Pre Event Report

Illusions on a Double Dimple Photo source: Amazon

Ben, the two of us need look no more

We both found what we’ve been looking for

—Don Black

Weather or Not

I made it to Frisco after taking almost four hours for what should’ve been a 2.5 hour drive, according to The Googles. Waco was probably the most interesting part of the drive. I had to go through a thunderstorm that was like driving through a tropical storm. There were times I couldn’t see the car in front of me, even though the traffic on I-35. It slowed to almost 35 miles an hour.

By the time I made it to the north side of Waco, I had driven out of the rain. The roads were not dry, and the sky looked like it could start to pour again at any second. But it had still been free of the rain long enough for the automatic windshield wipers to stop for a couple of minutes. Then my phone went off in panic mode. “Warning! Warning! Warning! Severe thunderstorm warning for the next 18 minutes. Really helpful, Siri.”

So anyway I managed to get to the event and get checked in to help with the event. My job tonight was to attach badge holders to the end of lanyards, and I did a few hundred of those. Then we broke for the evening and I went to the other hotel because I hadn’t been able to get booked at the Hilton tonight.

I got checked in at the other hotel, which shall remain nameless for reasons you shall see. I went up to the room and found it to be very very nice, if not worth the price that I’m having to pay for it. But that’s what happens when you go to a conference and have to get a hotel in a downtown area.

Rats have their place in nature and science. We don’t have to worry too much about them at the Hermits’ Rest Ranch because we have three dogs and numerous wild raptors who all love rats. Photo source: The Scientist

Ratatouille

By that time, I was hungry for dinner. I went downstairs to the restaurant, and it’s pretty nice and reasonably priced—for a hotel. The waitress was really personable and made me laugh. She took my order and went away. While I was waiting for my food to come out a fairly large gray rat scampered across the restaurant in front of me. I was tired, so I rubed my eyes thinking, “Did I really just see a rat run across the restaurant?”

About the time I convinced myself that I didn’t see what I saw, the rat ran back across the other direction. So when the waitress came by with my drink and to take my order, I told her, “By the way you might want to tell your manager I just saw a rat run across there.” When she realized I was serious, she burst out laughing, “Oh no. Now I have to set traps for it.”

She then left to get my drink refill, and I heard the guys in the bar laughing all the way across the hotel. Mind you, it wasn’t really empty in the restaurant, just slow. Like you expect from a hotel restaurant on a Monday night.

She came back and told me that she told the guys in the bar, and they were having a good time about it. She also told me she poured my second drink so it would be comped. Then she left to check on my order and the rat made the third appearance. I told the waitress about this when she came back, and she told the manager who reiterated that she had to set traps for it now.

Everything was settling down when the waitress went to get my food. She came back and she was laughing so hard she could hardly walk. She said the rat had made it to the kitchen and the three big burly guys in there were all up on the counter yelling that “there’s a bunch of them on the floor and there’s only one.” She says, “Frederico says, ‘He’s been here a long time. He is gray. He’s got lots of gray hair.’ I couldn’t convince him that they’re all gray.”

She and I talked for a long time about how she ended up here and things we have in common. Her husband is a national record producer, and they live in Junction. She came up here to open the hotel and his ended up staying for almost 7 years. I told her that I spent 10 years on a three month contract once. This was a very enjoyable and to what had been a stressful then boring day.

Find your hope and laughter where you can.

Because I was unable to write much this week, Suna adapted this post for republication on the Hermit Haus site on 2018-02-09.

 

San Diego

Suna and I waiting to fly out of ABIA yesterday Suna having dinner in the hotel restaurant

Does this look like a $30 meal

I never saw my hometown until I stayed away too long

I never heard the melody until I needed the song

—Tom Waits

Suna, Carol, Russell and I are in San Diego for a Fortunebuilders “bootcamp.” It turns out they have a special meaning for that word that goes far beyond my previous usage. A Fortunebuilders Bootcamp is a large educational event that offers a range of classes to hundreds, if not thousands, of investors and potential investors. Russell is attending the “Internet Intensive” while Suna, Carol, and I are in the “Rental Intensive.”

The Internet Intensive focuses on using the Internet, including a proprietary system called Realeflow, to market to a range of buyers and sellers. Russell is a good choice for that since he is in charge of our back office systems and website.

I’m looking forward to the Rental Intensive and hope I learn a bunch of stuff about managing my rental portfolio.

I can’t say I’m impressed by the hotel hosting the event. The restaurant is overpriced as only a “artistic” or “trendy” place can be. Unfortunately, the quality of the food was not up to the pricing, once again demonstrating the difference between confidence and arrogance. I also wonder if the leadership isn’t looking at the hotel as a distressed commercial property that they can add value to.

 

JT and the Quartertones

Suna dances and says, “Let’s go listen to some music!” in her new nearly-completed sweater.

Tonight is the midpoint between Suna’s birthday and mine. To celebrate, we went to see Jeff’s new band play at cafe segovia. I guess they spell it in all lower case in a misguided attempt to be trendy.

To me there is nothing trendy about good food, and the food there is superlative. It is Spanish rather than Mexican or TexMex. Suna and Parker had a beef stew seasoned with a hint of cinnamon. I had a suckling pig that was cooked to succulent moistness if a little under seasoned. I guess the chef wanted to let the natural flavor of the little piggy carry the day, and it was almost up to the task. Beccano had a rib eye, which he consumed in it’s entirety.

But the culinary star of the evening was the vegetables. They were fresh and crisp. They were also seasoned to perfection. I have never eaten veggies before that I preferred to a tasty entré. Mmmmmmmmm.

I said culinary star because Suna chose the restaurant because of the entertainment. Jeff’s new band had their debut performance. I’ve heard Jeff play around the house, so I knew he is a hot picker. I’ve heard him at a couple of singer songwriter gigs, including our wedding, so I knew he could fulfill both halves of that category. But this was the first time I’ve heard him rock.

The band did a mix of classic covers and originals. My favorite of the first set was a long medley based on “Pretty Woman.&rquo; Parker on Beccano both enjoyed “Sultans of Swing.” And I liked the originals, too.

We didn’t get to stay for the second set because we had to get the kids home. That was disappointing, but it was also a good excuse to drag this tired old butt to bed.

Go see JT and the Quartertones play at a venue near you if you get the chance.

Friday’s Feast Remembered and Honored

There used to be a blog called Friday’s Feast. Each Friday, it asked five questions and asked its readers to answer them. The questions were presented as a menu, and five questions was just about right—enough to be interesting, not enough to tire the reader.

Many chose to answer in the comments section of the blog, but I always posted my responses in my own blog. Friday’s Feast was so successful that it left Blogger and went out on its own. After awhile, it stopped appearing. Finally, the new URL stopped working. Friday’s Feast was no more.

Well, I always enjoyed answering the questions and reading the answers my friends posted in their blogs. So I’m going to try on the mantle of Inquisitor, breaking out the dreaded Comfy Chair and Soft Cushion.

I’m calling this new initiative, “Food for Thought.” Each post will contain five questions presented as a menu, as did Friday’s Feast. Just below the questions, I will answer as honestly as I can. I don’t think it’s fair to ask questions you wouldn’t yourself. The first comment will contain the code for the questions so that you can post them in your blog.

If you want to answer in the comments, feel free. If you want to answer in your own blog, please post a link to it in the comments.

Food for Thought

Without further ado, here is the first menu:

Appetizer: Who is the person physically nearest you right now? What is that person doing?

Suna is sitting on the other side of the bed and knitting as I type. She is waiting for a phone call. (I am typing this blog ahead of time.)

Soup: Hit Shuffle on your mp3 player. What do you like most about the song came up? (If you don’t have an mp3 player, use the song currently on your favorite radio station.)

The song that came up is “Body Is a Car” by Four Bitchin’ Babes. They are one of the most innovative groups of the last decade. Four singer-songwriters who sing well together, their music is both musically interesting and lyrically funny. Although at times, as in this song, they show a deeper nature. “My body is a car driving my soul around.” The song then pushes the metaphor to in several directions. That said, it is not my favorite Bitchin’ song.

Salad: What is your favorite restaurant?

I guess it wouldn’t surprise any of my faithful reader if I said, ”Mesa Rosa.” But I think eating there is helping me put back on some of the weight I fought so hard to get rid of.

Entré: What are you most looking forward to in the Obama administration? What do you most fear? (Even Republicans has something to hope for, and even Democrats have something that they fear.)

I am most looking forward to have a leader with moral integrity instead of situational ethics. I am so tired of the “torture is wrong when they do it to us but OK when we do it to them” mentality.

What I am most fearful of is that some bigot with a telescopic sight will bring this presidency to an early end. I’m not sure the country could survive that.

Dessert: What made you laugh hardest in the last 24 hours?

My head has been too stopped up to do much laughing over the last few days. I do remember laughing really hard at something on the Daily Show last night. Unfortunately, I the Nyquil keeps me from remembering what it was.