Fall...Where are you?

It is September. Fact is, September will be only a fleeting memory on Monday morning. Where is our autumn? Does autumn ever make it this far south?

In October of 1981, we two adults (well, that was debatable) and two little children, packed ourselves into a rented U-Haul and drove the 1,126 miles from our Indiana home to this Sparkling City by the Sea. A brave move for any family. It took 3 days to make the trip and when we arrived it was warm outside - I thought that was great. The first thing I wanted to do was dig through our belongs and find bathing suits for myself and my toddler daughter (a.k.a. 9secondjen) and head for the beach!

Soon, I heard rumors of a possible 'Blue Northern.' What is a Blue Northern? What were they talking about? People were so excited - cold weather was on its way! I waited and waited - and waited. Then one day the sky turned ominous shades of 'blue.' Dark bluish-gray clouds hung low over the horizon. The air changed and within 10 minutes the temperature outside had changed from a steamy 85 degrees to the coldest 60 degrees I'd ever felt in my life! My very first Blue Northern had arrived! Brrrr! Wimp? you say...yep, pretty much!

Fall would have to be the season I miss most from my old Indiana home. I miss the contrast of the beautiful, brightly colored leaves against the green rolling hills of the Indiana landscape, and the cool crisp feel of the air when you step outside. There have been many Corpus Christi fall seasons without even one Blue Northern...no autumn - how sad is that? However...there was the one (one and only one) Christmas Eve when it snowed on Corpus Christi - a Christmas gift from above that we will never forget! - the one gift bestowed upon Corpus that made all the missing fall seasons forgivable.

You know the old saying, "you can never go back home?" It is so true. Now, home is right here with our Texas-Branded children and our Texas-Born grandchildren...and our Texas Friends...and it is good.

In Preparation...

I am having a difficult time wrapping myself around the reality that another Texas Mile is upon us. The last one, although we had high hopes of 200 mph runs down the track, did not turn out so well. There are two of them a year and March's Mile was a bit more than I could handle ( Turbo Busa Tumble - April 07). I will add October's upcoming Mile to the list of things currently keeping me awake at night!

This time 'we've' done things a bit different. I say 'we' like I actually have anything to do with it...I have NOTHING to do with it. I do nothing except fret!

We took the turbo Hayabusa to Johnny Cheese in Round Rock, Texas - yes, that really is his name - who worked for quite some time to tune the bike, producing a Texas Mile 'map' that he says will get us the mph we need for the Mile. Okay, I really don't know exactly what all this means, after all who needs a map to get down a straight one mile track anyway! I mean, there is already a GPS on that thing...we need a map too?! I can tell you one thing - turbo tuning is VERY loud.

Johnny Cheese tunes the Turbo Busa

We took the grandpup, Chance, along with us to Mr. Cheese's shop (he was a big hit, as always), and he knew exactly what to do - he put on ear protection!

Chance attends most all of our racing events - he is quite the traveler - and I often wonder what he thinks about his life. He makes friends wherever he goes and usually he just lays there and enjoys the attention.

Chance and his Papa take a nap at the track.

Chance cools off with some damp cloths at a hot race in Houston.

Jen and Chance inspect the damage on 'Rustman's' crashed bike at a Texas Mile. This bike went through the speed trap at 209 mph before taking it's tumble.

Grandboy AJ gets a seat in one of the 'fast' Texas Mile cars! I know it won't be long before AJ gets his turn at the mile - but I am pretty certain he will be on 4 wheels :)

Another landspeed racer ready for a run on the Texas Mile.

One of my very favorite pictures taken on the Mile. Jenn in the background and a man on his 'barstool' pit-cruiser.

Oh, I suppose I will survive once again - and when it is over, I am just certain I will have amazing pictures and wonderful memories as with all of our great adventures!

Happy Birthday Grandpup Chance!

September 14, 2007

Happy Birthday Chance! If you were a human instead of a dog, you would be 6 years old!

I remember a time when your mommy was still in high school and a friend needed a temporary care-giver for a baby Great Dane. Jen took that baby Dane, and for several weeks she mixed his formula, fed him with a little bottle...she bathed him, cuddled him and fell in love with that little pup. When the time came to give him back to his owner she simply did not want to do it. But a GREAT DANE...Danes are big, in fact they are huge! And we lived in a tiny house.

She vowed then and there that someday she would be a Great Dane owner. That time came late in 2001. Around the time you were born your mommy moved to the great State of Hawaii. She wasted no time in searching for you - you were adopted before you were even old enough to leave your ma and pa. Ever since then she has loved you completely in all your barking, your drooling and yes, even your farting!

Then when it came time for her to leave Hawaii, she just couldn't leave you behind. You got on a plane and flew the 3,600 miles from Honolulu, Hawaii to Houston, Texas! Your Papa greeted you at the airport in Houston. You were so happy to see him, and from then on you and your Papa became fast buddies. You were so ticked off at your mommy for putting you on that plane in a big box...all alone...you would not even look at her for days! Of course your Papa loved it and immediately began to spoil you. He tempted you with wonderful treats of Texas tacos, McDonald's cheeseburgers...if we ate steak, you ate steak. Oh my - what a spoiled Grandpup you had become.

We listened to the animal whisperer on television, trying to understand that you are a dog and we should not treat you like a human. We tried Chance...we tried and we failed; you have too many human qualities buddy roe!

Now you have moved away to take care of your mommy in her new city. When you last came for a visit, although you were happy to see your Grammy and Papa, you were thrilled to get in that car with your mommy and head back to the hills of Texas. And when we come to your house for a visit, we can see that you love your new home and your wonderful back yard...and the fact that it is never quite as hot in those Texas hills as it is in our City by the Sea!

So, your Grammy and Papa wish you the very happiest 6th birthday because to us, Chance, you are not just an animal...no matter what that 'animal whisperer' says!

~ The Secret ~

August 30, 2007 - I was on my way back to work from a meeting downtown. My cell phone rang (this is uncommon during the regular work day). I answered and someone told me a secret that I could not share with anyone but Roger.

I pressed the speed dial for Roger’s cell to tell him ‘the Secret’. I talked very fast, trying to get the details of ‘the Secret’ to him via cell phone…silence. Complete silence. I felt I was in one of those commercials - you know, the one where the wife calls the husband to share some very exciting baby news…then the phone goes dead and she thinks he is unhappy about the baby.

I said, “Hello? Are you still there? Are you speechless?” NOTHING.

I feared he had fainted, passed out in his office chair, fallen to the floor, broken his arm and wounded his head possibly needing 20 stitches on his brow. Quickly I redialed his number and found that my trusty Verizon “Can you hear me now?” phone had indeed disconnected mid-call.

September 1, 2007 - this is day 3. We are going to visit Jenn today and I must be very careful not to slip up and mention the Secret. I am not good at keeping secrets from my own daughter. She would be the first person I would share a secret with…however, this particular secret must remain just that – a secret – for awhile longer.

I must forget about the ‘Secret.’

September 6, 2007 – Wow, I am surprised at how easily it was to forget about the secret. Oh yes, it pops into my mind here and there…along with the agony that goes along with secret management and simply knowing how this particular secret is bound to change some lives. Two more days and ‘the Secret’ will be revealed.

Later…today I saw a picture of ‘the secret.’ It is quite large, bright yellow and black. NO – it’s not a big bumble bee!

September 8, 2007 – Soon, I will not have to keep this secret any longer!

Yesterday evening was racing in San Antonio. While there, Jenn gazed longingly at a bright yellow GSXR 1000 – it wasn’t a new bike, but it didn’t matter. She used to race one and loved it. She said, “I really liked that bike. I miss it.” Roger and I just looked at each other – we shared a secret. And we could not say a word.

Jenn views sunset at San Antonio Raceway Park while preparing for race

Jenn and her Dad prepare the Turbo Busa for the Dyno tuning

I don’t want to keep this secret any longer!

10:39 p.m. – The phone rang. I picked it up and Jenn declared, “You lied to me!”

“I know,” I said, and I laughed with her.

I could hear lots of ‘noise’ in the background, laughing, talking, eating, smiling (yes, sometimes smiles are noisy!)

So, here it is - the brand new, bright yellow ‘secret’ – a 2007 GSXR 1000, ready to set up for racing. Suzuki has generously donated this bike to Jenn. It is hers to - what else – RACE!

Newsflash! #1 Grandboy Turns 10!

10 years old - he is TEN YEARS OLD! When did this happen?!

What is a Grammy to do when her oldest Grandboy turns ten? I remember my own Grandmother Farnsley who I loved dearly. (She would have been 100 years old on AJ's 10th birthday!) She had a 'bazillion' grandchildren and even though I was only one of them, she always made me feel like I was the only one. I loved to watch her iron and cook; she whistled while she worked ~ this was great! She hung the wash out on the line and everything smelled so wonderful :) She played the old pump organ and sang; she worked in the garden, canned everything, skimmed the cream off the fresh cow's milk, used beautiful white lard and lots of fluffy white flour when she cooked. She made homemade kraut that was unbeatable straight from the jar...and she made the best mashed potatoes! But, the number one thing I remember about my Grandmother is her hair. She had beautiful long white hair...and I loved it :) So, what is this Grammy going to do now that her #1 Grandboy has turned 10? I have decided to stop coloring my hair.

So, even though I'll never cook like my Grandmother, or make homemade kraut, I can have gray hair...and well earned gray hair at that!

A Great Dane Sized Hole!

After living with his Grammy and Papa for more than a year and a half, Chance has officially 'left the building' ~ he has moved to Center Point to live with his mommy, Jenn.

I loaded up the little Mazda 3 with the final load of Jenn's 'stuff'...including her Dane, our Grandpup Chance. All morning he'd known something was up, and was excited and anxious. He'd seen the loads of familiar items go out the door for 2 weekends in a row. But this time was different and he knew it.

Papa had gone to Fermin's for tacos that morning and, as usual, returned with an extra for Chance. Chance knew the routine and obediently sat at his Papa's feet. Before we could locate his 'slobber rag,' drool began to stream from his huge jowls and land in noisy pools on the dining room floor. Papa looked at him sincerely, held the taco at the very tip of Chance's nose and explained how his life was about to change, and how this was probably his last breakfast taco for a very long time. In a swoop and a gulp the taco was gone - Chance looked around hungrily for more, but it was gone.

Several hours later we all arrived at Chance's new home. After a thorough inspection, a tour of each and every room in the house and of the backyard, Chance seemed to understand what had happened. Then we took a short ride to the river park where Chance made some new friends and played in the water. "Hey, this is great," he seemed to say.

We spent one night with Chance in his new home and left early this morning; he wined and cried a bit and wanted to go with us. His mommy had to hold him back at the gate. But as we drove away I could clearly see that he'd already found other things to occupy himself as he galloped down the long fence line in the opposite direction, barking at nothing in particular.

Several hours later we arrived back at our very quiet Corpus Christi house, unlocked the door and, even though we knew he was gone, half way expected the large Dane to greet us at the door.

Chance, you really know how to rip a 'Great Dane sized hole' in your Grammy's heart!

Deathly Hallows!

The big release day ~ Deathly Hallows had finally arrived! How on earth do two adults - and older adults at that - get so excited about the release of a 'children's' book?

Roger and I went to Wal-Mart first thing and picked up a copy (normally we purchase 2 copies so we don't 'argue' over who gets to read it first!) But this time we purchased only one because I had 'pre-ordered' special edition copies from Amazon.com to be delivered at my doorstep on July 21st! But would UPS really deliver my special copies on a Saturday?

It was really big of me to allow Roger to begin reading the 'Wal-Mart' copy of the book before I even had mine...in fact it was agonizing. I was trying to be adult about the entire situation as I quietly allowed him to sit in the den, alone, reading 'his' book.

Jenn arrived at out doorstep a short time later; if we didn't quickly get out of the house Roger's copy of the book was going to mysteriously disappear if he EVER took a reading break.

Upon our return from running errands, there they were perched upon the kitchen table...3 copies of the special edition of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows! - already opened, of course - he had to check them out. (Hummm...I suppose my faith in the UPS man has been restored, but that is still under debate.)

The outside of the box declared, "Muggles, do not deliver or open before July 21st." I had my book! I must say, it is a good thing all three copies arrived, because Jenn and Kathy swooped up their copies of the books without delay!

Now I could begin reading - I made it through a page and a half when the phone rang; another half page and someone at the door...8 hours later I was ready to settle down and begin reading again. All the while Roger had not budged from his comfy recliner, book in hand, eyes locked in place. Had he really not moved? Or was this my imagination? I could clearly see that he was at least half way through the book and I'd barely just begun. Could I catch up!? Not a chance and I knew it.

Being the gentleman that he is, Roger finished his book Sunday evening and did not breathe a word of any of it...this would have been grounds for divorce! Kathy soon finished hers - but she also maintained her silence. Jenn didn't get to start on her copy until Tuesday, so at least I was ahead of someone! Finally, three days later I came to the end of my book. It was over...I'd finished...and it was good :)