Thoughts And Observations From Houston Trip 2018, And A Lucky Break

It was the kind of vacation that only a novelist would write, but I have to thank God just for the opportunity to go. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

First of all, did you see the weather reports this last week? My, my, my, how things happen. A slow-moving tropical disturbance which didn't move into Mexico decided to play with people's emotions along the Texas Gulf Coast. Your writer was as vigilant as ever, and it was just for my protection. Would you believe that Houston got the least amount of rain and the least amount of high water out of all of this?? That's right. Every place around me got flooded out. Beaumont. Victoria. Corpus Christi. Even the folks in the Rio Grande Valley area, most notably McAllen. All of those places got upwards of 12 inches of rain in a four-day period. And Houston? Much less than ten. Some parts of the area, about five.

Look, Houston did not have all rain all the time like our neighbors did. We got a lot of breaks in the rain patterns, and sometimes, several hours would pass between pockets of rain. So, there wasn't much standing water in an area long known for high water problems. The dry periods really helped. This easily could have been a disaster, but this writer wound up enjoying his road trip with my itinerary plans intact.

Other thoughts and observations from the trip:

Good eating. Los Cucos, Cleburne Cafeteria, and Kelley's Country Cookin' all showed their penchants for large helpings, and they each did their parts. Cleburne practically filled each bowl with chicken and dumplings, along with lima beans that spilleth over, and the obligatory mac-and-cheese. Los Cucos had ridiculously large enchiladas and fajita tacos, but they had a good taste. Strangely, they ran out of tamales, and their "specialists" only come over to fix them when they can. And it was also my first time at longtime Gulf Freeway stalwart Kelley's. My lands, that was a good breakfast, and awfully huge. That biscuit I had a diameter of at least nine inches, and the hash browns were enough to feed three people. Good eggs, sausage, and smoked bacon, too. Likewise with the coffee.

And I also spent a half day in Galveston. Beaches were nice and clean, but the waters were a little rough on Wednesday, and that was due to high tides left over from Monday.

My hotel on Houston's north side was very good. I'll never forget the walk-in shower and how perfect the pressure was for massages. Case can just feel that....

My Minute Maid Park winning streak for Astros games came to a screeching halt. Two games this week, and two losses. Astros' offense was noticeably absent. When I wasn't there, the team was winning and clicking on all cylinders. I guess you'd only be a good luck charm for so long.

For this week, however, I was a good luck charm in another sense. I may have protected Houston from Mother Nature's fierce sorcery. Things ended up better than expected, given how skeptical I was at the week's weather forecasts going in. Not a washout at all, by any means. Thursday afternoon on, we had sunshine. Assuredly, it was a great escape.