Zak

Caren took this video Thursday when it snowed.

By the way, it was 80 degrees today.

$5500

The governor of New York has been accused of being involved in a prostitution ring. The Web site of the ring, Emperors Club VIP, displays photographs of scantily clad women with their faces hidden. It also shows hourly rates depending on whether the prostitutes were rated with one diamond, the lowest ranking, or seven diamonds, the highest. The most highly ranked prostitutes cost $5,500 an hour, prosecutors said.

Wonder what the soon-to-be-ex-governor's soon-to-be-ex-wife is more pissed at? The embarrassment of her husband getting caught with a hooker or the thought of him spending $5,500 an hour for a little sump'in, sump'in?

Now I've seen some porn in my life. And I have read many books with hot sex scenes. And I have a very vivid imagination.

But, for the life of me, what sex acts could be worth $5,500 an hour?

Damn, I've been giving it away for all these years ...

Texas drivers

While I can certainly understand how days and days and days and days of gloomy skies and snow can affect a person's mood, it isn't all sunshine and blue skies here in the United State of Bubbaland.

Sunday, I was wearing shorts. Yesterday, I watched snowflakes as big as minivans fall to the street below my third floor office. This is where it's fun.

Texans don't know how to drive in this stuff. We don't have snow tires. Nor much of a street crew to put sand and/or salt on the roads. And it wouldn't really help anyway.

That's because Bubba loves him some pickup truck. And trucks don't have weight in the back. Some bubbas put a bale of hay in the truck bed just to get weight over the rear axle. Those are educated Bubbas. The driver of the truck pictured at left is not.

My friend put several bags of dry cement in her truck. But neglected to take it out when the snow melted. She had to enlist several friends to help her remove the hardened concrete in the spring.

Weekend forecast calls for mid-60s Saturday and Sunday. Wonder where I put those shorts?

Thanks

Now it's my head.

Backsplash

The first tile I picked out for my backsplash was PERFECT ... but $42 sq. ft.

I need 30 sq. ft.

So I decided that I needed to be more, ah, prudent (cheap) and pick out a more sensible (cheap) tile.

And I found the PERFECT one ... but $37 sq. ft.

But I might have found a better solution at (drumroll please) $5.90 sq. ft.

Keep your fingers crossed. I'm checking out some squares Saturday.

A new twist

I woke up this morning to a trail of red rose petals leading to a dozen roses on my front porch.

*sigh*

Yes, this will be a happy Valentine's Day.

45

Today is Liz's birthday. She's 45.

I met her when she was 28 and have loved her everyday since then. I remember how her birthday was such a big deal for me ... us. I'd wake up in the morning and run to the place where I hid her cards (one from me, one from the animals) and present. The cat, dog and me would lay next to her in bed while she opened everything.

On our 10th year of celebrating her day of birth, I drained my savings account and bought her a diamond cross. One year, I wrote her deceased mother a letter thanking her for raising such a tender, wonderful woman. Last year, I took her to a gourmet Mexican restaurant for a six-course meal and fine bottle of wine. Then we went to Bass Hall for a concert.

It was a lovely evening ... the first birthday I spent with her since we broke up four years ago. A night filled with hope and encouragement.

This is the first birthday since I've known her that I will not give her a card.
Or a present.
Or a phone call.

Happy birthday, Liz. You still have so much of my heart, even if you don't know it.