all of this for barbeque

Knowing full well that I was to have barbeque at a friend's house tonight, I promised myself the night before that I would eat healthy all day starting with a special K bar for breakfast. A smart plan in theory, but not my reality.

This morning my sister-in-law woke us up with a phone call saying the family was going to go eat breakfast and that we would be joining them. Not only was I not happy to be woken up before 10 a.m. on my summer vacation, but I was to be woken up to go to the International House of Pancakes. For anyone who has ever been to IHOP, it smells of powdered eggs and dirty dish rag. There's also a man dressed as a clown in the corner watching you eat and blowing up balloon animals. It's far from appetizing. Luckily for me, it was packed and we had a large party so we left IHOP and went to a very good mexican restaurant called Espi and T's.

Espi's is a very small cafe-type restaurant that serves the best breakfast, which was why we were patient when they tried to rearrange the restaurant to seat our party of 9. There was one large table available but 3 old people were sitting there... at the big table... that seats 8. They watched us walk in and kept stealing glances in our direction as we stood there waiting for this poor small waitress to try to maneuver around people and walls and tables to get our table of 9 together. To make things worse, I had to hear the 3 rude people talk about how the media didn't warn them that the hurricane would be so severe. Really? The constant reports in the newspaper and on the tv weren't enough? Nor were the 3 days you had to prepare in advance? I also read in the local paper how some local business owners were complaining how the media "hyped" up the hurricane disaster and because of that they didn't get a lot of business. They even used double negatives in their quotes.. like "they haven't made nothing, no money" or "the media attention isn't good for nobody." People just shouldn't talk sometimes.

But I digress.

Eventually we sat down and got fed and instead of having the piece of wheat toast and oatmeal that would have enabled me to keep my promise, I had the chorizo and egg plate complete with potatoes and refried beans. I didn't really eat dinner the night before though, and I barely ate during the hurricane. So... it doesn't really count, right?

My lunch consisted of popcorn, twizzlers and vitamin water. Don't judge. I hadn't eaten lunch and the smell of popcorn was sooo tempting. Meanwhile, my special K bar is burning a hole in my purse.

Now it's 7:30, I'm full of mexican food and popcorn, and about to eat my weight in barbeque at my friend's house. It's dangerous when old friends come into town. It's like all of a sudden your exercise regimen and healthy eating plan goes down the hole. Diet starts tomorrow!

hurricane preparedness

Hurricane Dolly is headed for us. I think its interesting that they give hurricanes cute regular names. I feel like instead of rain and windy destruction, hurricane Dolly will bring about lots of butterflies and flower petals. To prepare, we went to HEB this morning to stock up on canned foods. I also made sure we had plenty of oreos and chips. If I'm going to be stuck in my house for a few days with no power, I'm going to enjoy it dammit. Besides, no one can see me therefore judge me if I'm eating oreos in the dark, right?

While pondering this matter, I caught a glimpse of an old man with a huge white beard. To me, old people are adorable, especially if they have big beards or blue hair. It makes me want to hug them, or sit on their lap and have them tell me stories. As the crowded lane dispersed I saw a bit too much of the cute old man than I wanted to see. He was wearing a long sleeved button down shirt (normal)... and itty bitty biker shorts (not normal/creepy). My husband's eyes got really wide as he scanned the little piece of spandex and I thought I heard him gasp. I grabbed my daughter and fast-walked to the next isle. From looking at what he man had in his cart (a motorcycle helmet and a riding jacket) I gathered he was a biker. I'm not quite sure though why he'd wear impossibly short spandex shorts though. A gay biker perhaps? Either way, not what I expected to see so early in the morning.

The rest of today is going to be spent cleaning. I don't know why most of us clean before a hurricane, maybe so we don't have to stumble over things in the dark or maybe to just give us an excuse to clean. Lord knows the only reason I ever clean my house is if I have guests coming over or a major storm is coming. I think my husband is the only person looking forward to a hurricane because he knows the house will be clean for a few precious hours.

Ok, back to cleaning.

a not so delicious start

This morning we took off to Corpus Christi for the day...again. The kiddo and I went last month with my dad but my husband wanted to go this time, with the promise that we would go to the U.S.S. Lexington and more importantly, Joe Cotton's.

The last time I had been to the Lexington or Joe's was in the 5th grade during a field trip. I remember 3 things from this trip. (1) I was extremely accident prone and fell several times in front of my very handsome teacher; (2) My klutzy tendencies, in addition to my spaciness lead me to walk head first into one of the planes on the Lexington; and (3) Joe Cotten's had the best barbeque ever.

Many years and countless barbeque plates later, I'm curious to taste the food again. I just remember fantastic brisket and huge dill pickles. So while I wasn't exactly excited to see the Corpus Christi aquarium again after seeing it only a month ago, I was looking forward to seeing the big ship and stuffing my face with barbeque. I even sat for an hour at the dolphin show just so we'd have a seat. I sat next to loud, obnoxious kids, men with curly mullets and open shirts, and many ghetto-looking guys with wifebeater shirts, bearing tattoos honoring the "loving memory" of their cousin Benito. When the dolphin act was finished, I jumped out of my chair and headed for the door. All of us, my mother-in-law included, were exhausted after spending the day walking around looking at fish. That meant our trip to the Lexington would be sacrificed. No reuniting with the small plane that left a bump on my head (but not on my memories. aww.) I was a bit disappointed but I had to admit I was very tired from the trip and just wanted to sit somewhere and eat. So on to Joe's!

As we drove up to Joe Cotten's my heart (and stomach) sank when I saw an empty parking lot. A sign at the front said the restaurant was closed Sunday and Monday. I wanted to cry, but instead I pouted like a child. Even my 8-year-old took the disappointed with dignity and grace. "It's okay mommy," she said with an encouraging smile. "We'll just eat somewhere else when we get home." Did I take her sweet words and positive thoughts to heart? Nope, I put on my sunglasses and looked out the window like a sullen teen. If my mother-in-law were not in the car with us, I might have even let out a drawn out whine. Intead I tried to sleep the rest of the 3-hour ride home.

I wish I could say I felt better after I ate (which is usually what happens in my case) but for some reason when I got home my stomach started making strange noises. No not from hunger. The rest of today has been spent staying close to the restroom. I'm trying to figure out what made my stomach upset from what I ate today. Was it the special K bar at breakfast, the biscuit for lunch, or the carrot and payday bar I had for a snack? At least if it were barbeque I'd say it was worth it.