Monday Meanderings - 5.30.2011

Happy Memorial Day! In Austin we are marking the 30th anniversary of the Memorial Day Flood. Contrasted with Joplin or Tuscaloosa it was a small-scale disaster, but 13 people lost their lives and there were damages in excess of $35 million 1981 dollars. My lasting impression of the flood was looking out in the backyard to see that the railroad ties that previously bordered our garden had floated down to the neighbor's fence. Water was shooting into our yard from a knothole that was about 4 feet off the ground on the up-hill neighbor's fence.

We continued the Memorial Day family tradition of cleaning out the... laundry room. The garage will have to wait. We are persevering in our quest to replace the washer and dryer, but apparently have to remodel the house first. More on this later. Maybe.

And speaking of our backyard, Sandi, the neighbor across the fence, called the other day and asked which tree service we used a few months back. She said she was impressed with how safely they worked and that was important to her, So I wonder how she felt this past week when I heard one of the guys working on her tree yelling repeatedly, "HEEEEELLLLPP!! Julio! I need help!!"

I'm sorry. May 25 is simply too early to officially record the 1st 100 degree day of the summer. But it IS officially summer when you have stir-fried okra, onions and tomatoes from the garden, with crispy bacon sprinkled over it for lunch. The previous sentence may be misleading, but it is technically correct. The tomatoes were from the garden.

I noticed that if you take your car in for service at First Texas Honda, they will gladly set you up with a loaner... bicycle. Complete with helmet and rack on the back for your briefcase or bag.

For some reason the doves, who up to this point had been content to bob around on the ground and harvest seed that has spilled, have decided to seek out the source of this bounty. They now try to cling to the side of the feeders and eat directly from the trough, as it were. The problem is they are much too large to do this. They have to keep flapping their wings to hold their position and they seldom can orient themselves to actually access the openings and reach the seed. And if one dove tries to feed, they think they all have to feed and sometimes all you can see is a flurry of dove wings, flapping in the breeze. Not only that, they are all dumb as... well, doves, and are prone to fly into the window as they attempt to leave. So all during the morning we hear, Thump! Thump! Thump! as the dumb doves try to feed.

Yesterday I ran sound for the Anderson High Baccalaureate - according to my friend the orchestra director, the 10th year to do so. It's always interesting to hear the student leaders give their speeches of reflection and encouragement. The National Honor Society President gave his in a very Seuss-ian rhyme. It was really well done. But the standing ovation was given to the girl who said, "This time next year, you are going to be faced with issues such as - - do I wash clothes or wear them dirty?" She is also the one who recounted the story about Mr. So&So, the teacher who nailed John Student's cell phone to the wall when he was caught texting in class! From the response of the other kids, I have to believe that this was a true story.

The keynote was given by a local judge who included a couple of comments about the use of social networking. She cautioned students to never put anything on Facebook that they didn't want to see on the front page of the newspaper, and that her days as a prosecutor taught her that the "e" in e-mail stood for "evidence."

Enjoy your holiday.