Day "I've lost count" in Texas

Didn't move June 9 as promoted. We found some rot under the bath which involved getting in a carpenter. Then my contractor found out they couldn't turn off the water because the main valve was 1. below the level of the ground and 2. broken. This involved getting San Antonio Water Service (SAWS) out for repairs (at their expense). But put us behind several days in the bath rebuild. New move date is June 16. Bath or not, I'm moving then because my lease is up on the apartment.

We all went to the Texas Cultures Folklife Festival on Saturday. Very interesting displays. Have you ever eaten Wendish noodles? Do you even know where Wends come from? Fascinating info. Kelly and I especially enjoyed the sangria slushies from the Canary Islanders booth.

Cami, Alli, Kelly, and Jon (my Texas family) at the Folklife Festival. The people behind them are dressed in 19th century clothes and cooking over open fire pits. It's 95 degrees. Probably with a heat index of 102. 

This is why I couldn't move on June 9. New move date is June 16. This is non-negotiable! 

Day 75 in Texas

It's official--I've gone over to the dark side. I now have a Texas driver's license and Texas plates on the car. I'm even going to be able to vote in the mayoral election on Tuesday--the election that's made national headlines because one of the candidates had his twin brother stand in for him in a Fiesta parade. Thursday, June 9, the moving van will bring all my possessions to my house. Yes, the possessions I haven't seen in 3 months. I wonder what I have. I can't wait for it all to be over and to be settled in my new home. I'm working on painting the little office alcove (tropical colors) and plan to repaint the bedroom--as soon as a professional painter has done the ceiling. Kelly and Cami came over last weekend and helped me repaint the living room. They did an excellent job--Cami learned how to use masking tape and a paint roller. Oh, and the weather has gotten really hot and humid. I'm learning to cope. There was a truly spectacular thunderstorm early Wednesday morning--very loud--Gigi and I cowered under the covers.

Every day an adventure! Start planning your Texas vacations!

The bathroom mirror. The paint will change to a much lighter yellowish green and the dark brown counter will be beige pseudo-stone tiles.  

Ginger Puss Gigi contemplates leaving our apartment and moving to the house. She hasn't yet figured out that this will mean she spends a few days at the Alamo Heights Kennel Club. 

Kelly took this picture of me in front of my "mansion." 

Day 52 in Texas

On Day 50, I got the keys to my new palace/mansion/hovel/chateau/domicile/castle/shack/abode/shanty. See photos below. I am very excited. I've got a large garden which I will xeriscape with Texas native plants (very cheap to keep up), an electrified garden shed that I'm going to turn into an art studio, a den with surround sound and a green fireplace, a kitchen with hardwood floor stained in orange, green, and purple stripes, a bright red dining room with built in 30's style shelves, and a two car garage! I'm a little overwhelmed.

Come visit y'all!

Absolutely fabulous, must see San Antonio site--the Botanical Gardens. www.sabot.org.

My kitchen floor--stained hardwood. 

Looking from the living room into the dining room. (Not my furniture.)  

The kitchen counters. 

The floor plan of my Texas palace. 

Brazoria pulcherrima (sand brazoria) at Friedrich Wilderness Park. 

Day 37 in Texas

I have a house. Or at least I will probably have a house on May 10 when the escrow closes. Magically, it's the same house I posted a picture of on Day 29 (the green fireplace), but I thought I couldn't afford the garden upkeep and the sellers were asking for more than I wanted to pay. I've done more research and can afford the upkeep and the sellers came way down from their initial asking price. New a/c, new roof, new water heater, new stove. More pics to follow.

Events since I last posted:
1. The Saturday morning hike to Friedrich Wilderness Park. Beautiful. Wooded. Steeper uphills than I thought could possibly exist in Texas.
2. And for Fiesta: the Southwest School Craft Fair (I bought an etching for my new house), the Monday night Texas Cavalier river parade, and the Friday Battle of the Flowers parade. I missed the Fiesta Flambeau parade, but I think 2 parades in one week are my limit.

The front . . . 

. . .and the back. 

The kitchen - note glass panels for showing off my collection of Fiesta ware. Also note that all the appliances are black. Big crisis: will I have to buy a black refrigerator? 

Day 29 in Texas

As another sun sets on a semi-hot day in south central Texas, I review the week. It's the first official day of Fiesta. I have my wreath. I have my medals. I have a ticket to Monday's river parade where I'll be seated on the river with Jon, Kelly, Camie and Alli and a few zillion of their most intimate friends. I'm ready to party with the rest of the city. I'm settling in well at work. Am looking forward to my first Texas Sierra Club hike tomorrow. Wish me luck in the heat.

Perfect price. Perfect location. I was in love with this house, until my agent pointed out that this concrete berm in the backyard had been built to keep it from flooding and showed me where dirt had been piled up around the sides of the house to divert flood waters. I was truly broken hearted. The search goes on. 

The front of the house that was surrounded by apartments. Perfect, isn't it? Note the wisteria over the door.  

Fireplace from a fabulous house in Terrell Hills--if I can't be in Alamo Heights, it's a good close second. But I started asking about lawn maintenance and found I couldn't afford to keep up the garden in this place. 

Perfect house. Beautifully redone. Surrounded by apartments and had dangerously steep stairs. But did have a guest house that Camieand Alli (my nieces) would have loved. 

Inside another house I fell in love with. The kitchen was too small. 

I see some cool houses--some of which I can even afford. This beautiful fire place was in a house in Alamo Heights--best area in town, but my $$$ would only permit a really small house here. 

The San Antonio River as it flows through the King William district--the old, historic area of town.  

Days 22 through 27 in Texas

I've seen about 15 houses. Almost all of which I'd be more than happy to live in.

Day 21 in Texas

My beloved calico cat, Ginger Puss Gigi, got locked in the garage overnight. I got soundly scolded in the morning when I woke up, realized she was missing, heard the yowls, and finally released her.

My first Fiesta wreath.  

Day 19 in Texas

I received my first copy of Sunset magazine--a generous gift from my co-workers (Nycole, Elaine, and Michelle) in California. Loved it. Made me sooooo homesick. Thanks a lot, guys. But I really enjoyed seeing it. Now that I may have a house to apply some of the Sunset ideas to.

Day 18 in Texas

After spending some dollars and getting some hotmelt glue gun burns, I had my first Fiesta wreath. Fiesta is a 10 day party in April. Lots of people put Fiesta wreaths on their doors, but rather than red and green, Fiesta wreaths are hot pinks, yellows, and oranges.

Day 17 in Texas

I arranged my new office.

Day 17 in Texas

I arranged my new office.

Day 16 in Texas

My condo in California was sold. There is no turning back. My last link with the coast is severed. It's a new adventure. It's a whole new language. Howdy, y'all. Go Spurs.

Days 11-14 in Texas - The TESOL Convention

March 28, I attended a training program for the new TOEFL test. Then I had a day in the office. Then I spent Wednesday through Saturday at the TESOL Convention. Just by coincidence, the big international ESL convention was held here the week after I arrived. Saw lots of old ESL buddies--Kaye Foster, Peggy Street, Sue Matson, Jim Scofield, Melissa Mowder, and Sharyn Moore. Sharyn, someone I've been working with since ELS in Santa Monica in 1988, and I escaped on Friday to go see folk art at the Blue Star--a collection of galleries like Bergamot Station in Santa Monica--just 1/10 of the size. Very good stuff.

Days 2 to 10 in Texas

I set up my temporary apartment and started work. The first weekend I found a contra dance--after driving for an hour in the rain! My rant about San Antonio roads: possibly the worst in the world. Although I think I've seen narrower in Wales. To anyone who knows the Portugese Bend stretch of the road around Palos Verdes--all of San Antonio is like that--bubbly, lumpy and ready to slip into the sea at any moment. Except that there is no sea here. Ready to slip into the forest. Lots of greenery, vegetation--very tropical and lush. High property taxes for road repair, so clearly there is some corruption here. Did finally get to dance and had a wonderful time.

Woodpecker at Prude Ranch in Fort Davis. 

Ginger Puss Gigi as she gets ready for her desert adventure--there's nothing like the security of a good box! 

Phoenix botanical gardens--Saguaro and moon--yes, that little white dot just above center is the moon. 

Phoenix boticanical gardens by night. Some sort of penstemon.