Virginia Visit

A couple of weeks ago now I visited Stacy and her family in Virginia. Janell had gone out this past January. We don't take these extended trips together much right now because of her mother's health. That's another tale.

This visit was, as usual, eventful. The grandchildren exhibit such changes from month to month, and we get to take it all in. This visit, I flew into the Charlottesville airport. As I entered the main terminal near baggage claim, I saw Stacy and Hutch sitting on a bench. Hutch got down and ran over to greet me, which was really a neat, first time experience. It was marred a tad by the fact that, at his height, there are a lot of legs to negotiate and it's easy to lose one's bearings. No hill for a stepper, though.

Upon arriving at their house, and my first face-to-face encounter with Elsa in several months, it was apparent that I would have to win her over. No spontaneous smiles for this relative stranger. After about a day and a half, we became pretty tight, and grins abounded. We had the opportunity to spend a lot of time together, and it was most enjoyable. I was a bit pouty when we went out to eat breakfast one day and Elsa flashed a smile at the server whom she had never seen before in her life.

Hutch is still a boy with a mission in life, which keeps him busy. His interest in all things mechanical is quite amusing. From airplanes to lawn mowers, it's all to be enjoyed.

We were able to work in a visit to Montecello, and a great time was had by all. I'm sure most of the people in our tour group were skeptical when we showed up with a toddler and a baby. But the kids enjoyed the trip through the house (translated to adultspeak: they were quiet). Hutch mainly liked riding the bus from the visitor center to the house and back. Elsa likes to people watch.

This was kind of a bittersweet visit because the Jehles will be moving to Missoula, Montana this summer. Alex has completed his fellowship and has a position with a cardiology group there. We have enjoyed visiting them in Virginia as it is a beautiful area rich in history. However, we will certainly look forward to touring about Montana as well. It's sort of a full circle kind of thing since I spent the bulk of my childhood years in Dillon, MT, about 100 or so miles from Missoula.

My flight home from Charlottesville was uneventful, which is the best kind. There was one thing that gave me something on which to reflect. My connecting flight was in Atlanta. The plane's cabin was very warm during the time on the ground. As the plane lifted off the runway, everyone started adjusting the vents as cool air began to flow. A flight attendant announced over the PA system that we should trim back on these so the plane could reach altitude faster. I've never heard that before. I know my little truck is somewhat underpowered when I have to go up steep inclines, but I guess I would have thought the plane manufacturer would have a better power to weight ratio than a '97 Ford Ranger.

Rocketman

Okay, you have to admit that we haven't overdone anything to do with grandchildren. But, during my recent visit, I recorded this little video clip of Hutch on his three-wheeled scooter. The little guy enjoys swooshing down the neighbor's driveway.

Tour de Houston

This all started about six weeks ago when I decided I needed to get serious about riding my bicycle for more exercise. In addition, my rheumatologist said biking was good for strengthing the muscles that surround the knee, lessening the pain I have from time to time.

As if it were fate, I heard about the Tour de Houston bike ride which benefits the Houston park system. They had ride lengths of 20, 40, and 70 miles. Being that I have what's now called a "lifestyle" bicycle, which is really a "comfortable-bike-for-older-people-who-don't-look-good-in-Spandex", and not a real fanatic, I opted for the 20-mile tour. I figured I could do this since I had ridden 16 miles once, although I felt like I had been sitting on the narrow side of a 2x4 after finishing it. Having made the decision and paying my money, I was off to my version of training.

I did ride more and had three 15-mile rides along with some shorter ones, so I was feeling pumped. I even bought some cargo shorts with a padded insert for more comfort when riding. With weather and other obligations, I couldn't do as much as I had hoped, but I did more than I had in several months.

Janell and I went into Houston on Friday before the race to pick up the registration packet. Bribing her with sushi for lunch always works.

Sunday morning, at 5:00 am, I got up and was on the road to Houston by 5:30. There was lots of fog and that didn't make for a leisurely drive. I found a free parking spot and was unloading my bike by 6:45-ish. The ride started off in downtown Houston and went through various parts of town. My ride was to go through some of the older sections, ones I really had never seen. Anyway, it was pretty neat riding over to the staging area. No real traffic, lots of folks on bicycles, and a really nice venue. The picture above is of the 40 and 70 mile riders lined up for their respective starts. There was something like 2,000 people doing this.


One thing I've felt is that there is no cycling accessory that makes you look cool. However, when you are in a group of this magnitude, everyone looks goofy so it doesn't matter. I felt relatively normal with my helmet and glasses-mounted rear view mirror.

The ride began at 7:15 for the 70 mile folks, and my group set off at 8:00 am. We were much smaller than the others, with several families, groups of friends, and we individuals who couldn't talk anyone else into this. Anyway, off we went, wobbling at slow speeds until everyone could spread out across the width of the street and avoid each other.

The first thing that impressed me was that the intersections were controlled by the Houston Police Department, and we could go along without stopping or worrying about traffic. With this many cyclists, the safety in numbers maxim was very true. The second thing I noted was that having a lot of gears is a good thing when you have to go up overpasses in a headwind and you are getting tired. Very helpful.


The ride itself was very enjoyable. I liked being with all those folks even though I didn't know a single person. The weather was nice, and seeing some of the old, majestic houses from Houston's early days was interesting. While it was stressed that this was a ride, not a race, I was only determined that no eight year old was going to make it back before I did. I managed to keep a respectable speed for the whole tour. At one point, a group of about ten guys blew by us and disappeared into the distance. Showoffs.


It took me an 1-1/2 hours to ride the 20 miles, not including a 15 minute rest stop. No aches or pains. There was free food and goodies, too. After eating something and resting for a while, I packed up and drove home. Overall, this was enough fun to try some more rides. There's lots around, and next year maybe I'll try for something more. We'll see.

Hamburgers and Beer, anyone?

Among the casualties from hurricane Ike was Kitty's Purple Cow, a grill and bar in Surfside. Their food is a heart attack on a platter. Anyway, after the storm and the havoc it wreaked on the restaurant, Kitty had decided to give it up and move back to Wisconsin. Apparently, by her own admission, this was a bad idea after winter set in. She moved back to Surfside and rebuilt her place. The Grand Opening was today at noon, and since we were working down there today, we decided to eat lunch at Kitty's. We and about 100 other folks. However, the food was free and pretty good. I must admit that I felt somewhat guilty because I had only been there one other time in my life. We used to favor Jeff's on the Jetties until it closed down a couple of years ago. It has it's own unique story (Jeff killed his roommate and was sent to prison. A nephew ran it until it had to close). Anyway, you can't miss the purple building near the highway, and it is interesting. I personally liked the grand opening sign propped up by a discarded toilet. Whatever works. I learned today that as well as Kitty's, another popular place for the resident Surfsiders is the Jetty Shack. I didn't know that even existed. Another thing to try, maybe. If any of you non-residents get down this way and want some real local color, I think we can fix you up.

The Americorps Volunteers

In January, a group of Americorps volunteers arrived in Brazoria County to assist in the ongoing recovery efforts from hurricane Ike. They focused their efforts on locating people who needed help as well as participating in cleanup and repair. They were an energetic group of young people. While here, they stayed in a house supplied by the Presbyterian Church of Freeport, TX.

Having been participating in some of the Ike recovery work, I was privileged to work with these volunteers on several occasions. They were most enthusiastic, wanting to do what needed to be done. I was impressed by their involvement and desire. They are idealistic, I'm sure, but that is definitely not a bad thing. In the past few years, it has become evident that we have, in this country, a lot of young people who feel the need to give something of themselves to others. These Americorps volunteers are an example of that ethic. If any of you are aware of them in your area, please support them. They are good young people doing good things.

Last Wednesday, they had a goodbye party for those people in the community with whom they had worked. It was well attended and enjoyed by all. I felt honored to be invited.

As a sidenote, there are about 10,000 college students who are scheduled to work in Galveston over their Spring breaks. We will have many here locally as well. I think that is incredible. God works in wondrous ways, even though we may not see or feel it.

Flix For Young Viewers

When I got to the mulch site in LJ today to unload some yard waste, the site was buzzing with activity. They were busy grinding up the large chunks in a giant mulcher. I shot these clips with my cell phone, so they aren't the best. However, certain two year olds will find them interesting.

The Predators

A friend of ours lives on the edge of town where there are lots of woods and lakes. He has been trapping feral hogs and butchering some. He had been leaving some of the bones, etc. out overnight and they were disappearing. A neighbor of his had all the camera equipment to set up surveillance of the front yard.

What you see in this picture taken after sunset are two Red Wolves. I didn't know anything like that existed here, but they used to be numerous. They apparently died out a number of years ago and have not been sighted often. The man who got these pictures, a retired forestry service supervisor, said some may have inbred with coyotes, but he felt these looked like the real deal.

The one is kind of neat. Notice the opossum; it doesn't look like it's planning on giving any ground. Don't know what happened to it. They estimated these wolves are around 60-70 lbs., so about the size of a normal Labrador Retreiver.