Just A Bit Overdue
I Can't Even Blame The Booze...
I've been meaning to post an update on the mini-road trip ever since I got back to Houston Saturday night, but one thing after another delayed me. Mostly laziness, if ya gotta have the unvarnished truth.
It went well, as I expected. A 4:15 a.m. departure time put me at the Airport Holiday Inn in San Antone right at 7:30, since I didn't have to stop for anything. Kind of a wet, foggy trip out there. There were three rollover accidents on the way. Probably people dozing off, or just driving too damn fast on wet roads. One involving a pickup truck outside of Luling had every state trooper and county mountie in a 100 mile radius on the scene. If there was ever a time to pull a heist at the truck stop down the road, that was it.
I got to the correct hotel this time. We did this layover visit thing about a year ago, and I went to the wrong Holiday Inn. Express, Select, who can tell the difference! It doesn't help that they are literally next door to each other.
Flygirl was already up and about, and surprised me with unexpected gifties! A book on economics that I've heard great things about, and a bottle of scotch! Wooohooo! Bonus!
Flygirl was jonesing for some La Madeleine, so we ventured up San Pedro Ave halfway to New Braunfels before we finally found the one we were looking for. La Madeleine was one of our college hangouts, since we could buy a cup of coffee or glass of iced tea, then sit for hours scarfing up the free bread, butter and jam. They serve the butter & jam in these little white ramekins, and by the time we left (just before they threw us out) the stacks of those cups were almost a foot high. Yeah, we were pretty obnoxious about it! This go-round, we only managed to empty 7 or 8 of them. The Frog bastards swapped the old strawberry jam for a berry/rhubarb mix that ooked me out a little.
They still serve a tasty dessert, though!
On the way back, we spied a sign for a seafood shop that had to have one of the Worst. Names. Ever. Get this... Barnacle Bill's Seafood. WTF?? Name a restaurant after one of the foulest faux sea shanties ever sung? Who had that bright idea?
Let's see if I can dredge up a verse or two of 'Barnacle Bill The Sailor'.... I had to listen to the lead singer of the bluegrass band I roadied for torture us with it for days on end.
(In a sweet girl's tone)
What's that running down my leg?
What's that running down my leg?
What's that running down my leg?
Asked the fair young maiden!
(In a crusty pirate's tone)
That's the shot that missed yer twat!
Said Barnacle Bill The Sailor!
That's the shot that missed yer twat!
Said Barnacle Bill The Sailor!
Believe it or not, that's one of the nicer verses... It can go on for hours without repeating if you're creative enough.
After heading back to the hotel to get Flygirl back in her flying duds and on her airport shuttle, we chatted for a bit longer, then I left to go up to San Marcos. I-35 was populated by the usual crowd of over-medicated senior citizens driving 32' motor homes, Ritalin-stoked college kids in Daddy's Beemer, and NAFTA-approved Central American truck drivers with rattletrap semis and a tenuous grasp on the English language and local road rules. Big Fun!
Little Sammy's cute as ever. He's 8 months old today, btw. He's crawling everywhere, and was most fascinated by my beard. Stares at it as if possessed. I'm the only one he's in contact with that has one, so it's a source of wonderment.
He can pull himself upright if there's a table to hang onto. Also, you have to pull his socks off so he can get traction on the wooden floor. That's OK with Sammy. He'll just jam that sock into his mouth and chew on it.
We were giving him Cheerios to eat, but the dogs didn't want to be left out.
Every time Sammy would lean over to one side or the other, either Ashley (rat terrier) or Ellie (mutt) would dart in and slurp a Cheerio or two off the table. They're gonna get fat eating all Sammy's dropped food!
I stayed there for a few hours, but needed to get back before it got too late. I dropped in on a really cool old country market called The Bon Ton, where they specialize in meats. I picked up a pound of their chunk-style beef jerky, and it was not only inexpensive at $14.95/lb (for jerky, anyway) but absolutely fantastic as well.
I detoured through Smithville, and lucked out by guessing the right exit that would lead me straight here:
Got my Slurpee, and even a nice fancy cup for my next refill!
It's hard to see in the pic, but there's a battery gizmo in the base, and the whole cup lights up and flickers in different colors. Kinda ridiculous, but at $2.99, I just couldn't say no!
Made it back around 8 pm, so about 11 hours in the car all told. I'm sure feeling it today!
Next road trip, up to Dallas again after Xmas for some parties and get-togethers. The blinky Slurpee cup is comin' to a town near you!
I've been meaning to post an update on the mini-road trip ever since I got back to Houston Saturday night, but one thing after another delayed me. Mostly laziness, if ya gotta have the unvarnished truth.
It went well, as I expected. A 4:15 a.m. departure time put me at the Airport Holiday Inn in San Antone right at 7:30, since I didn't have to stop for anything. Kind of a wet, foggy trip out there. There were three rollover accidents on the way. Probably people dozing off, or just driving too damn fast on wet roads. One involving a pickup truck outside of Luling had every state trooper and county mountie in a 100 mile radius on the scene. If there was ever a time to pull a heist at the truck stop down the road, that was it.
I got to the correct hotel this time. We did this layover visit thing about a year ago, and I went to the wrong Holiday Inn. Express, Select, who can tell the difference! It doesn't help that they are literally next door to each other.
Flygirl was already up and about, and surprised me with unexpected gifties! A book on economics that I've heard great things about, and a bottle of scotch! Wooohooo! Bonus!
Flygirl was jonesing for some La Madeleine, so we ventured up San Pedro Ave halfway to New Braunfels before we finally found the one we were looking for. La Madeleine was one of our college hangouts, since we could buy a cup of coffee or glass of iced tea, then sit for hours scarfing up the free bread, butter and jam. They serve the butter & jam in these little white ramekins, and by the time we left (just before they threw us out) the stacks of those cups were almost a foot high. Yeah, we were pretty obnoxious about it! This go-round, we only managed to empty 7 or 8 of them. The Frog bastards swapped the old strawberry jam for a berry/rhubarb mix that ooked me out a little.
They still serve a tasty dessert, though!
On the way back, we spied a sign for a seafood shop that had to have one of the Worst. Names. Ever. Get this... Barnacle Bill's Seafood. WTF?? Name a restaurant after one of the foulest faux sea shanties ever sung? Who had that bright idea?
Let's see if I can dredge up a verse or two of 'Barnacle Bill The Sailor'.... I had to listen to the lead singer of the bluegrass band I roadied for torture us with it for days on end.
(In a sweet girl's tone)
What's that running down my leg?
What's that running down my leg?
What's that running down my leg?
Asked the fair young maiden!
(In a crusty pirate's tone)
That's the shot that missed yer twat!
Said Barnacle Bill The Sailor!
That's the shot that missed yer twat!
Said Barnacle Bill The Sailor!
Believe it or not, that's one of the nicer verses... It can go on for hours without repeating if you're creative enough.
After heading back to the hotel to get Flygirl back in her flying duds and on her airport shuttle, we chatted for a bit longer, then I left to go up to San Marcos. I-35 was populated by the usual crowd of over-medicated senior citizens driving 32' motor homes, Ritalin-stoked college kids in Daddy's Beemer, and NAFTA-approved Central American truck drivers with rattletrap semis and a tenuous grasp on the English language and local road rules. Big Fun!
Little Sammy's cute as ever. He's 8 months old today, btw. He's crawling everywhere, and was most fascinated by my beard. Stares at it as if possessed. I'm the only one he's in contact with that has one, so it's a source of wonderment.
He can pull himself upright if there's a table to hang onto. Also, you have to pull his socks off so he can get traction on the wooden floor. That's OK with Sammy. He'll just jam that sock into his mouth and chew on it.
We were giving him Cheerios to eat, but the dogs didn't want to be left out.
Every time Sammy would lean over to one side or the other, either Ashley (rat terrier) or Ellie (mutt) would dart in and slurp a Cheerio or two off the table. They're gonna get fat eating all Sammy's dropped food!
I stayed there for a few hours, but needed to get back before it got too late. I dropped in on a really cool old country market called The Bon Ton, where they specialize in meats. I picked up a pound of their chunk-style beef jerky, and it was not only inexpensive at $14.95/lb (for jerky, anyway) but absolutely fantastic as well.
I detoured through Smithville, and lucked out by guessing the right exit that would lead me straight here:
Got my Slurpee, and even a nice fancy cup for my next refill!
It's hard to see in the pic, but there's a battery gizmo in the base, and the whole cup lights up and flickers in different colors. Kinda ridiculous, but at $2.99, I just couldn't say no!
Made it back around 8 pm, so about 11 hours in the car all told. I'm sure feeling it today!
Next road trip, up to Dallas again after Xmas for some parties and get-togethers. The blinky Slurpee cup is comin' to a town near you!
posted by El Capitan | 12:08 PM
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