My Brother - FP Brewer and Soloist

Many of you know him as FP Brewer. While I admire my brother's beer making abilities, there are some other things I wanted you to know about him.

My brother is the type of person who does things and does them well. Ask him to make beer and it will be, quite literally, an award winner. Watch him clean the pool, and it is immaculate. Get an invitation to dinner and watch him produce the tastiest grilled chicken you've ever had. Witness his loving attitude as a father, husband, son and grandfather, and you will see greatness. Hear him sing and...well, my brother can SING.

I got a text message Monday -- he was going to sing the National Anthem at the Swashbuckler arena football game. I was visiting him in Louisiana with JP the last time he got this gig and we went --this was taken at the front entrance of the arena

On Monday, The Swashbucklers were playing - get this- the Corpus Christi Hammerheads in a championship game!!! Since this is Hammerhead country, the game was going to be running at our local Gattitown on the jumbo TV!! Praying he wouldn't be pre-empted by a commercial, me, Annie and Audrey headed over there to hear my brother sing. After some nerve-rattling technical difficulties were overcome, we finally had sound and a picture. There he was, in his khaki pants and dark shirted handsomeness, being introduced in the center of the arena.

I announced unabashedly to the whole room "that's my brother"!!! There was no music, not even a beginning note. He sang. Oh man he SANG! When he got to the "for the la-nd of the freeeeee"....everyone started clapping!... and when it was over, the whole room was clapping. I was so darn proud I cried right there in the middle of Gattitown.

My brother. Whatever he does it is done with quality and love and selflessness. I am so proud of him.

Going to the beach!

I hate to admit this - I've lived in Corpus Christi since Jan 2006, and I've never been to the real beach. I've gone to the man-made ones downtown or along the shore by the bay, but not the REAL deal. Not enough time, always have stuff to do, working to get ahead, going out of town, it never seems to end. BUT, this weekend, I went. JP made a special request, so I had to say yes. The beach wasn't at its best as Dolly purged just about every bit of seaweed (which, for you non-scientist types, is NOT a plant) up on the shore. That meant a lot of stuff stuck in the seaweed. No matter, we went for a 2 hour walk along the shoreline and had a blast. Saw some VERY cool birds including this Great Blue Heron.
Here's a close-up:
Others included lots of Caspian terns: Long-billed curlews: Short-billed dowitchers: Lots and lots of laughing gulls and ring-billed gulls, some pelicans that made my day, and birds that I cannot yet identify. I'm learning more about shore birds since coming here -- I was raised as an academic on forest/hardwood trees and associated songbirds and riparian habitat birds of Central Texas, so this is a whole new 'bird menu' for me. I researched eastern screech owls for five years in central Texas...they don't mingle with shore birds much. So, I'm learning....

Following our walk we went to a favorite seafood place - seating is outside at Snoopys and is next to a pier located right on the inter coastal canal: It's so relaxing to watch the sailboats come and go, the pelicans looking for a free handout as the deep sea fisherman come in, and drinking a cold beer with your freshly caught shrimp. Also located right next door is Scoopy's! -- yummy ice cream! Awesome -- a little sunburn, full tummies and I finally made it to the beach. It was so fun, and I'm thankful for JP's insistence on taking time off from cell phones and work and computers. It was a great day! It won't be so long before I return -- already making plans to bring Audrey!

Randy Pausch: The Last Lecture

Professor Randy Pausch - teacher, creator, father of three and a young 47 years old, died today. I should be working, but when a text from JP alerted me about this article, I wanted to take time to post this video. It is not the last lecture - you can buy his book or view entire Last Lecture videos on YouTube. He is exemplary and will long be remembered. And I apologize to my children for not allowing them to freely draw on the walls in their bedrooms. By the grace of God, they manage to grow up in spite of our mistakes and make us proud. Here's to Professor Pausch - may his words continue to inspire us all.

Rough Night: Dolly Won't Leave

Overnight there was wind, rain and more rain. Sheets of rain and wind that shook my apartment. Ella never left my side. The good thing is I didn't lose power. Today, I awoke (once more) to the sound of hard, pounding rain. Things are supposed to let up as the day goes on, but this system is moving sooo slowly. AND, the people on South Padre that had came and stayed for their vacations are stuck as the causeway is closed - and they have had NO power. It's a mess, over 15 inches fell there yesterday.
The big question for the day -- will JP's flight make it in? Will Southwest Airlines come through? We won't know till late tonight --- fingers and toes crossed. Corkscrew in glove box. Perhaps I can figure out a way to attach an inflatable life vest!

Dolly Can't Decide

Its noon: she's still sitting offshore, has built herself up to a Category 2 and is making us all quite anxious as she has moved northward, following the coastline.The radio station I usually listen to has gone MIA - so I've got on a Hispanic station. They have Hispanic storm watchers everywhere!! Fernando is downtown talking about a funnel cloud as we speak --all giving us the low-down on Dolly, in English. Along with rain and wind,there have been some road closures, flooding, power outages and stalled vehicle/accidents, but Carlos and Ramos are doing a great job of reporting the latest! The mariachi filled music keeps you happy and upbeat! Oh - thanks to Blue's driver, I've got plenty of merlot on hand should nerves require it tonight, and batteries for my radio so I don't lose track of my new buds Carlos and Ramos. Onward we go...Dolly, por favor deje Texas!

Audrey's First Science Lesson

Annie dropped Audrey off at my work on Saturday during an appointment. I took Audrey down to my classroom/lab. We went through some things that she found quite intriguing.... Audrey: "Momma,whas' this?"
Me: "That's a baby chicken in the jar."
Audrey: "Momma, get it out!!"


Audrey: "Beach ball!!! "
Me: "No Audrey, that's the earth. We live here" (point to the general vicinity of Texas).
Audrey: "Bouncy Beach Ball!"

(preserved) Starfish on table...

Handling the "starfursh" -- very carefully.

Audrey seemed to like handling specimens in jars, like these preserved earthworms:

And so she lined up some more...a turtle, snail, frog, jellyfish...

Discussing the unity and diversity found in organismal biology:

After serious thought she decided she needed more specimens:

So she went over to the cabinet to see if there were any more worth collecting:

But promptly left the jars and starfish when she discovered the COW (laptop computer on wheels cabinet!) I wish I could take credit for the paint job, but I am not artistic. (Paid a talented student for the terrific paint job after getting grant funds for the laptops and cabinet!) Ohhh so fun! She gave it a kiss bye-bye!

Hello Dolly!

It seems we are expecting a little weather. My university has cancelled classes for two days and since my students are missing a major exam, they're pretty happy I'm sure. The lines at the gas pumps make it look like the 1970's gas war (99 cent) days that are long over. Annie is leaving town - so are all my fellow faculty members and friends. Ella,the fish, the birdies and I will sit here and watch the winds from my 2nd story. I've stocked up on water (they turn off the water - I never could figure that one out. I mean, we're getting MORE water - leave it on!), tons of batteries and a bottle of wine. What else do ya need? I just hope the power stays on -- it's up around 100 degrees these days with a minimum humidity reading of 97% and even though I hate air conditioning and am always cold, I don't want to think about an extended period of time without it.

JP is supposed to come to town Thursday. Wanna take bets on whether the flight makes it? I bet it does. I bet this thing is gonna blow through Wednesday before I get to finish the bottle of wine -- certainly before I go through all this bottled water.

In the meantime, I'll try and do some work, maybe some blogging, singing with the birdies and maybe even get on the elliptical since my running is definitely gonna be curtailed. That's all provided we keep electric power going. Otherwise, I'm gonna high tail it to the nearest hotel room (that has electricity, i.e., air conditioning) with the birdies and the dog. The fish don't care.

Mamma Mia!

Ohhhh man we loved it! Annie, Katie, Cherie on Saturday night -- rocking! Totally recommend as a GREAT chick flick! The tunes will make your soul happy and the story is to be remembered! Download the soundtrack (thanks Annie!!) and listen when ya got some serious moves ready!!

A True Story: City Ducks

I received the following this week from a friend:
It seems that Joel, a loan officer that works at Sterling Bank in downtown Spokane WA watched as a mother duck (Mallard) choose the cement awning outside his window as the uncanny place to build a nest above the sidewalk:

The mallard laid 9 eggs in a nest in the corner of the planter that is perched over 10 ft in the air. She dutifully incubated the eggs for weeks and one Monday afternoon all of her 9 ducklings hatched! Joel worried all night how the momma duck was going to get those babies safely off their perch in a busy, downtown, urban environment to take to water, which typically happens in the within the first 48 hrs of a duck hatching:

Tuesday morning, Joel came to work and watched the mother duck encourage her ducklings to the edge of the perch with the intent to show them how to jump off! The mother flew down below and started quacking to her babies above. Joel watched in disbelief as the first fuzzy duckling toddled to the edge and leapt into thin air, crashing onto the cement below. Joel couldn't let this continue to happen! He dashed out of his office and ran down the stairs the sidewalk where the first obedient duckling was dazed near its mother from the fall: Joel looked up. The second duckling was getting ready to jump! He quickly dodged under the awning while the mother duck quacked at him and at the ducklings above. As the second one took the plunge, Joel jumped forward and caught it before it hit the cement. Safe and sound,he set it by the momma and other stunned sibling, still recovering from its painful leap. One by one the ducklings continued to jump to join their anxious family below. Each time Joel hid under the awning just to reach out as the duckling made its free-fall. The downtown sidewalk came to a standstill! Time after time, Joel was able to catch the remaining seven ducklings and set them by their approving mother.
At this point Joel realized the duck family had only made part of its dangerous journey. They had two full blocks to walk across traffic, crosswalks, curbs and pedestrians to get to the closest open water, the Spokane River . The onlooking office secretaries then joined in and hurriedly brought an empty copy paper box to collect the babies. They carefully corralled them, with the mother's approval, and loaded them up into the white cardboard container. Joel held the box low enough for the female duck to see her brood. He then slowly navigated through the downtown streets toward the Spokane River as the mother waddled behind and kept her ducklings in sight: As they reached the river, the Sterling Bank office staff then tipped the box and helped shepherd the babies toward the water and to their mother after their adventurous ride: All 9 ducklings safely made it into the water and paddled up to momma duck. Joel said the mom swam in circles, looking back toward the beaming bank workers, proudly quacking as if to say, "See, we did it! Thanks for all the help!' Lesson? Nothing is impossible without a little help from our friends!!

Proactivity with Purpose

Dr. Carole Noon has her Ph.D. in anthropology and is a faculty member at the University of Florida. Her touching story has been seen nationally on CNN on this video (click on CNN). In addition, you can read a report here. One person making a huge difference - a truly inspiring story!!

Great flick with great company

I had some plans for Sunday. Following church and breakfast at Andy's with Annie and Audrey, I was going to clean my place, finish up some stuff at work, laundry -- you know, the stuff we can't get to until the weekend. Annie called me and wanted to know if I wanted to go the movies with Audrey. At first I said, "No, got stuff to do". Then, while vacuuming I thought -- I can vacuum anytime! Did I want to be there for Audrey's real first movie? Heck yeah! So, we went and loaded up on popcorn and snacks. Annie was smart and brought Audrey's stroller - Audrey sat in the handicapped section, front row with Annie and me next to her. Well, the movie totally rocked! Pixar is unbelievable and the plot was as entertaining for Audrey as it was for me. LOTS of good, basic messages here - some of which are NOT being heard! With the exception of two brief breaks for snacks and a diaper change, Audrey watched the whole thing. We had a great time. Go see - you will love it! It was totally worth it.

And now, back to vacuuming....

Sweet Bridle Thoroughbred Farms (in my dreams...)

The nose-ahead horse is a two-year-old filly named Sweetacious. She won $125,000,000 at Lone Star Park Saturday. JP was there -- I wasn't as this was a weekend where I had to stay in Corpus Christi and meet some work related deadlines. Sweetacious was a long shot, and edged ahead of many horses who were favored to win. Her jockey said that her win was a result of racing "with all her heart". JP likes to text me about these things when he's at the track -- so I get the final results of the races. When he told me about this one, I got to thinking, what if we one day we had our dream stable where we raised Thoroughbred horses? JP would manage the operations regarding breeding and all that stuff, and I want to start an educational program for less-advantaged kids. What would we call it? I thought of Sweet Bridle Farms and a cursory check proved it to be original. Then I thought, "what if all the horses were named Sweet-Something." Some names came to mind:
Sweet-heart
Sweet-on-me
Sweetie-Pie
Swee-Tart (thanks Big Blue!)
Sweet-Nothings
Sweet-William
Sweet-Cheeks
Sweet-Child-Of-Mine
Sweet-n-Sour
Sweet-Bay
Sweet-Clover
Sweet-Pea (Sweet-pee? maybe not)
Sweet-Talk
Sweet-Spot

It's fun thinking about sweet things....
Any other suggestions? I'd LOVE to hear them!

P.S. If you are thinking, "Procrastination Dr. Mac? Is that what this is?", you are ABSOLUTELY correct!

Baby Growing Up

Audrey came over and spent the evening with me while her Mommy went out. I love it when she comes over - we have a blast playing with the fish, Ella the dog and the birdies (two parakeets). Audrey enjoys her bath time at my house too. We talk about fish and crocodiles and all kinds of things as she does her vocal imitations. She is also learning to pretend - she talks to her baby doll that she now carries everywhere. Her Mommy tells me that she whispers to her when she thinks Mommy might be listening. When she was in the bath, I remembered a picture we took when she was just a few months old. It's both sad and happy to watch them grow:


Audrey Anne at 6 months. That was then...

This is now, about two years later. I love you Audrey Anne!!

Fourth of July Memories

We had a great day...beginning with the usual run in the morning, followed by a leisurely walk along the Bayfront in Corpus with JP:
White egret beach combing along the bay.


The harbor downtown - lots of sailboats here for the holiday weekend.


One of the research vessels from my university - no one out working today!


The day would not be complete without seeing brown pelicans in the bay!


The White Rose - part of the Selina memorial along Ocean Drive.


You can see a replica of one of Christopher Columbus' ships in the harbor.


Or if you prefer something considerably larger, the USS Lexington is docked and you can take a tour - it's really something. This is where the fireworks show is held every year.



Back at home, Annie, Jason and Audrey joined JP and me for some grilled chicken, steaks, all the trimmings and of course - the annual red, white and blue cake!