Lent: Day 21

Ahh, going without that wonderful carne during the week has become an almost thoughtless process. Amidst all the hungry meat devouring folk, I stand out with my unslaked appetite for those wonderful nuggest of flesh. Eww, that was almost disgusting.

I had a bit of meat this weekend. Sunday, that glorious day of days, was a time for celebration. As Renee and I talked about what to make for dinner, we happened upon the meat aisle in H.E.B. and I could almost hear that angleic music playing: seasoned riblets. Yummy!

Grilled and accompanied with au gratin spuds, we had good eats homecooked and enjoyed in the company of loved ones. For the left overs, I devoured the spuds last night. The riblets? Those righteous little succulent strips were relegated to the freezer, to be enjoyed a week later.

The cruise control has been set; half way there and no real problems. It's difficult most when I'm at a tournament and the provided lunch is hamburgers or some other meat products. I can make due, but eating out some sort of fish or veggie plate gets pricey, even for my cheap arse.

Spring Break cannot get here soon enough.

Mean Streets of Ellinger

Ours was a situation not much different from, say, a long-distanced relationship by that hopeful girl still in high school and the anxious college freshman away for that first time. Tenative, but optimistic. Of course, we weren't exactly sweating about cheating on one another; we were too busy planning on conquering the invading horde of terrorists and ninjas.

Now that's something I remember with an almost guilty smirk. Ninjas were some really cool shit. Yeah, I said that. That's how cool they were. In fact, I remember Kris having a pair of ninja boots (do you still, bro?) and matching socks. Had to, as the boots had a split toe on them. Later, he even procured an actual katana. Maybe it was a small one, but it was a blade nonetheless. Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow from G.I.Joes were the coolest of characters from the series. American Ninja and Revenge of the Ninja were favorites movies to watch all the time. Always, our kung fu was stronger.

While Kris did on occasion visit Columbus and Bellville, it just seemed that visiting him was easier. His house wasn't large, but he had a decent yard. Best of all? The streets of Ellinger lacked the purveyors of justice already found in Columbus: armed and eager to right the wrongs of the world heroes. We, of course, never thought of ourselves as heroes. We were simply charged with going out like good soldiers and taking out the trash that existed in our Rambo-fueled minds.

Most of the time, we could just walk out the door at dark-thirty and meander about, avoiding the glare of headlights and neighbors alike, the occasional dog or two, and that quick stop to try (but never quite succeed) at pilfering the soda machine. Good thing was we never broke it; just never did get that free Pepsi. We would stroll until the moon was directly above, or until about 10:30, which ever came first. I can't remember shooting out streetlights (or not) with the BB gun we sometimes carried with us.

Ah, the streets were never more safe. Until we felt that itching to play a song.

Next time: A Concert for All

Lent: Day 12

What a week. No cheating, no beef or chicken or pork. Land animals rejoice (fowl too!), for I have been a good and devout sacrificer for the week. No crazy dreams, but damn if it wasn't difficult. Our Texas culture doesn't appreciate the typical vegetarian. In two days, I was offered a free lunch, but both were typical Lone Star fare: carne guisada (Mexican stewed meat and gravy; quite tasty!) and barbecue hoagies. I had to settle for rice and beans on Monday, and a barbecue hoage without meat (bread, onions, tomato sauce, pickles, and a smile; thanks to Mr. Harmon). The rest of the week strolled through without incident, but Friday and Saturday are probably the toughest, looking to eat out with family or friends but maintain the current dietary standard. Today we celebrated a nephew's birthday early, so steaks galore. I ate my fill and packed a Lupe plate for later. Amidst the struggles during the week, it's hard to stay humble and not be proud of what I'm doing. Everyone who knows says they couldn't do it, and I want to finish this right. My body is changing ever so slowly, but I imagine my heart is appreciative of the meat fasting right now.

For all this, life for me and mine is truly good. Perhaps an elaboration will follow later, but with good living comes goodness. Thanks to the Big Guy; he is my Superman. Cheers...

Picture courtesy of those wonderful artists at Worth1000.com. Man, those folks are really creative and talented.

Without Political Correctness

I've had to think about this for quite some time now. Kris and I decided to discuss, albeit to the possible detriment of our six readers, politics and their various themes/veins. Unlike many of the political opponents who are currently bombarding Texas with annoying and crappy ads (even a blatant plea pre-recorded and played back on my answering machine!), I plan on simply addressing many issues that we as voters should concern ourselves with. If you don't, you will die. In seven days. Okay, that last few parts are a lie. Voter knowledge is important and perhaps a healthy dose of self discovery.

So who is the best candidate for you to vote for? Most popular? Perhaps, to buck the system, a new candidate to bring about change? Or, that third party candidate that doesn't have a snowball's chance just because that's the super cool (not popular, but cool in a different way) thing to do? In my super smart days when I was 19, I knew everything as most 19 year olds do. I voted for the popular person, being that lemming and going with whoever was going to win. Two years later, garnered with even more knowledge and experience, I voted for not the popular person, but the person who basically gave lip service. In short, I totally misunderstood the concept of an informed voter. I took the easy way out, looking for flow charts and comparisons in the popular magazines they sell at the check-out aisles. After a lenghty discussion with a former golf student of mine (cheers to you Madi!), she proved to me that politics knows no boundaries and anyone willing to delve into it can learn more about candidates. As I learned more about the candidates, I discovered more about myself: what I wanted in a candidate and issues that I favored and opposed.

So what issues do I favor? I have to really think about this for quite some time. It may seem selfish, but I favor issues that affect me and mine. Not just my family and friends, but my corner of the universe. Are their important issues that are worldly? Absolutely. But the circle of responsibility starts small and works its way outwards. So as you go through this humble and quite personal exposition, bear in mind that this is a reflection of my circle.

Education
I doubt I can say enough about education. It truly is what drives a modern society. With the advent of internet and information being available at the fingertips, the learning process has taken quite a turn from traditional learning (that's why you're reading this, right?). Education, in my humble opinion, lays the foundation for our future, our caretakers. Ever wonder how to mold the ultimate society? Hitler knew how: form schools that taught his doctrine. Education is key to society. How does Kim Jong-Il manages his "people"? He controls the information that comes in to the people; basically, only his propaganda is available to the public. Now those are two not so gleaming examples of how education plays a role in society, but take a free society. The quality of schools can be outstanding, being a product of the hard work and tutelage of dedicated teachers. So what's the deal with politics and education? Well, politics affects education with cuts or mandates or law changes. All of these affects teachers and students. And parents. And taxpayers. And the citizens of that population. Such as anything out there, a dominio effect from one seemingly inoccuous action trickles down and bleeds onto the very fabric that makes up our daily lives. Don't believe me? Ask a teacher about No Child Left Behind Act. You may be surprised to hear the variety of responses from those on the front lines. Ask the kids about students in their class. You may be surprised to hear about the variety of students in a class and what it takes to pass a class or a grade. Education is a foundation for society, period. If you don't believe a word I just wrote, then at least thank an educator for teaching you how to read.

Economy
The O'Jays sang about "For the Love of Money" and what a man would do for the almighty dollar. Reality TV exploits this with Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? and Moment of Truth. Do things, do things, bad things...yeah, we do that. So what about politics and money? The government can and does so many things regularly that affects our income, taxes, interest rates, loans, jobs, etc. Take your pick. Whether it's earning, spending, or saving, our government's movment controls it. The short of this? Politics and their stances take hold in certain areas that in one or two steps affects our money. Hell, my money and yours too. Our nice little economic stimulus package coming this summer? Well, there may be more there than what has been told upfront. One has to wonder where this $168 billion is coming from. Hmmm... I'm not going to rant on about economy because, well, I can't. I still need to inform myself (gotta love education!) on that facts of the package. Will I spend it? Yeah, we need a new car. But that was already in the plans before the package.

Immigration
I live in Texas, do I need to say anything else? Okay. There is obviously more to this. For the record, I'm the product of importation: I was born in Thailand many moons ago, the product of a native mother and GI Dad. I was fortunate that I wasn't privy to the necessary steps required to obtain US citizenship. It was my birthright because of my father. But what of the Mexcians, Cubans, Africans, Middle Easterners that come to our country every day?

I have my opinion on this. I love our diversity. I don't think that "My America" should lose her identity due to a watering down infusion of excessive immigration. But then, what is "My America"? I grew up four houses away from Claudia, a Mexican lady who used to baby sit us and did some laundry. Across the street was a retired couple, Polish or French I believe, that had a wonderful garden filled with aromatic seasons and vegetables. My French neighbor put up our regular and tire swing on the thirty-foot tall limb in the back yard. My in-laws, with all their wonderful Polish quirkiness, have some of the most filling food and thrilling stories that meander around the wonderfulness of nothingness. "My America" is the product of that which I may very well be fighting: diversity. I had a conversation about this a few weeks ago, and the one unintentionally trite argument was "I don't want us to lose our identity." His contention, in that other cultures celebrate their own heritage here (Mexicans = Fiesta; Chinese = Lunar New Years; Irish = St. Patrick's Day; etc.) but what of America's? We do have 4th of July and Thanksgiving, but aside from that, I am not quite sure what about our culture we can preserve. I like the diversity. I like believing in freedom of speech. I think my friend's point was the frustration of being politically correct. Here in Texas, a variety (in fact all) public signage and pamphlets are produced in English and Spanish.

Okay. I wrote some more. Be back later to finish!

Lent: Day 5

Whew! So far so good, but it's been challenging.

It's amazing how much of my diet consists of meat or meat-derived products (think broth or soup here). As much as I like to dine on beef, pork and chicken, this change has been one filled with constant thought and reminder.

Two nights ago, I dreamed I was at a party and filled my plate with various foods: burger, pork riblets, slabs of brisket, and wings galore. As soon as I took a bite of a riblet, Renee reminded me in the dream, "David, it's not Sunday; why are you eating that?" Damnit! I woke up smacking my lips, but realizing it was just a dream.

Been tempted a few times, but not to the point of wanting to cheat. I'd like to be able to say that I've kept up the willpower to complete this task.

I've got a few golf tournaments coming up. Usually, they feed the coaches and athletes at these functions. This may be difficult in the upcoming weeks, but I shall try to stay the course.

I better make sure that I have something beefy for dinner.