My previous post made it sound like I was in a pretty dire straights. I must admit being married for five years has changed me in a way that I found rather surprising. My wife is due back this Saturday and I'm finding myself all a-twitter over the prospect.
The trip is going well thusfar. They're on the last leg and are currently touring Paris (France, not Texas). They head back to London Thursday and fly out of London Saturday morning, stop in Atlanta, then head home.
I'll post once she arrives and I've had time to assimilate all that has transpired. I realize three weeks is a relatively short time to many, but I'm realizing the subtleties that define a house versus a home.
Yes guys, I'm whipped. Deal with it.
But then if you saw my wife, you'd do the same thing.
-D
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Sunday, June 18, 2006
LIfe as a Bachelor
It's been six days since Mrs. Geek and the girls left and I'm feeling a little lonely. I'm a little surprised at how many of my old habits are attempting to creep back into existence. Her cell phone is working, and everytime I hear Crazy Train I leap for the phone.
They seem to be having a good time. Lots of stories and pictures will come home with them, but I can tell it's going to be a long two weeks.
-D
They seem to be having a good time. Lots of stories and pictures will come home with them, but I can tell it's going to be a long two weeks.
-D
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Update
They left yesterday and arrvied in London in fine fashion. Oddly enough, I can SMS message my wife with no problem, a pretty fantastic feat considering that travel time is almost instantaneous. When I try to call her directly though, it's another matter. Here's hoping the cell phone company gets it figured out.
The Mavs faltered a little last night. It was a good game nonetheless. Shaq made his two free throws, Dirk missed on of his. Now that the initial shock is over, the remaining games should be a ride.
Only two more games is all we need!
-D
The Mavs faltered a little last night. It was a good game nonetheless. Shaq made his two free throws, Dirk missed on of his. Now that the initial shock is over, the remaining games should be a ride.
Only two more games is all we need!
-D
Monday, June 12, 2006
And There She Goes . . .
Tomorrow Mrs. Geek, my mom, my mother in law, and my sister in law head off for a three week jaunt in the United Kingdom. They're actually going to Scotland for a close friend's wedding and are going to take in Paris, London, Warrick, and who knows what else while they're over there the remainder of the month. It also entails me playing bachelor for a month. I'm under threats to keep the house clean, and to text my wife's cell phone with the results of the NBA playoffs. She's packend no less than three times, and now a fourth time is in order as there is an apparent heatwave underway across the pond.
My wife is no stranger to England as she spent eight weeks over there when she was in college. She will be driving over there for the first time, so here's hoping.
I'll post trip updates as they become available.
-D
My wife is no stranger to England as she spent eight weeks over there when she was in college. She will be driving over there for the first time, so here's hoping.
I'll post trip updates as they become available.
-D
Saturday, June 10, 2006
Day 4
We slept in this morning (again) and I must admit, the hotel has one of the better beds we've slept in in quite awhile. After Amy's work out, the usual packing, and dummy check we checked out and headed home. The drive went well, and we got home in fine fashion. Breafast tacos for Amy and and some Hostess Apple Pies for me. Lunch was kolaches in West.
Overall, the trip was a wonderful diversion from the usual, and a wonderful gift from my wife. Am I lucky? Yes!
-=D
Overall, the trip was a wonderful diversion from the usual, and a wonderful gift from my wife. Am I lucky? Yes!
-=D
Friday, June 09, 2006
Day 3
This morning started out like the other mornings: me intending on getting up early and deciding that 8am was early enough. Amy went for her workout and I got ready and tidied up the room a bit (just a bit). Amy came back, got ready, and we headed out for the San Antonion Zoo.
The SA Zoo was nice. Not as immense as the Ft. Worth Zoo but well laid out and populated with the usual assortment of monkeys, birds, and grade school kids. We left around 11 and headed into town for lunch at Mi Tierra. The place was crowded and after a 20 minute wait, our table was ready. The last time I was here I tried cabrito, very tasty but a little more than I wanted this time. I settled for a beef enchilada dinner and Amy had something similar. We went to the Mexican Market Place, then to the Panaderia (bakery) loaded up, and headed home. Amy went up for another workout and I played lazy (I think you see a recurring theme here).
Around 6 we decided to head out for dinner on our last night. Since Barbecue, Burgers, and Mexican had already been done, I thought seafood was in order and Amy agreed. Joe's Crab Shack was just a short stroll away and we arrived, put our names on the list, and decided that a 45 min wait was a little more than we wanted. A further stroll down the River Walk showed us the Mad Dog Pub. 5 minutes later we were seated and ordered: Fish and Chips being the item recommended to us by the waitress. When our food arrived we were happy to find out that she was correct. The rest of the meal was spent people watching on the River Walk: something both fun and enlightening.
Back to the hotel and Batman is running on the telvision, thanks to Amy's Ipod.
-D
The SA Zoo was nice. Not as immense as the Ft. Worth Zoo but well laid out and populated with the usual assortment of monkeys, birds, and grade school kids. We left around 11 and headed into town for lunch at Mi Tierra. The place was crowded and after a 20 minute wait, our table was ready. The last time I was here I tried cabrito, very tasty but a little more than I wanted this time. I settled for a beef enchilada dinner and Amy had something similar. We went to the Mexican Market Place, then to the Panaderia (bakery) loaded up, and headed home. Amy went up for another workout and I played lazy (I think you see a recurring theme here).
Around 6 we decided to head out for dinner on our last night. Since Barbecue, Burgers, and Mexican had already been done, I thought seafood was in order and Amy agreed. Joe's Crab Shack was just a short stroll away and we arrived, put our names on the list, and decided that a 45 min wait was a little more than we wanted. A further stroll down the River Walk showed us the Mad Dog Pub. 5 minutes later we were seated and ordered: Fish and Chips being the item recommended to us by the waitress. When our food arrived we were happy to find out that she was correct. The rest of the meal was spent people watching on the River Walk: something both fun and enlightening.
Back to the hotel and Batman is running on the telvision, thanks to Amy's Ipod.
-D
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Day 2
This morning started off pretty well, actually the entire day was a good one. We left around 10 and headed out to do some sight seeing. I was introduced to the Congress Avenue bridge and the few thousand bats that live under it. It was an interesting experience as it's one of the largest bat colonies in the area and is comprised of Mexican Free Tailed bats. You could hear them screeching at one another and the smell of guano was present, but not overwhelming. A short drive away was a statue of Stevie Ray Vaughan. Very inspiring piece of artwork.
We headed out to Driftwood, Texas. Just 10 miles from nowhere, it's a small town that is home to the Salt Lick. It's a working ranch that specializes in doing some of the best BBQ I've ever tasted. You seat yourself an the menu is pretty straighforward: no fench fries, no onion rings, no burgers. Just your choice of any or all of the best pork ribs, brisket, and sausage drenched in a homemade sauce that bears more a resemblance to brown gravy than bbq sauce, but the similarity ends there. Where other places try to overwhelm the taste of the meat and sauce with copious amounts of smoke, the Salt Lick lets the meat take the forefront and their homebrew of a sauce is the perfect backup. Combine that with potato salad, cole slaw, pinto beans, and a plate full of raw onion and homemade dill pickles and you've got one of the better meals I've had in awhile. And yes, there was white bread for soaking up every last drop of that wonderful sauce.
Next up was a stop in San Marcos and a driving tour of the former Southwest Texas State University, now titled Texas State University, San Marcos. A beautiful campus and definitely time well spent. This was followed by a short stop at a local outlet mall and San Antonio was in our sights. This was yet another test of my GPS, and it did the trick, thankfully. Unfortunatley it doesn't show you the front entrance which we had a little trouble finding. We parked, and got checked in.
The Watermark Hotel is a nice place. We're overlooking the River Walk and after a little shopping we popped into Johnny Rockets for a burger. Tomorrow is the Zoo and Mi Tierra for lunch. Dinner is still up in the air, but will be someplace close by more than likely.
-D
We headed out to Driftwood, Texas. Just 10 miles from nowhere, it's a small town that is home to the Salt Lick. It's a working ranch that specializes in doing some of the best BBQ I've ever tasted. You seat yourself an the menu is pretty straighforward: no fench fries, no onion rings, no burgers. Just your choice of any or all of the best pork ribs, brisket, and sausage drenched in a homemade sauce that bears more a resemblance to brown gravy than bbq sauce, but the similarity ends there. Where other places try to overwhelm the taste of the meat and sauce with copious amounts of smoke, the Salt Lick lets the meat take the forefront and their homebrew of a sauce is the perfect backup. Combine that with potato salad, cole slaw, pinto beans, and a plate full of raw onion and homemade dill pickles and you've got one of the better meals I've had in awhile. And yes, there was white bread for soaking up every last drop of that wonderful sauce.
Next up was a stop in San Marcos and a driving tour of the former Southwest Texas State University, now titled Texas State University, San Marcos. A beautiful campus and definitely time well spent. This was followed by a short stop at a local outlet mall and San Antonio was in our sights. This was yet another test of my GPS, and it did the trick, thankfully. Unfortunatley it doesn't show you the front entrance which we had a little trouble finding. We parked, and got checked in.
The Watermark Hotel is a nice place. We're overlooking the River Walk and after a little shopping we popped into Johnny Rockets for a burger. Tomorrow is the Zoo and Mi Tierra for lunch. Dinner is still up in the air, but will be someplace close by more than likely.
-D
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
5th Aniversary: Day One
Sorry for the dearth in postings lately (especially to edieray).
Summer has started and Mrs. Geek and I arrived in Austin, TX today for a short, but much needed, vacation. We’re celebrating five years this Friday and we came back to where it all started, or at least Amy’s half did.
When we first started dating, it was a long distance relationship. She lived in Austin and I in the Dallas area (DeSoto to be exact). We try to hit Austin every few years to retrace some old steps and take in the general vibe of the city. Austin has a very unique feel to it, and as some would say the waters here are good.
We left this morning and thankfully had no real timeline set. After a few last minute errands, we were on the road and immediately immersed ourselves in a game of 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon. I decided to get esoteric on it and started throwing out some older silver and silent screen movie stars. In case you’re wondering, we did go from Buster Keaton to Kevin Bacon in six steps or less. No real luck with Barbara Stanwyck, but I’ll fire up IMDB for that one.
We arrived at the Econo Lodge in Austin a little after 3PM. Its humble and in a somewhat twitchy part of town, but our ultimate destination is San Antonio where we’ll take in the River Walk and some wonderful Mexican food. I figured we could add to our fun by heading down a day early, ergo the layover in Austin. A few things worth noting:
The place we’re staying in now is off the beaten path, nice, and very cheap. I’ve got free Internet and was stunned that the front desk actually knew what a WEP key was. Internet is one thing that I found striking here: Mangia Pizza AND the movie theatre we went to tonight had Internet as I discovered on my PDA. Very cool.
This trip was also my first real foray into using GPS technology for navigation. A few months back I purchased a used Ipaq from a friend and a Bluetooth GPS receiver off of Ebay. Some software and some twiddling later (thanks to Steve for the twiddling), and I now have every man’s dream: something that tells him where to go that does not possess two X chromosomes. It’s still a little buggy sometimes, but here’s hoping my luck with it continues.
We had some wonderful pizza at Mangia Pizza, then to the hotel, then to 6th street for a short shopping trip, then to the Alamo theatre which is one of those places that shows movies and serves food. We saw X-Men (stay through the credits, trust me on this one), and headed back to the hotel. Yes, there are movie establishments like this in the Dallas area, but the ones in Dallas do not show X-Men cartoons and homemade movies beforehand, and do NOT make threats of bodily harm to those who make too much noise in the theatre. This place did. Only in Austin.
I’ll try and check back in tomorrow with yet another update.
-D
Summer has started and Mrs. Geek and I arrived in Austin, TX today for a short, but much needed, vacation. We’re celebrating five years this Friday and we came back to where it all started, or at least Amy’s half did.
When we first started dating, it was a long distance relationship. She lived in Austin and I in the Dallas area (DeSoto to be exact). We try to hit Austin every few years to retrace some old steps and take in the general vibe of the city. Austin has a very unique feel to it, and as some would say the waters here are good.
We left this morning and thankfully had no real timeline set. After a few last minute errands, we were on the road and immediately immersed ourselves in a game of 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon. I decided to get esoteric on it and started throwing out some older silver and silent screen movie stars. In case you’re wondering, we did go from Buster Keaton to Kevin Bacon in six steps or less. No real luck with Barbara Stanwyck, but I’ll fire up IMDB for that one.
We arrived at the Econo Lodge in Austin a little after 3PM. Its humble and in a somewhat twitchy part of town, but our ultimate destination is San Antonio where we’ll take in the River Walk and some wonderful Mexican food. I figured we could add to our fun by heading down a day early, ergo the layover in Austin. A few things worth noting:
The place we’re staying in now is off the beaten path, nice, and very cheap. I’ve got free Internet and was stunned that the front desk actually knew what a WEP key was. Internet is one thing that I found striking here: Mangia Pizza AND the movie theatre we went to tonight had Internet as I discovered on my PDA. Very cool.
This trip was also my first real foray into using GPS technology for navigation. A few months back I purchased a used Ipaq from a friend and a Bluetooth GPS receiver off of Ebay. Some software and some twiddling later (thanks to Steve for the twiddling), and I now have every man’s dream: something that tells him where to go that does not possess two X chromosomes. It’s still a little buggy sometimes, but here’s hoping my luck with it continues.
We had some wonderful pizza at Mangia Pizza, then to the hotel, then to 6th street for a short shopping trip, then to the Alamo theatre which is one of those places that shows movies and serves food. We saw X-Men (stay through the credits, trust me on this one), and headed back to the hotel. Yes, there are movie establishments like this in the Dallas area, but the ones in Dallas do not show X-Men cartoons and homemade movies beforehand, and do NOT make threats of bodily harm to those who make too much noise in the theatre. This place did. Only in Austin.
I’ll try and check back in tomorrow with yet another update.
-D
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