Monday Meanderings - 8.28.2017

The weather pattern in Texas for July through September is very predictable. "It will be very hot and very dry - unless there is some kind of disturbance in the Gulf."

There has been a disturbance in the Gulf.

ATX is on the outer fringe of the impacted area, but since this storm was seriously underestimated, even being on the outer fringe has been somewhat eventful. As of late Sunday night my gauge has measured nearly 9 inches of rain, and since the wind sort of knocked the gauge out of alignment, I suspect the actual measurement is somewhat higher. They tell us that it will rain steadily until Thursday.

The wind has been a constant companion to the rain, and there are a lot of smallish limbs, debris and such scattered up and down the street. Some big trees are down in the area and there have been numerous power outages across the area. Our recycling cart was last seen in a neighbor's yard. I hope it's still there when I can get out to retrieve it. Stepped on a squishy patch of carpet in front of the patio door this morning. The wind is blowing rain under the door, so we will have to keep soaking that up for a while.

All that that is nothing, of course, compared to what is happening to the east and in the Houston area.

Pray for those folks.

It has been very interesting to look at the pictures on Facebook of the damage in Port Aransas. That has been our get-away spot for years now, and we recognize most of the houses and buildings that are featured in those damage reports.

There's a large chunk of Trout Street Grill missing; Virginia's On the Bay seems to be quite a bit more open to the gulf than when we last ate there. The high-dollar boats that are normally moored on the bayou side are scattered all over town - the mooring itself is empty, except for a boat that seems to have tried to take cover inside Virginia's.

We have not seen a picture of the Sand Castle, the high-rise condo where we stay, but it's pretty obvious that we won't be going to Port A any week-end soon. Or, for that matter, to North Beach in Corpus, or to Rockport, or to Port Lavaca. However, based on the rainfall expected down-river from us, the beach may soon be a lot closer to us than in the past.

And all this from a little tropical depression that popped up in the Gulf and in just a few days time became the storm described as "unprecedented - all impacts are unknown and beyond anything experienced."

Monday Meanderings - 8.21.2017

We took the Meandering part seriously over the last couple of weeks and got into the trains, planes, and automobile mode. Okay, maybe that should be ferrys, buses, planes and automobiles; no trains this trip.

Permit me to share some observations:

The first rule of travel is that the airport is under construction. It doesn't matter which airport. They all are under construction.

The second rule of travel is that you don't have to go to the bathroom until your flight is called. The corollary to that, suggested by my son, is that once you are buckled in your seat, the actual take off and ascent to "Seat Belt Sign is off" will take a very. very. long. time.

The third rule of travel is that the obnoxious child/person in the waiting area will be seated next to you.

The fourth rule of travel is that the less time you have to make a connecting flight, the farther you have to go to your connecting gate.

Which brings us to some observations about cool, foggy, San Francisco:

 -- It's cool. Nay, chilly. To quote Mark Twain (or someone), “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.”
-- It's foggy. To quote our bus driver, "The fog rolls in, and the fog rolls out. And leaves thousands of gallons of water." Our bus driver was very fond of that statement. Very, very fond of it.
-- You can get sun burned when it is foggy.
-- Most people in San Francisco are not from San Francisco.
-- Daily in the summer, there are tens of thousands of visitors down on Fisherman's Wharf, and we never saw a single policeman. We didn't even see a meter maid. I asked our waiter about the absence of police, and he said, "You would have to shoot someone to get a cop down here." 
-- The fog rolls in, and the fog rolls out. And leaves thousands of gallons of water.

-- San Francisco has the highest level of bicyclists I have ever seen - and no - zero - bike lanes. City of Austin might take note here.

-- Open top buses are great for sight-seeing, but one can freeze to death while crossing Golden Gate Bridge at highway speeds.
-- Did I mention the fog?

It was a nice visit. We did all the touristy things down on the Wharf; toured the town on the big buses; saw where O. J. Simpson went to high school; picked up on the Hippy vibe in Haight Ashbury; crossed the bridge multiple times; saw the fog roll in, and the fog roll out; ate the clam chowder in the sourdough bread bowl; had some Ghirardelli chocolate; visited Muir Woods; looked for B. J. Hunnicutt and Peg in Mill Valley; rode the ferry back from Sausalito, and walked a few thousand miles. Uphill.

We did not ride the street cars, however. The cost is now $7 a trip - $14 bucks for the 2 of us to ride up the hill; $14 bucks to ride back down again - and long, long lines at both ends. Interestingly, after getting back home, I learned that the motormen who operate the cable cars have begun a protest at having to collect the fares, make change, etc., and at present are refusing to perform those collection duties. Which may explain the long, long lines to ride them. For free.

Next time, we are visiting in October. When it's warmer. Go figure.

Monday Meanderings - 8.07.2017

Parks closed folks. Moose out front should have told you.

See you in a couple.