came over for dinner. It was only fair. Noah provided the catfish that we had for lunch. He spent 3 weeks out on the lake catching those bottom feeders. It was a lot of fun an and I determined we need to do this more often. What a heck of a Sunday.

Monday morning and a very warm week ahead. Unseasonable warm weather for the first week of February. I damn, I am not acclimated for this heat. The week prior I was freezing wearing wool socks. Oh well. The weather is a trip. The day was mostly pain free. I started it with a yummy cinnamon roll. I had to deal with the same dumbass in our campus garage ordering parts from vendors that are not in our system for tax exemption. I don’t understand why no one gets onto him for this. No supervision . I was able to get it worked out with our purchasing department and eventually I paid for the item. I was happy to be out of the office driving around with my windows down enjoying the nice weather.

After work we went to the grocery store and started our own little leftover dinners. We had enough stuff to feed everyone but we had to make multiple meals. I made a weird red enchilada dish with some brisket. It was okay but not perfect. Yvette made some junk chicken with leftover rotisserie. That might have been the best dish. Lola had some black beans and sausage. After that I went and had a drink and visited with my friend Art. He wanted to hear about my weird hotdog brunch and talk about paying off his home. I miss this guy. Always has been a good friend. I wish Yvette would come with me for once but she is busy. One day I will drag her along. At home we all joked and watched a little TV. It was a damn good Monday.

It’s crazy we have all been under the same roof for a month. It flies by so fast. I think I transitioned from living alone to sharing a roof with 4 people pretty well. I must admit that I was a little scared but that turned out to be a little unfounded. I’m sure, if anything, I might be the difficult one. I am a bit OCD about the kitchen being clean and I pick up constantly. I can’t help it. I drive myself nuts in that regard. I’m sure that constantly moving stuff might be a little annoying. What can I do? I guess it keeps them on their toes. Where did Jordan out my hoodie this time? How is the kitchen already clean and we haven’t even had our dinner yet? Yes, I clean the kitchen while I am cooking. I don’t like the dishes after I eat. I am weird.

The middle of the week Tee wasn’t feeling so hot so we got him a doctor’s appointment. He doesn’t go tot the doctor so Yvette said he must not be feeling well. Yvette took him after lunch and they did all the test for all the fun things that are going around like crazy. Unfortunately he tested positive for the flu. He even had the vaccine. Bummer. It wasn’t a terrible case but I know he wasn’t feeling well. Poor guy. Lola loaded up the baby to find safer grounds and Yvette and I bunkered down with the boy. I figure at this point what the hell. I have been sharing a roof with him and I have been all over the filthy campus. If he gives me the flu, it happens. Let’s hope we both dodge the bullet.

I am such a routine guy. I hate that but I will admit it. Waking up Thursday to Teegan, Yvette, Lola and the baby getting ready for the day threw me off . I even slept in 20 min past my alarm. It just felt so weird. Funny that a little over a moth ago that was just my everyday routine. Boy how they change and we adapt. I didn’t know what to do with myself. I would normally had made breakfast for Yvette and I but I didn’t feel the need since it was just me. I have frozen food at work I can eat. I think the dogs were even thrown off by the quiet. They were just kind of standing around waiting to see what I was doing like, what is going on here?

I had my doctor call me in some preventative Tamaflu. Hopefully I will not need it. Hopefully no one will need it. The day was another busy one and made kind of boring with the lack of Yvette on campus. Staff senate called me to see if I wanted to join a committee to nominate people for awards. Sounds an awful lot like bullshit and they really couldn’t answer my questions on how much time it would entail but I said I would think about it. Turns out Yvette is on it already so I might just say yes and let them know I can’t guarantee that I can commit my time to it but she can be my eyes and ears and fill me in later. After work it was once again a very quiet house. Teegan was bored. We made some dinner and just relaxed. It was wild how quiet it was.

Friday I woke up 30 min late. What the hell! My alarm was set and didn’t go off and my internal alarm didn’t wake me up. Oh well. I was rushed but I always manage. It does not take me that long to get going if I really want to. I generally just don’t want to. I had no want to.

The day was generally full of bullshit. I had some seriously stupid questions asked of me at some seriously stupid times. I mean, my god does no one think ahead on the campus. Shouldn’t a room on campus be furnished weeks before some foreign exchange students arrive and not a couple hours? Shouldn’t that call be made before 4PM on a Friday? Besides, why is that my problem when it’s not my department?? I was irritated at the end of the my day. I was happy to get home to my wife.

Happy Friday!!

jalapeño

Saturday I tried something very different and maybe rather weird. I made an open faced cheese omelette, bacon wrapped SAM’s hotdog, toasted a bun and drizzled with a little hollandaise sauce. The result was rather fantastic.

Pork tenderloin with a raspberry chipotle sauce, sautéed yellow potatoes and some broccolini.

Ham chipotle mushroom cheese omelet w/ tots and pigs in a blanket.

Noah had a catfish fry over at Yvette’s parents.

Brisket, sliders, sausage, potato salad and beans.

Brisket enchilada over rice w/ black beans.

Steak bites in garlic & butter with rice. The others had baked potato.

Steak fajita bowls. I made this meal specifically for Lola but because she wanted to make sure the baby avoided the flu she wasn’t around to eat it.

Shake & Bake pork chops w/ a Dijon garlic cream sauce, balsamic feta carrots and buttery green beans.

Korean BBQ chicken thigh I made into a bowl with kimchi and seafood salad.

Saturday I got up and made some breakfast. It was a lazy morning. I cleaned the floors and played some Zelda. It wasn’t until after noon that I finally ventured out. I went to Sam’s for some gas and some chicken. I made a brutal trip to HEB. The place was packed. Later I rant o Pinkies to get some vodka for a pasta sauce I was making on Sunday and I grabbed a little tequila for Yvette and I. It was a nice of TV and the couch to ourselves. Nothing special but just a fun night together. We started and finished the first season of The Righteous Gemstones. Great show on HBO.

Sunday I woke up and made some breakfast. Later my mom took us all out to eat. It was cold again and I honestly didn’t want to do anything but play my game. I have come a long way in combat. I had taken out 2 of the 4 King Gleeoks. Big troublesome bastards that I was initially terrified to attack. A regular Gleeok was hard enough, but these kings had each of the elemental attacks of the three lesser Gleeoks These enemies have been popping up in the Zelda games since the early 1980’s. Real terror. I remember running from these beast when I first encountered one way back in July. It was an ice Gleeok and I was able to creep by unnoticed. That was my strategy for most the game. Eventually I found the nerve to face on that happened to be blacking a bridge that I needed to pass. The battle was epic and I died many times. Eventually I found a strategy and upon defeating my foe I realized my weapons stash was depleted. I knew I needed a better plan for the future. At this point in the game I am about as powerful as I can be and the kings hold the key to an item that I need otherwise I’d give them a hard pass. It’s not a game requirement but rather a goal. Fuck them!

I do not understand how the hours after lunch flew by as quickly as they did. I guess we finished up at 3:30 so not much time was left in the day before dark fell upon us. We did some shopping, I did my Sunday mother son visit. I watched some football. Before I knew it the weekend was over.

With a new week upon us and me probably out of the office most of the time, I was ready to go. My coworkers were having a Monday but I wasn’t having any of that. The morning wasn’t very busy but the after noon flew right on by. I asked an important question to my fellow staff senate Friday and we had a meeting Monday where I wished it had been addressed but it was not. I was unable to attend the meeting. Apparently the officers think they can make changed behind closed doors without the approval or votes of the other members. They decided to do away with online meeting and make it all physical attendance. I think this is total BS because not all of us are able to just pack up and attend what is generally a pointless meeting. How did they up and make that decision without anyone else’s say?

Tuesday some assface dumped 20 cats on the campus. In carriers. Out in the cold. The were conveniently in a location without cameras, which also brings a little questions. I drove by and saw the carriers and it had to be at least $300 worth. Crazy stuff. The week was kind of weird. Weird things like that.

I was touched this week that Teegan confided in me about a dance he was going to over the weekend, Saturday. I said something to Yvette about him not being with us Saturday night and she had no idea. He only told me. I was excited for him and asked if he needed his suit to go to the dry cleaner. It was last worn at his mother’s and my wedding. It was a pretty cool thing that he told me before anyone e else. Love the kid.

Good lord the campus was a cesspool of sickness. The employees are dropping like flies. Students are unable to attend classes. Empty desk and closed offices. It’s the flue, COVID & strep. A bad trio. I saw the lines at the pharmacies and the empty grocery stores. They even went as far as opening up the drive through tastings again, which were only last open during the pandemic. I hate so many people sick. Myself and the family have seemed to dodge the bullet. I am still getting over the gunk that I have had for a bout a month now so you bet I have been getting nasty looks from people when I have a runny nose and I cough. I can only assure them that the antibiotics did the job so many times. It takes me forever to kick the symptoms. Oh well.

Friday was sort of nice. It warmed up nicely. I had time to go stomping through my old grounds on campus. I saw an old friend, Moose. He was a young lad when I started working 13 yeas ago and now he is 17. The kids were cleaning out his tank when I stopped by to saw hello. The turtle was a little happy with that. I found my favorite section of the campus library and somehow located on of my favorite books on the subject of geological catastrophe. It was a mellow Friday. The week went by in a blur. It’s amazing how quick a busy week ends up being. We had a good week. Lots of crazy work and good times.

That night we watch The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. What a hell of a movie. I had seen it years ago and forgot how good it was. Great acting, story and setting. What a movie by one of my favorite directors, David Fincher. I love Danial Craig . I can’t believe the movie is 14 years old now. Christ. It came out in December 2011. The year I started working on campus. I feel so old. That was only yesterday. Boy has my life changed a lot in those years.

Happy Friday!!

Jalapeño

Chorizo potato hash with a sunny side egg.

BBG pork country ribs, jalapeño sausage, spicy slaw and baked beans.

Grilled sausage, hash browns and scrambled chest eggs.

Orzo alla vodka w/chicken. A vodka sauce I made with some basil and spinach. It was a fun experiment. I’ve never made my own vodka sauce and I really wasn’t sure how it should taste. Good start. Everyone seemed to like it. The pasta was sure different.

Chicken Alfredo lasagna rolls w/ green beans and a spinach salad.

Yvette made some BBQ pulled pork stuffed potato’s and I made a jalapeño cream corn. Yummy meal.

Pizza and wing night. I made a supreme and a Hawaiian pizza and baked some wings. All good.

Okinawa taco rice. A dish that shows two cultures can come together and create great things.

Chicken thigh bulgolgi noodles w/ kimchi & pot stickers.

Saturday was kind of a lazy morning. We had a late start and I made some breakfast. Once all showered and dressed Yvette and I made a venture to the store. It was a circus. Damn all the people preparing for the cold, the football games and the long weekend.

The night was football and burgers. I prepared some meat and took orders. At first it was simply Yvette and I. We had some mushroom swiss bourbon bacon burgers. The Chiefs and the Texans. I was torn. I like both teams but I had to go for my state boys, The Texans. They lost. The next game was The Commanders vs the Lions. Damn good game. Yvette and I had a little tequila and treated it like a date night while the kids were gone.

Davids Lynch passed away. One of my all time favorite film artist and directors. The man that made weird films. Great weird films. Dark weird films with love. So much love. Lost Hightways, Blue Velvet, and so much more. Twin Peaks might be his Opus. It makes me was a good pie. Christ, I loved this guys work. I was uttering sad., I decided to look up some obscure work of his and I started watching it. RIP.

Sunday might have been the laziest day that I’ve had in a long time, and it was nice. I woke up with a raspy ass voice. Damn that wind and dirt on Friday. I was getting over all my aliments. Anywho, we slept in and made a late breakfast. I grilled some e burgers, grilled in the bitter cold. We put some football on and we relaxed some more. At some point I decided to go get some more mucus meds for my nose and throat. I bought a little more than that. Essentials. I came home for a bit and watched a little more football before running off to visit with my mother. I need to have a Sunday lunch with her soon, it’s been a little while.

I guess this free trail to YouTube TV was worth the 6 NFL games that we were able to watch from the comfort of our couch. I really enjoyed the LA Rams the two games in which I watch. These Play off games have been pretty amazing, sans ref calls. The refs can eat crow. I mean, I really wanted the Texans to win against the Chiefs even though I had been going for the Chiefs all year, but the Chiefs won after some bullshit calls by the refs or lack of calls. That’s been a problem all damn season. Bastards.

National Popcorn Day!! I was told to find a big container that we could eat out of and go to one of the local movie theater and they would give me a good price for popcorn. I honestly wasn’t too excited about this idea because it made no sense and I sure felt silly walking into the place with a bucket to be filled with popcorn. Was this a joke? I found a bucket and I dragged my happy ass to the moves. I was not alone. I would say at least 100 people were there while I was just for popcorn. The guy I was standing next to was in the same shoes I was in. He was trying to get out of it and told his wife that he had no containers that he felt were big enough that he felt safe eating out of. His wife went to the fridge and emptied out a drawer and cleaned it up for him and handed it to him and told him to get pop corn.The entire thing was a trip. Lots of people with trick or treat buckets and just random BS to gather popcorn. I really wonder what the size limit was. Walking out with my full bucket I had a smile on my face. I passed 3 young ladies walking in with very similar buckets as mine and I just gave them a thumbs up. I felt like I was a part of something specials.

Monday was MLK Day so we didn’t have work. We were better off because it was damn cold. Lower 20s when I woke up at 8. Everyone in the house was staying cozy in bed so I got up and made some biscuits and hatch chili sausage gravy. A nice warm meal for a cold cold morning. I made an eBay sale. I was originally planning on going to a funeral for a coworker that passed away but decided against it. The cold played a big part in that decision but so did my wellness factor. I was stuffy and had a slight cough. No reason to be that guy at the funeral.

We didn’t want to venture out into the cold but eventually we had to. We made a trip to Sam’s for some essentials. Not really but sort of really. We also picked up a pizza while there for a late lunch. That done I made a quick trip to the grocery store and went to my mothers to visit a little while before coming home and making some curry which I wasn’t sure anyone would eat but Yvette and I. Teegan did eat some. We stayed warm the rest of the night and watch them National Championship college football game between Ohio State and Notre Dame. The Game looked in favor of the Buckeyes but The Irish came back and made it a hell of a game. The type of game I like to see. I would call this could fucking weekend a success.

So it seems the fat orange imbecile is once again President of the United States. This rich orange bigot racist asshole that has nothing but ignorance and hate in his heart. This man unfit to trim his own fucking toenails let alone wipe his own ass has somehow been elected to run a power house country. More likely to destroy a country. His fat ass managed to bring us many steps backwards during his first term. Boy am I excited to see where he brings us next. This guy spews nothing but garbage and hate. The best part is that somehow, like the biblical Satan, he has tricked the mass into thinking he is Gods vessel. I suppose the people never watched any of the Omen movies? I’m sorry. I have been raised in a church/god loving family and I see nothing but evil and hatred when I look at Trump. How anyone can think he has anything to do with the lord, I must ask, what is it you see? Think of what the Bible preaches and compare it to what this man says and what he stands for. For those working class people that think he even knows a damn thing about you, just remember this man has put our lively hood in the hands of some of the most detached wealthy people in the world. People that view you as nothing but insects. You are disposable if it means earning a dime. This is the man that you voted for. Utter trash. Trash. An emaressment to the office of president. If there is a judgment when we reach the afterlife this man will no be passing through the pearly gates. This man will be cast down into the abysmal fires of hell. He will reside in Judecca, the ninth circle of hell, reserved for those that have committed utter treachery and betrayal against loved ones, friends and country. I hope that he enjoyed his finally audience in Satan himself. Fuck this man.

I had to let that rant out. I don’t like politicians in general but I absolutely don’t like that man. Gormless freak.

Wednesday. Hump day, so quick on a short week. It was slow and cold and our morning meeting was late and pointless. I was stuck in the office and I had very little to do. Lunch rolled around and I frilled Yvette a Sam’s hotdog and I made some spicy ramen noodles with chicken and snap peas. The rest of the say was just as exciting if not maybe even more so. I wanted to pull my hair out I was so happy to be there. At least the afternoon was shorter. After work it was just running to the store for our dinner while Yvette cooked. We watched some Yellowjackets. It was a quiet evening. It was nice ending to a quiet day.

Thursday. Heck.The mornings this week were brutal. I actually had thermals on, both bottoms and tops, every day. Mostly an uneventful day. What did I do at work? NOTHING! It was terrible. After work I went to the groceries and I went to my mom’s. I cooked a meal for the family and it was a hit. Yvette and I watched a show and we crashed. Friday was basically more of the same, which was BS. I hate long short weeks. At least we had fun and made a warm pretty fire.

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

Jalapeño

Breakfast pizza. Bacon, egg and cheese with a country gravy sauce.

Mushroom Swiss bourbon burgers.

French toast and sausage.

Barbacoa bake with Spanish rice.

Biscuits & gravy w/ a sunny side egg. I added sausage and hatch chilis to the gravy.

Green chicken Thai curry with bamboo shoots, sugar snap peas, zucchini, red bell peppers, basil and sticky rice.

Tuesday Yvette made some yummy Chicken sausage gumbo. I started eating before I was able to take a picture. Real bummer because it was really damn good.

Yvette made chicken tetrazzini with some side salad.

Steak with a rotini pasta and a Parmesan garlic sauce that I made. Steamed broccoli on the side.

Hibachi steak & shrimp w/ veggies and sushi rice.

Saturday was a lazy day. We slept in. One major reason fro that is Tee and I stayed up until after 2 watching a movie. A great movie. Ferrari vs Ford. Great cast and just great script. I was happy my first viewing was with him. Anyways, I slept in. I finally woke up and made some brunch for us and I ran off to the post office and shipped off some eBay. I needed to make some money. After that I went bake home and Yvette and I got the kids some lunch. Late lunch. After that we ran some errands and eventually came back home and made some epic dinner. Noah and Nadia came over and had dinner as well. I was a nice evening., We babysat. I like these nights.

Lola is 20!!! Happy birthday! Sunday was the birthday. We were hosting and this was the first time I had ever had more than 6 people at the house let alone the 15 or so we were suppose to have. I was anxious. Probably a lot more than I was letting on. I had been thinking about it all week along. I hate that I do that. The day was finally here and I felt sick with fear. We had a lot of prep to do and It took time. Cleaning for a party is work. Well we got the place looking good and people began to arrive.

The party was a hit. The food was great, people had fun. I watched some football with her dad. IT was mostly just family and I was happy to finally have them at the house. I just never had a guest and I always freak out about it but I always have fun. It just takes me a while to relax. I’m just not that person. I was happy for Lola. I think she had a good birthday. A birthday worth having and I’m glad she wanted it at our house.

Jalapeño o

Breakfast Nachos. Chorizo, egg, peppers and onion topped with cheese and a verde sauce,

Surfs & Turf chimichurri with a loaded baked potato,

Creamy cheesy hamburger potato soup.

Yvette made shrimp Po Boy.

Yvette made her lasagna. It’s a real treat.

Chicken cheese enchilada casserole.

Steak fajita bowl.