So How Hot is it in Texas ?

Oh Lordy, it's HOT outside ! 

Unbearably hot, uncomfortably hot, makes-me-very-grumpy hot!

People like to make jokes about the intense summer heat in Texas like: 

• The birds have to use pot holders to pull worms out of the ground.
• The potatoes cook underground, and all you have to do to have lunch is to pull one out and add butter, salt and pepper.
• Farmers are feeding their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying hard-boiled eggs.
• Corn is popping on the stalks
• Green tomatoes fry on the vine,
• You eat jalapenos to cool your tongue

BUT SERIOUSLY, IT’S SO HOT IN TEXAS THAT…

every one of the following statements is true and I speak from personal experience. 

• Hot water now comes from both faucets
• You no longer associate bridges (or rivers) with water.
• You can say 110 degrees without fainting.
• You learn that a seat belt makes a pretty good branding iron.
• The temperature drops below 95, you feel a bit chilly.
• You discover that it takes only 2 fingers to drive your car.
• You discover that you can get a sunburn through your car window.
• The best parking place is always determined by shade instead of distance.
• In June, July and August, kids are on summer vacation, and the streets and playgrounds are deserted
• It's 5:00 am in June, July and August and there are all kinds of people out walking/running in the dark
• You can actually burn your hand opening the car door.
• You break a sweat the moment you step outside at 7:30 a.m.
• No one would dream of putting vinyl upholstery in a car or not having air conditioning.
• Your biggest bicycle wreck fear is, “What if I get knocked out and end up lying on the pavement and cook to death?”
• You realize that asphalt has a liquid state.
• A/C  runs 24 hours a day 
• All blinds and window coverings in your home are kept shut  for the season
• You can burn the bottoms of your feet just running out to the mailbox if you're not wearing shoes 
• If the temperature drops into the mid 70's  in the early morning, it is considered 'refreshing' 
• The air quality is like breathing vacuum cleaner dust
• You keep twice as much iced tea in the refrigerator as milk 

... AND AS IF THAT WASN'T ENOUGH, IT’S SO DRY IN TEXAS THAT…

• The cows are giving evaporated milk.
• The trees are whistling for the dogs.
• A sad Texan once prayed, “I wish it would rain – not so much for me, cuz I’ve seen it — but for my 7-year-old.”
• A visitor to Texas once asked, “Does it ever rain out here?” A rancher quickly answered “Yes, it does. Do you remember that part in the Bible where it rained for 40 days and 40 nights?” The visitor replied, “Yes, I’m familiar with Noah’s flood.” “Well, “the rancher puffed up, “we got about two and a half inches of that.

Just kidding of course, but the drought is of real concern to farmers and ranchers alike. Wildfires have broken out across the state and are difficult to get under control. The loss of 1000's of acres of property, livestock and crops is unimaginable.

In my 'planned community', you are required by the HOA to keep the grass green, which means that we must water the lawn regularly. Even so, there are deep, wide cracks appearing in the yard. Because the soil is clay,  it shrinks when too dry and many homeowners end up with serious foundation issues due to the shifting that happens as a result. The slabs become prone to cracking and repairing a cracked foundation can cost a homeowner a bundle. 

Oh the joys perils of living  enduring the long seemingly endless season of summer in Texas.

I've heard it said there are two seasons here - hot and hotter - that pretty much sums it up. 

A national weather commentator  described it this way last week : 

"Summer in Texas is like living inside a hairdryer - non-stop wind and hot." 

Think I'll go and enjoy another big glass of iced tea and dream of October... it just can't come soon enough for this northern girl.

Yielding all I know about me to all I know about Him.

A Change in Direction.....

For the last 3 years I have stayed home and provided daycare for my grandson. This was a promise I made to my daughter before he was born.

However, it was not the 'easy follow through' I thought it would be when the time actually came.

I was an Administrative Assistant to the Upper School principal at a private Christian school for nine years. It was a great job ~ no, not just a great job, it was the best job! I loved getting up in the morning and couldn't wait to head into work every single day.

It was more than just a job, it was a calling, a mission of sorts and it nourished my soul in ways that are hard to put into words. It was a near perfect environment ~ the people I worked with were people of exceptional integrity and character. We shared a common goal and worked for something bigger than ourselves. We were in the business of  providing an academic education for students, but it was so.o.o.o.o.much more than that. We were involved in shaping the hearts and minds of a group of young people in ways that would forever impact their lives. It was an exceptional environment that was safe, professional, nurturing, caring and pure. We were all like-minded in our faith and issues of culture, moral behavior and unity. I truly mourned leaving that job, but the time had come to follow through on a promise I had made years earlier.

I have loved spending 3 years with my little prince .... it humbles me to consider the ways in which my time with him have already influenced his development, thinking and character. He and I have a bond that is unique and very, very special. I love this little boy with ALL my heart and soul. It has been a rewarding, unique season of my life but the time has come to move forward into another season.

There are now two of them, the second little one only being a few months old and as much as I love them, the time has come for me to go back to work. I miss it..... I miss the feeling of accomplishment, I miss the community of being with other grown ups, I miss having an income and insurance benefits. I'm three years older and not sure I have the energy, enthusiasm or desire to deal with 2 young children all day, every day.

My daughter and her husband have offered to pay me generously to re-consider my decision and I have struggled with it some. But I feel a conviction about my position and am standing firm in my decision not to go that route.They have found someone who provides in-home daycare and both boys will go there beginning in August.

I have started job searching in earnest these last few weeks, and so far nothing has really struck my fancy. I just don't know what I want to do or what direction I want to go in. I'm leaving all the options open and trying to think out of the box a little .... I don't offer an incredible array of computer skills, don't have any specialized technical training, I'm certainly not a 20-something, but I'm hoping that experience and a proven track record will trump the academic credentials and youth  offered  by so many job seekers out in the market at the moment. Surely that will be worth something of value to someone.

I'm anxious to get back to being busy, productive and heading out the door early every morning..... a fully functioning grown up back in the workplace.

I'm looking forward to daily visits with those sweet grandchildren from an entirely new and fresh perspective.

Yielding all I know about me to all I know about Him.

A Cowboy Kind of Life

I live in the city.

I lived in a planned community, on a golf course, with private security, walking trails, community parks, and an HOA (Home Owners Association) that has an entire manual of rules that one has to abide by in order to live in this community. The lots are small, the houses tend to be super sized and seems like everyone drives an over sized SUV or some other foreign luxury vehicle.

I don't belong here. Some days, I just want to pack up and leave suburban living in the rear view mirror.

My house is small, I drive a 1996 Accura, yes that's not a typo ~1996! That makes my car 15 years old ~ frankly, I'm surprised the HOA doesn't ticket me for having a car that is not in keeping with the standards of the neighborhood.

The HOA police drive around at least once a week scrutinizing the condition of our homes, our yards, making sure the garbage cans have been parked out of sight, garage doors are closed, that you haven't removed a tree without their permission,  put up a bird house without their approval or changed the color of your house trim without it passing through their committees ... the list goes on and on and on.

I get the whole idea behind the purpose of an HOA. It serves to maintain the integrity of the neighborhood and ensures some sense of continuity and uniformity of the neighborhood's overall appearance. No one is allowed to park an RV or boat out front on the street for months on end. They send you warning notices if you leave a bag of mulch out on your driveway overnight, a bucket on your front porch,  if the grass isn't cut short enough,  if there you have weeds that need to be pulled up, if your landscaping isn't full enough to meet the neighborhood rules or if your home is falling into some state of disrepair.

Sometimes the minutia of all the rules seems to border on assinine, but I really do get it and I really do appreciate their efforts and the expected results ... our neighborhood always looks reasonably appealing and consistent. That helps home values and protects me from having someone next door from painting their trim purple, or parking a trailer in their side yard or putting up a shed that blocks my view etc. etc. When we choose to live in these neighborhoods, it is incumbent that we follow the rules.... period. If you don't like it, then move.... and this is what we pay for in the mandatory HOA dues which are nearly $1000/year.

But, we do live on top of each other and I've never gotten used to that .... I like my privacy and I can NEVER seem to enjoy just a quiet moment outside by myself. Now I guess if you had neighbors that didn't have a pool, didn't have post-teenagers who have a steady stream of friends over day and night and cars parked all over the street, this might not be an issue. But I do, and it becomes annoying to always feel like you have company or are intruding on theirs when you're out in your own yard.  I've learned to choose my moments to go out and garden or just sit outside based on whether the neighbors are out or not. Because we're on the golf course, wooden fences are not permitted and landscaping helps, but it has to stay in proportion to the yard ... when I step out of my kitchen door it's only 4 feet to the property line, so there's limits as to how much shrub screening is effective but still attractive.

I long for a cowboy kind of life..... just a few acres in the country , a decent distance away from people, traffic and corner shopping malls,  lots of trees, a pond or creek, some decent privacy and just plain quietness and real darkness at night .... the kind where you can see the stars.

IF (operative word)  I had the money, I would move out of suburbia and to the country in a heartbeat .... buy the land, build a rustic modest home with a big wrap around porch, plant a big garden , get a couple of country dogs, go for long daily walks through the fields or woods and just enjoy the solitude of simpler, quieter living.

Not going to happen , at least not anytime soon, so I am constantly on the lookout for my own urban oasis of creekbanks and open fields in which to roam with my hiking stick and enjoy some nature.... unfortunately I always have to drive to these places before I can enjoy them.

I love the idea of a cowboy kind of life ~ purer, more honest, simpler, more in touch with nature and the simple beauty of the land ~ so in lieu of what I know I can't have, I went out and bought these this morning. They feel good and fit like a well worn glove. I just love them and will continue to dream about living a cowboy kind of life whenever I put these darlings on my feet. Looking forward to going and finding a nice dirt road and just kicking up a little dust.  

I know without a doubt that I'm a country girl at heart .... at the very least, a small town girl, so no one who knows me well would be surprised as I shudder with indifference to life  in suburbia.

Yielding all I know about me to all I know about Him.

Simplified Renewal .... Really?

My Canadian passport is about to expire.

As a Canadian citizen living in the USA, getting one's passport is not the easiest process in the world if it is not convenient to travel back to Canada to do so. In fact, 5 years ago, it took me close to 4 months and the cost of 3 registered mail packages before they finally renewed mine ..... frustrating, really frustrating!

It was not an application for a new passport, it was simply a renewal. I missed a great travel opportunity because of the multiple delays. The primary stumbling block in this process is getting the photos done.

A simple enough process one would think, but Canada's photo requirements are completely different than almost every other country and it seems to be very difficult to find a US photographer who actually knows how to do it to the satisfaction of the Canadian government. They have a number of restrictions with regards to the actual photo ~ what's permissible and what's not, so I went to the photo shop armed with 4 pages of instructions on how to get the little itty bitty photos just right.

After several attempts, the photographer thought he had it nailed ~ "I dare them to reject these" he boasted confidently ..... we shall see.  I happily paid the man, took my photos which don't look half bad and actually bear some resemblance to my image this time, went home and completed the new  'simplified' paperwork. Providing an applicant meets a number of conditions, one of which is not having let your current passport expire, you qualify for the 'simplified' renewal. There is a lot less paperwork to fill out and no need for finding the proper guarantors and public notary certification ..... that did save considerable amounts of time!

I headed off to the local post office, paid my $20 to have the package registered and sent it off to the Canadian government. That was May 23rd. I've not heard back from them, so I'm taking that as a very good sign. Through the modern technology of on line tracking, I know that it is in their very capable hands and with any kind of luck and good timing, I should have a new passport in hand in the very near future.

Used to be, the Canadian passport was good for 10 years, but now I get to look forward to this process every 5 years ... and the government gets to collect their $125 twice as often. A relatively inexpensive price to pay for the privilege of of being an ex-patriot.

Thinking I'll just go ahead and start planning a little trip.

Yielding all I know about me to all I know about Him.

So Just Why Do I Live Here?

"Coravillas Oregon is the least hazardous place in the USA in which to live and Plano-Dallas Metro is the most hazardous ~ twisters, tornadoes, hurricanes, hail, wind, drought and floods. Texas takes 6 of the top 10 most hazardous metro areas and abounds over other states in natural disasters by every measure other than earthquakes" (B. Sperling, author of Best/Worst Places rankings)

 

This is why I would love to move the the Pacific Northwest ....  I don't particularly like extremes in anything, so the Pacific NW seems so serene, so calm, so moderate, so scenic, so enjoyably outdoorsy to me. I have always said  it, have always dreamed it and this article just serves to confirm all my reasons for wanting to do so.  

I moved to North Dallas almost 15 years ago. Honestly, I didn't want to come here, I was very happy exactly where I was in Raleigh, North Carolina ..... and by comparison, have found nothing attractive about living on the plains after living in the eastern USA. 

North Carolina was such an incredibly beautiful place to live. I loved it from the moment my feet set foot in the state. It has trees, big tress, lots and lots of big trees and rolling hills and mountains. It has real seasons and moderation in temperatures and weather and people. It has the ocean, and the mountains, beautiful and plentiful lakes and is easily car accessible to many destinations of interest.

Dallas, by contrast is harsh in topography, harsh in weather extremes, there are really only two seasons ~ hot and hotter. Have I mentioned I despise extreme heat, especially long extended periods of heat? Well, Texas has heat.... lots and lots of heat, in fact it never cools off even at night.  The hot air is suffocating and sucks the breath right out of you. Now this is not Houston mind you where the humidity is as thick as molasses, but the combination of heat and humidity is certainly uncomfortable, even in Dallas. 

The sun is relentless and cloudy days, while rare, are such a sweet reprieve for me. Sometime in May the blinds get closed and stay closed, the A/C is cranked up high and for the most part, indoors becomes the daily venue of choice. It's akin to living in a cave for 7 or 8 months of the year. I've grown accustomed to it, but it is not how I enjoy spending all my time.

I grew up a 'northern girl' and love cooler temperatures. All this heat just saps my energy and makes me a wee bit grumpy. Even a decision to go out in the car is often reconsidered simply because getting inside my car is so hot and uncomfortable. Often the car doesn't cool down until I'm at where I'm going.  

I like gardening, but it is neither easy or enjoyable under such extreme conditions. I love walking, but for most of the year, I do it under cover of darkness, early, early in the mornings while the temperature is still in the mid 80's. It's a rare day when I can actually sit outside and enjoy my patio. 

Then there's the storms. There are never days of just gentle drizzling rain. When it rains, its torrential and damaging and scary, often accompanied by extremely high winds and flooding and tornados.  We are in the height of tornado season. Last night I spent an hour or so  in the safety (that's a relative term) of the bathroom, tornado sirens wailing, hail pounding the house, torrential rain blowing sideways,  streets and yards flooding, trees coming down. This is scary stuff. Relatively little damage for us last night, but whenever I see the sky turning that funky yellow/green my stomach begins to churn and I feel the need to pace. Doesn't do anything of course, but moving around seems better than just sitting still.

 I actually used to enjoy a good thunderstorm, but since moving to Texas, I just become anxious when they're in the forecast . We've lost trees, had to replace a roof, had hail damaged cars and a flooded yard more times than I care to remember. They are just so violent and so volatile.

Then there's the drought .... those long periods when there's not a cloud in the sky to squeeze even a drip of water from. The soil begins to crack deeply, plants shrivel up, grass dies and foundations begin to shift and if your one of the very unlucky homeowners, begins to crack .... very costly repair. Watering is not optional so every day we water, water and water just to enable things survive and save our foundations. 

I've never lived anywhere where it is always so incredibly windy.... my hair is always looking like I've spent the entire day at the beach. I should count my blessings though because it's way worse in West Texas and they are always dealing with sandstorms.

Now, by October, the weather is more reasonable and my favorite day of the year is that morning when I step outside and for the first time in months and months, there is a crispness in the air that is palpable. I  love that time of year but it can get cold here..... very, very cold and almost as unpredictable as the summer. 

Most winters are relatively mild, but the last two years have been brutal. Unfortunately, homes are not built to withstand cold the way they are in the northern parts... they are drafty and circulation is at best, poor..... vaulted 10-12 foot ceilings suck all the hot air up.  It is a challenging and expensive to keep things comfortable .... extra sweater, socks and blankets are often called for.

Dallas doesn't get much snow, but when we do it's extreme ~ often upwards of 2 feet or more in one fall, and of course we don't have the snow removal equipment. Dallas gets at least one or two ice storms a year. Generally the temperature is mild enough that ice rarely sticks around more than a day or so, but last winter we had snow, and ice and an extended period of sub-zero temperatures that prevented anything from melting and kept businesses closed and schools in the area shut down for 7 consecutive days! Lawns, unfortunately if you have St. Augustine, don't fare well either with extended periods of cold, snow and ice. We lost some 2 winters ago and the rest this past winter. Another costly proposition to replace it.

This part of the country is not home, it doesn't feel like home and while some people love living here, for a variety of reasons,  I find none of them appealing enough to balance out all the reasons I don't like living here 

I've lived in some 14 cities across North America and this area is by far, my least favorite area. I realize there are many other factors that contribute to the overall positive/negative experience of living somewhere and taking all that into consideration, I would still have to come to the same conclusion. 

From the very first moment I landed here and put my feet on the ground, I knew this place would never feel quite right ... never truly feel like home. I have adjusted, I have adapted, I have resigned myself to life as it now exists, I have paid my dues, put in my time and gave it a fair shot but would jump at the chance to move to Coravillas, Oregon ~ only in my dreams though ~ just not going to happen anytime soon. 

In the meantime, I remind myself how much I'd miss the great Tex-Mex food!

Yielding all I know about me to all I know about Him.

Up Close and Personal

"Throughout my life I've learned to control how I express my emotions, not because I don't feel them, I feel them very deeply,  but I certainly control how I express them. " (Shania Twain)

I share those sentiments and can identify with exactly what she's saying.

I've never been one of those people inclined to wear my emotions on my sleeve, where everyone around  me knows exactly how I'm feeling and the details of what's going on in my life. I'm not a touchy, huggy type either, at least not with casual acquaintances or strangers. I think perhaps, this is one of the  reasons I tend  not to enjoy some aspects of social functions.

It certainly seems to be the accepted norm these days  for everyone ~ casual acquaintances, co-workers, fellow churchgoers, neighbors, friends of friends, cashiers in the grocery store ~ to be overly huggy, overly gushy, overly complimentary with over stated platitudes. It just makes me feel a little uncomfortable.

It isn't that I'm not genuinely happy to see people, I just don't like all that up close and touchy personal contact. It is awkward when I find myself being 'loved on' by people that I'm not close to, sometimes even barely know. I don't mind if others want to engage in all the hugginess and gushines , it's just not something that comes naturally for me, with the exception of my immediate family of course .... it just seems more meaningful and sincere when expressed to people you genuinely care about .

Maybe it goes back to my childhood. Seems like most of our grown up quirks can somehow be linked to our childhood  as psychologists often like to suggest.

I don't seriously think that my family was lacking in this area of emotional intimacy, I just did not grow up in a  family that was particularly huggy or demonstrative with trite emotional displays and affection. I never saw that as a bad thing, it was just the reality of it. I grew up with complete confidence that my parents loved me generously and unconditionally. There were certainly  times when they were physically affectionate, it was just more reserved. They didn't tell us they  L-O-V-E-D us a hundred times a day, they rarely showed signs of physical affection  outside of the privacy of a bedtime goodnight or a moment of distress when we were in need of comfort or assurance.

We weren't involved in organized sports or a plethora of outside activities, lessons and  shopping sprees. There wasn't the money for that and honestly, I just don't think they had the luxury of time.... they were busy putting food on the table, dad working long laborer's hours and mom running a household and a managing the needs of a growing family.

They were immigrants to a new country, did not speak the language, did not know the culture and did not have the benefit of any family nearby for support. They came with nothing and struggled to make a new better life and raise a family.

There was only one car, laundry was washed in a wringer washer, hung our on the line, brought in and then ironed. Floors were scrubbed and waxed, dishes were washed by hand, we grew our own fruits and vegetables and my mother canned so we would have enough of a supply for the entire year. Shoes needed polishing, blankets hung and aired out the windows weekly, windows were washed, clothes were handmade, every cookie and cake was made from scratch and meals were always home cooked.

They were busy, morning til night, and we were all expected to pitch in, stay out of the way and learned not to burden extra demands on their already busy days.We never had the luxury of having any grandparents or aunts and uncles or cousins close by to provide support or  grow close to. While those extra familial relationships help to create  a strong sense of belonging and a strong sense of  family supoort, we really never experienced that, but yet knew without a doubt we were deeply loved ..... it just wasn't primarily expressed through a lot of physical affection.

Yielding all I know about me to all I know about Him.

The Right Condition for Spiritual Disciplines

"A farmer is helpless to grow grain; all he can do is provide the right conditions for the growing of grain. He cultivates the ground, he plants the seed, he waters the plants, and then the natural forces of the earth take over and up comes the grain ... This is the way it is with the Spiritual Disciplines - they are a way of sowing to the Spirit ...  By themselves the Spiritual Disciplines can do nothing; they can only get us to the place where something can be done." 

  Richard J. Foster (Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth)

Yielding all I know about me to all I know about Him.