Texas Blue Lime Productions

Many of you will remember our Bryan neighbors, Paul & Victoria Springer. They used to be as into Hallowe’en as we were so on the years when our parties would sync up, we’d all wander to their party and their guests would all wander over to our’s. They had the keg of beer, we had queso and kitty litter cake. Win-win and much fun. Paul spent a couple of years teaching at West Point while Victoria finished some courses and started her research. Eventually, she moved up there with him and then they re-located to Alabama.

Well, Paul wrote a book and it’s currently in pre-sales and scheduled for a March release.

America's Captives: Treatment of POWs from the Revolutionary War to the War on Terror by Paul J. Springer

Congratulations, Paul!!!

Some of our kindred spirits now live in the Deep South and threw a Hallowe’en party this year. Since I knew they would want a keg of Shiner, I asked about getting it, there.

Funny you should ask about the Shiner…Shiner ships here, so we get bottles easily, but this whole area…is weird about draft beer…There is NO draft beer available in the county that we live in or the next one over…not in bars, nothing. The only reason that draft beer is served in [town]…is that they just got a minor league baseball team a few years ago, and part of the contract was that there would be draft beer available at games. I know we are in the Bible belt, but I have no idea why draft beer would be more evil than bottled or canned. So because of that, the only place to get a personal keg was at the on base military liquor store…..The only other option was to drive about 50 miles from here to a place that needs 2 weeks notice for anything other than cheap swill.

We love to “adventure” together. Any time we have to go somewhere new, we make a game of it. Thanks to Emil, we have always taken the odd routes. Thanks to VZ Navigator (a GPS navigation system built into our Verizon phones), we can wander off any beaten path and still find our way. We both have a good sense of direction, but it’s nice to have technology when we want to be somewhere specific at a certain time. Thanks to technology, we frequently take the odd routes. On our last trip in separate vehicles from Austin to Bryan, we found a castle. Yes, a castle. It’s in Pflugerville. I’m sure we couldn’t find it again.

Since we’ve been in ATX, we’ve tried to take all the strange roads. You might remember we got lost on West Cow, but we have also found several short cuts to our home.

• One Saturday morning, I was supposed to meet Beth at Dream Dinners. I’ve been wanting to do the assemble-your-own meal thing for years! I even had people lined up to go with me (to Village Table in Houston) two different times, but things fell through—for good reason—both times.
• I tried Super Suppers in College Station, but they quit doing the assemble-it-yourself system in favor of their it’s-made-for-you version. While the food was good enough, it was difficult to get in and didn’t let me omit the things Emil won’t eat. It was too much hassle.
• I considered Mom’s Meals, but they were all too carby.
• I ordered “mixes” from another company in Hearne, and again, they were all pasta/rice based and meant to be made with ground beef. I can get Hamburger Helper at HEB, thankyouverymuch. [yes, their versions were much tastier than anything store bought, they just weren't healthy.]

So, when Beth told me about Dream Dinners, and then shared a meal with me at their home, I was dying to sign up. I made plans to go with her to her appointment on Saturday.

In learning to get there, I found a fun route down a winding road, so I awakened Emil-the-adventurer to join me. For a couple of reasons, we got lost on the way, and I joined Beth a little late. I still had a fabulous time assembling stuff and learning how the whole thing works. I signed up for July on the spot! At least some of our cooking will be both easy and healthy.

{Trust me, this part sounds boring, but there is a punch line.}

• Emil & I ended up all the way back at the Arboretum for “breakfast” at almost noon.
• When we emerged, the battery on the car was dead.
• Luckily, we found a nice guy (who was wearing a Thai Coca-Cola tshirt like the one Stephanie gave Emil when she came back from an entomology trip in 2006) to give us a jump.

While we kept the car running, we used VZ Navigator to help us find a battery store and went to a National Tire and Battery. Guess what they didn’t have? Batteries. Why? Because they are getting a new product line and some dolt ensured that their “bad/old” batteries were removed, first, to make room for the new ones they were yet to receive. They didn’t cover up the words “and Battery” in the name… Why would they take out all the batteries and then leave these poor stores with nothing? I Tweeted the product change #FAIL while Emil found AutoZone. We bought a battery with the car running, (broke the apartment rules and) installed the battery (quickly) in our parking lot. $90 later and we are ready to start the car!

After half of a day of some serious adventure, we felt it was in our destiny for the weekend and followed a route to some new homes in ATX. We can’t buy until our house in Bryan sells. wink-wink-nudge-nudge. The homes called Agave are 10 architects’ 50 designs that are funky/odd. Normally, this would be right up our alley, but these are lame.

• The first floors are “polished” concrete, so they didn’t spend the money on flooring.
• The stairs and upstairs are bamboo, but the “kick” part of the stairs is painted white wood, which is already nasty just from viewers.
• The homes all face west, so the A/C bills are going to be a nightmare.
• Most of them don’t have garages. The ones with carports are single-car.
• The HOA amenities include an unused community garden and some single-lot-sized parks.
• The purposely-not-mentioned “amenities” include views of a trailer park, a train track along the neighborhood, and close proximity to the water-treatment plant.
• They expect $220-350K for a home that is way east of I-35 with few interior features just for a view of a very distant downtown.
• Oh, and you have to drive through some shady stuff to get to downtown.
• What a joke!
• We were reminded of how happy we are to have a Realtor. Thanks, @bennrosales!!!

Our next adventure consisted of finding cushions to support us on the futon in the living room and to serve as a headboard in our room. Regardless of the kind of home, it seems that setting it up is a very long process. After moving from a 3+1/2/2.5/2 home to a 2-2 apartment, who’d have thought we’d need anything??!?

Next, we finally found the adventure we’d set out for on Saturday morning. We followed the long/winding road to both some exquisite and some adorable neighborhoods. We also took some routes through nearby neighborhoods. We passed the very park where Beth and Marc took us (and their dogs) for an afternoon romp.

All in all, it was a great weekend of adventure…and one of many we hope to have in our new city!

[and, as this post is being posted quite late, I'll say that we are still struggling to find/make time in our new town to do the things it offers.]

OK, seriously, how do good friends know just what you need and just when you need it?

Jordan, Leanne, JJ/Becky, and even Louie (whom I’m certain does not read our blog) have all been completely and totally there for me today while I’m in that frustrated panic to get everything ready for my first year to be a Wrangler at Texas Photography School. (Actually, being a Wrangler doesn’t have me nervous at all…..but just getting their with all my stuff I need and working out logistics is making me a wreck. It’s unreal how much there is to prepare for this trip.)

Thank you, friends.

smooches to you all!

Beth and I have a new “thing” that I hope will become a whole/real tradition (we’ve already met the Aggie definition of a tradition: it’s happened twice!).

Last night, we had a Wine for Whine session where we each had wine while we whined about the crap that is part of our lives right now.

There are so very many things we need to talk about….and tonight was a perfect release for all those little stresses.

Our first WfW went until ~3am while we talked about everything under the sun. Next time, curfew!

Valvet is acclimating nicely. Yay for our reptile family!

She is the “beta” member of our turtle family, which Turtleor has made clear with the flapping of her front paws/claws (Patty R., help me out here! What are turtle’s feet called? fins? webs?).

Early on, Valvet seems to be the smarter/faster turtle. Like most “second” members of a family, she’s progressing just a little bit more quickly. It only took her one day of being at home with us to eat. She was with us for a little longer at Easter, so that is part of the difference, but she did eat much earlier than Turtleor did. She is also acclimating quite nicely to an aquarium with a filter and running water. Turtleor had the luxury of being in a bowl, first. In any case, like children or cats or other critters, they are easier with the second. So far, Valvet is learning from Turtleor and we have learned from our first red eared slider of what to do/not.

Also, while Turtleor will press her baby sibling down into the water to establish dominance, Big Sis also cuddles the little one up into safety.

It’s clear that Turtleor loves having a baby to care for. I suspect it will be different when Valvet starts to catch up in size…

Thank you, Patty R., Andy/Mary, and Jenn, for introducing us to the wonderful world of turtles as pets.

Today, our’s are trying tomatoes! Nom!

Now let me start this by saying it is not foolproof. After all, it’s not exactly how Emil and I found one another. However, in our observations, it has a pretty successful rate of return.

There are two “suggestions” for finding your soulmate. Again, since they aren’t foolproof, “rules” would be too strong of a word.

1. You have to give up looking. Fall in love with yourself and the idea of being alone. It’s not until you are comfortable with not being in a relationship, that fate will send one along. Let the butterfly come to you. (This did happen to my side of our relationship. In fact, most of you know I didn’t go out with Emil when he initially asked.)
2. Buy a house. Yeppers. We can name several cases of friends who, within months of buying a house on their own, met the love of their life.

Bonus tip: When in doubt, catch the bouquet. One friend of ours (ahem!) refuses to participate in this wedding tradition. I’ve tried to convince her that it’s not as much about catching the bride’s used flowers, but it’s about confirming to the single men in the room that you are, in fact, single. I have one more anecdote that goes with this part, but it will have to wait a short while before I can tell the rest. I don’t want to jinx anything.

After everything was ready for the Condo Warming party on Saturday, Leanne took us to the Dallas Aquarium. We’d only been one other time (with Diane and Jonathan when they still lived in the town she liked to call “Louisville”).

It was super-crowded and full of children whose adults don’t parent them, but we still had a great time.

There are a lot of bad photos (curved glass, people bumping into me, reflections, etc.), but there are a few gems in the group, too. And, we’d never seen so much porn in one day!

Monkey Porn!

Actually, they are Pygmie-sized something other than monkeys, but Monkey Porn is funnier. And yes, those are his privates on display for all.

Look how fast this guy was moving!

Even I found it hard to be a ‘Gator Hater when they are curled up and cuddling….

I really cranked the settings to the extreme to get any shot at all of the bats….

We watched these turtles for a long time. The smaller one “bottomed out” on the log and was stuck there flapping his legs and tail trying to get enough leverage to move back into the water. Like most critters, the bigger one decided he wanted to be there, so he came along and “rescued” the smaller one back into the water. The whole scene was quite comical. (And, as we were leaving, a third, even larger turtle was headed up the log.)

These seahorses were amazing to watch (and ridiculously difficult to photograph!)

Animated Anemone

I have an entire series I’m calling Animated Anemone. As soon as I figure out how to animate the image series, I’ll put that online, too.

Turtle Porn!

Turtle porn wasn’t nearly as “interesting” as Monkey Porn.

We are leaving town at 5pm to head back to Dallas. This time, we get to spend the weekend with Leanne and attend her Condo Warming!

yippie!

Michael Stribling’s reality TV debut and watch party was amazing. After some technical difficulties on my end [1], I got some great shots of Michael and the reactions of some of his friends and family. The party was packed, filling two rooms at Ozona and spilling over to the patio at times.

Michael introduced me to his newly-engaged friend and his business manager and sold them on my services for her wedding and Michael’s (before and after) design shoots for his website and portfolio work. And, what a small world: turns out the business manager is married to one of Emil’s cousins….and they need family portraits, too and want to see my new watercolors. eeeeee!

So, it was not only a fun night, it was also a quite beneficial one for As You Wish! I’ll have images up as soon as I can get the java applet working, again.

[1] at the wedding on Saturday, a guest grabbed my camera and was wiggling the flash. It happened so fast and I didn’t realize she’d done any harm. (No, she didn’t appear drunk; And, like I said, she was FAST.) So, now, the flash won’t seat correctly and works inconsistently. Dennis and I needed to trade some images, so he brought me his backup camera body and I was back to normal operations. I’m sad that I missed the crowd’s reactions to Michaels introduction segment on the show, but at least I got to SEE the intro segment. (After all, I missed most of the rest of the show. TTfT: Thank Technology for TiVo!)