CATCHIN' UP

Well, Father's Day came and went.  The weekend was great!  It started Friday with lunch at the Westbank NOFS with H2 (Happy Birthday to you!!) and Ian, followed by a viewing of Green Lantern.  Lunch was awesome, the movie not so much.  If you haven't seen it, wait for the DVD.  It's not that it was bad, it just wasn't as good as some of the other comic-book venue films have been.


Saturday was dinner with KenEllie at China Doll, followed by Bridesmaids.  If you haven't seen Bridesmaids yet, do so at your first opportunity. It was hilarious!!  Not for kids, though!

On Sunday we went to Mass with DLG and the kids.  Then off to Centro Americano restaurant for lunch. Good food, great company!!

The weekend ended with me going to Gulfport, MS on the Valk.  I spent Sunday night in the Navy Lodge at the Seabee Center, then attended the Experienced Rider Course on Monday.  After completing (successfully, I might add) the motorcycle safety course I returned to NOLA on Monday afternoon.


Last weekend I finally got my act together and hooked up Linda's flatscreen TV in the front room by the treadmill.  After she tried it out the first time I asked her what she watched.  She replied, "Cake Boss".  Is that like the rabbit used to encourage the greyhounds at the racetrack? 

This Friday Linda and I are heading to San Antonio and Del Rio and Acuña for the 4th of July weekend.  We're going to spend a couple of days in SA with family, down from New York and Dallas. We've never been to the San Antonio Riverwalk, or to the Alamo.  It should be a blast! A possible added bonus would be Texas de Brazil (perhaps my favorite restaurant of all time!!) for our anniversary dinner together. Then it's on to Del Rio and from there we hope to spend at least one day in Acuña for some shopping and sightseeing.  And maybe a couple of cervezas, too!!

Happy 4th of July to all!!!

XOOM, XOOM, XOOM

This is my first blog post using the Xoom tablet.  Ooh!! Ooh!! Big J, I'm lovin' it. I just wish I could have gotten 3G wtih Sprint. iPad uses AT&T, and Xoom uses Verizon.  I don't know why no one uses Sprint!

Watching the weather is not encouraging (except where riding is concerned).  It just one hot day after another!!  Mid-90s day after day.  Little or no rain most days makes a ride in to work absolutely beautiful and the ride home hot, hot, HOT!!

Looking forward to Father's Day.  Looks like a family gathering at Centro Americana Restaurant is in the offing.  All I can say is, "AWESOME"!!

And, oh, when did we move to the wild, wild West?  It seems that the folks in River Ridge are having a coyote problem... the 4-legged kind!  Packs of the critters are attacking and killing cats in the community.  I imagine they've been driven out of the wild by the flooding of the Atchafalya basin. Thank heavens the Army Corps is beginning to close the spillways.

Tomorrow being hump day, I guess I'd better call it a day and get some beauty sleep so I can attack the rest of the week with some gusto.

Wishing everyone a good evening, and a great day tomorrow.

WHY DON'T I EVER LEARN?

You'd think after watching (and waiting... waiting... waiting) season after season of Sopranos, then True Blood, and now Game of Thrones that I would learn.  I get hooked, I can't wait for the next episode, then all too soon the season ends!  Watching as GoT heated up last night, then a preview of the season FINALE!!!  Argh!!

Did I mention my second career as a student?  I've managed to stretch what should be a 4 year (max) program into 10+ years trying to get my Masters.  Theoretically the course I'm currently enrolled in (Faith and Science) is the last one I need to fulfill the course requirements.  I still need to take the comprehensive exams in the 4 areas, so it looks like next May should (it had better!!) wrap it up!

Summer came early to NOLA this year with record temperatures in April and May, almost no rain to speak of until last week.  We've finally settled into the summer routine of scattered afternoon showers and thunderstorms that are so common this time of year.  Still, we're looking at highs in the upper 90s for the next several days.

Driving by the Lakefront everyday going to work is a treat.  It is always a beautiful drive, but with the lake being a few feet higher than normal because of the spillway being opened it is even more striking.

It's hard to believe that almost 6 years have passed since Katrina.  So much has happened and yet so much remains to be done.  We still have hundreds of abandoned or partially restored homes in the city.  Businesses and services are still in the process of returning to many areas.  It's a long, sometimes painful process, one that so many more communities are facing because of the flooding of the Mississippi river and some of its tributaries.

Finally, if you are an X-Men fan and haven't seen X-Men: First Class, you're missing what may be the best movie out of all the X-Men movies.  If you do go see it, watch for some interesting cameos!!

Take care and God bless!!!