2004 Tahoe - Sold

Today was the last day of owning the 2004 white Chevrolet Tahoe Z71 aka "Great White".

Great White was purchased over eBay in February 2005 and sold today July 30, 2009. I calculated the depreciation cost of ownership as $297/month, which was pretty good. There were very few problems with it. I attribute part of that to the purchase of the extended warranty to 100K miles. Nothing like insurance to make sure that no problems arise.

Interestingly I calcuated the ownership cost of the previous owner "Doug" as $750/month. So buying quality used is the way to go.

In a great side note, I am driving a 2009 Chev Tahoe now. Our friend Oscar offered it to drive while our new Chev. Equinox comes in (likely tomorrow). This 2009 Tahoe is very similar - and nicely updated. I like it a lot

I would highly recommend purchasing a car off eBay. This one only had 25,000 miles on it when I got it and was like new. So it was easy to purchase sight unseen.

Cool Weekend

It was cool in the respect that I tried to stay inside during the extreme heat. I was so desperate to stay out of the heat that I went to the office on Saturday. I told myself I was there to do a job, not to read email or mail, or surf the net. So it was amazing how I got everything I wanted done in an hour! :)

I hit the library later for some reading material and enjoyed the book on Saturday afternoon. In the evening I went to my friend Todd's wedding. It was at his hacienda and it was a great time. The backyard was beautifully decorated and there was a makeshift chapel in the backyard. Flowers were floating in the pool. Rose petals on the steps. Sun setting on cue. Bride Elena looking radiant in cream colored strapless dress with...great red shoes. Think Elvis Costello - "Angels wants to wear my red shoes".

They had gotten married April 21 in a civil ceremony so this was a chance to improve. This time the family and friends were there. Rings, cake, sacrament of marriage, in English and Spanish. I enjoyed it a lot. Food was great and Todd was quite pleased we were there. Even his mother asked if I was going to conduct the ceremony. That sounded really good.... Just wait a few years and I'll be available for weddings.

Today we played in the church band. There were only 3 guitarists this time and I thought I played particularly well on the electric. In the afternoon, continuing to beat the heat, we saw the movie "The Ugly Truth" which was a 2 star movie but still OK. Gerard Butler did a good job. We then went for dinner at BJ's Brewhouse.

Tomorrow Sarah and I are going for her learner's permit at 2:00 p.m. I have all the papers ready. I guess I got mine right after the class in July 1980. I recall my stats were 5 foot 10 inches and 120 pounds. A strong gust might have blown me away.

Week Closing Down

Its been a tough week for motivation. Between the travel and the heat, I have had some trouble focusing. It hasn't helped that my exercising has been nil. But I plan to remedy that tomorrow with a 7:00 a.m. run. My running partner told me of plans to run both the San Antonio and Austin full 26.2 marathons so I'll get that training going.

The Houston Marathon sold out in 2 days. Fortunately I am in. So I'll be running then on my mother's birthday January 17, 2010.

Planning to see the movie Ugly Truth this weekend. Plus Todd and Elena who got married April 21 are have another ceremony/reception on Saturday night. Should be a good time. Susan can wear her new ring which she was very surprised about and enjoyed a lot.

Austin Again

I went to Austin for lunch on Wednesday. Then I came home.

For the full story, I left to go Tuesday to Kingville where Rick, Zach and Olivia were visiting. So I had the couch instead of my usual room. I brought both guitars for Zach and me to play and that was a highlight. He's a good player.

I left for Austin at 0615 and made it there 4 hours later. After conducting some business with Jay my jeweler, we had lunch with Mr. Joe Long, noted local philanthropist. The Long Performing Arts Center in Austin is named after him and his wife. He was formerly business partners with an old friend so it was a pleasure to meet him. We had a great lunch at Louie's 106 where the paella was excellent. I look forward to returning.

After I went to the Lions Municipal golf course where I got in 12 holes before the time and heat took its toll. I still had a 4 hour drive back to Kingsville. Muny as it is called, is under attack. The UT System owns the land (Always has - leased to City of Austin) and now they want it back after 80 years. So the "Save Muny" coalition has formed. I agree that Muny should remain a golf course. Its a real benefit to the city and the university and great green space. Plus it's very historic. So I plan on writing a letter of support to the Board of Regents. Highlight of the game: chipped in for birdie 4 on number 8. Also enjoyed seeing what has changed and what has not in the past 30 years. I played many a round there.

I hit Austin traffic heading south right at 5 so I went east toward 183 and took it south to the new toll road TX 45 which went west to I-35. The toll road was interested - no toll booths. My friend Bill said they take a picture and mail you a bill.

I stopped in New Braunfels at Cooper's BBQ, originally out of Llano. It is the "Best BBQ in Texas" according to some polls. It reminded me of Kreutz Market in Lockhart, also "Best BBQ in Texas" . As you can expect, best is a relative term. Both places were huge, could seat hundreds, had large open pits and sold the meat by the pound. I tried the Chicken which was just OK. The peach cobbler however could certainly be the best in Texas. Excellent.

My opinion as to Best BBQ in Texas? Goode Company in Houston. Great selection of meats, including duck. Ribs and brisket top notch. Terrific jalapeno bread and pecan pie. Inside and outside seating.

Best BBQ atmosphere? Rudy's in New Braunfels. Always a good crowd. Friendly staff. I'll go there next time.

Monday July 20

Last week was a tough one. I finally realized I think I was jet lagged from the west/east travel home from Tucson. I did enjoy getting up at 0600 out there when the sun was up, but that meant waking up at 0400 back home for several days.

Wednesday we got access to the Lakeshore house in the estate I'm working on. It was pretty messy inside and out. So I decided that I would spearhead getting it whipped into shape. So Saturday, Jordan from the office and I along with Ralph and his son and the Adames spend most of the day cleaning out the junk inside, sweeping up, taking old cheap furniture out to the curb, cutting the grass, killing wasps, cutting cables to nowhere to make the place look better. It worked.

Today I was ready to hit the ground running with the office work I couldn't seem to do last week. I made good progress on various liens and also my new bankruptcy case. So I was pretty happy with that. Sarah went to the orthodontist and desperately wants her braces off. She doesn't realize how doing it right will take a little time so you don't have to do it twice (case in point - me!)

Tucson AZ

I have returned from a great trip to Tucson AZ. Having never been, I enjoyed it a lot and hope to return soon.

Saturday, I did a bike ride early with Oscar who I am going to Colombia with in September. As usual we had a challenging ride. He informed me we would not be doing any competitive cycling in Colombia for which I was glad. He is a strong rider, so I don't always feel the need to keep up every pedal stroke. He also said his son would be taking the Giant bike he had loaned me to boarding school in August, so I'll be returning it and likely looking for my own carbon fiber bike.

I arrived at MFE a bit late for me 30 minutes before since I stopped for the Color Guard car wash. I just had a carry on, it was just me and I only had a carry-on. Flew to DFW and had a longish layover and then a relatively short flight to PHX. I then drove to Saddlebrooke, about 2 hours. The road south, Highway 79 was interesting, past the site where Tom Mix died and very postcardish of Arizona.

Dinner Sat. night with Aunt Sue and Uncle Herb and Cousin Jon was a fine welcome. I had not seen then in 7 years so great to catch up. I wisely decided to stay with then all 3 nights rather than unpack, repack and shuttle to a lonely hotel. Their sofabed was every bit as nice as the Embassy Suites sofabed where I've slept several times.

Sunday we got up and hit the road early to Chase Field in Phoenix to see the D-Backs play the Florida Marlins. We stopped at the I-10 reststop in Coolidge where the locals sold Native American jewelry. When we got to the game, we were able to park in the handicap spot in the garage right next to the stadium. Good thing we got there early. Even the HC spots fill up with persons who might not be so handicapped. Jon and I toured the various HC seats and also checked out the pool inside. The ushers and patrons were very helpful to us.

The stadium was so very similar to Minute Maid Park in Houston. Also the game: the D-Backs lost and it was not every too interesting. Just like the last Astros game I saw. I did have a good burrito there. After we went to Joe's Farm Grill at Guy Fieris' suggestion and it was great. We got home about 9:00 p.m.

Monday we went to Mt. Lemmon in the Coronado National Forest. Jon has said it was a 150 round trip which was not an exagerration (sp?). But it was worth it. Once we got going up, the first area was interesting desert vegetation and a fine smell. On the way up, there were beautiful vistas and rock formation. But when we got toward the top it was really something. The temperature dropped, the trees got lush, we had a picnic, the sun cast nice shadows, the cloud formations changed, there were places where people lived and worked. It was like being in the mountains of North Carolina - very unique for Tucson.

I had dinner Monday night with Janice, Neda and Jenna. I also met Janice's husband Brian but he turned in early after a long day. It was great to see their home and spend some time with them. They seemed happy to have me. Not many persons can make the trip. Jon graciously allowed me to make the visit while he waited, certainly above and beyond.

Tuesday was the return travel day. I left Saddlebrooke about 9:30 am and drove to Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale to scout it out. Very nice place to which I plan to return to play golf. Then it was a quick drive to PHX when I checked in nice and early and returned home. Flight from PHX to DFW very quick. I had the interesting option to purchase a first class upgrade from DFW to MFE for $45 but declined. Maybe next time. Home at 11:30 pm

It was a great trip and a nice getaway. Hope to go again soon.

Couch Surfing

I am heading to Tucson AZ to visit my cousin Jon starting Saturday. As I am travelling solo, the adventure is starting. To begin I am flying into Phoenix and then driving down. Very cheap airfare from MFE to PHX, via DFW on American. Flying to Tucson was more.

I planned to spend a night at his home (he lives with his parents, my aunt and uncle) as Jon is in a wheelchair from muscular dystrophy. Their home has a sofabed and I planned to spend one night there. But as the trip comes closer, why not every night? So I cancelled the hotel and will be couch surfing. Much more interesting!

The last time I stayed at a friends on the couch was Dan in Atlanta. A confirmed bachelor, Dan was not one for much housekeeping. That sofa had not been opened in a long time and you can imagine the things found in that couch. Its a good thing Susan wasn't there for she would not have stayed long. But it was great company instead of a sterile hotel room. Plus, more money to spend on more fun things. Now if I needed a hotel for some particular reason.... :) But I didn't.

I've also decided to carry on. So I'll be travelling light. Its hot there so I won't need many clothes. One bag, packed lightly.

Jon is used to getting into the folk's 1993 Mercury, so I'll plan to drive that locally. He said they would likely sell it. Probably a great car to buy.

We've got plans to see the Diamondbacks play the Florida Marlins on Sunday followed by dinner at Joe's Farm Grill, profiled on Guy Fieri's show Diners, Driveins and Dives, on the Food Network which Im now a fan of. The restaurant said they filmed 18 hours of footage and edited it to 8 minutes.

The Bookie

One of the "jobs" I have taken is that of collection of rent. Now of course you would understand that I would file a lawsuit for collection of rent and accept a payment on behalf of a client to settle that lawsuit.

In this case, the renter has now imprinted on me (like a baby bird) that I am the person to pay her rent to. She must think that the landlord (a perfectly nice guy) is potentially unpleasant, so she seeks me out. Every 2 weeks (certainly every month) she calls to say she'd like to come by the office to pay the rent (approx. $600/month). So she stops by, always paying in cash. So I write her out a receipt and then have the responsibility to get that cash to the landlord.

Now I don't really mind because:
the landlord is a good friend on mine
the lady is a pretty person
I'm a pretty nice person


Yesterday she called to say that I was closed when it was convenient for her so could I come by her place of work to pick up the cash. So I wrote a receipt and arranged to drive by early.

It was like out of a movie: I was in my black sedan driving up. I was wearing my suit. She was waiting in her gold Chevy in the parking lot. She looked at me driving up. I flashed my lights. We both got our of our cars briefly. We exchanged basic greetings and plain white envelopes in the parking lot. I put the cash in pocket and I drove off. She walked into work. No looking back

This must be how bookies operate.

Back in McAllen

Getting back into the swing of things after a week out of town. Lots of phone messages, emails, bills, etc. to go through.

It's way over 100 degrees here now. This evening was completely unbearable. I decided to stay inside and that was a good decision. Papers said heat index was 111 and I think that is right.

At South Padre Island last weekend, I learned surfing on Saturday and Sunday. I felt like the ancient Polynesians at one with the ocean. The surfboard is very "aerodynamic" to mix a metaphor: it was much easier to manuever in the water than expected. I managed to get up and do some real surfing. Had so much fun I did it again Sunday. Both days we went out at 8:30 a.m. with Beau the instructor. Now I'm thinking about buying my own board.