So cruising 290 was quite nice. In fact, it's lovely out that way with only a few decent sized towns. One of them gets special mention (Giddings) for having gas even cheaper than Houston and more than 15 cents cheaper than Austin. Cheap gas is good (and no complaining, California infidels :P). When I got in close to Houston, I saw a burning car. Yes, it was completely engulfed in flames and making a column of black smoke that could be seen for a couple of miles. I only wish I had gotten a picture of it, but then again, it would only be perfect karma for me to get into an accident at that point so I let it ride. I hit 1960 (a major road near the McRacky residence) and turned. It took me 2 hours to get from Austin to Houston. It took me an hour to get from one end of 1960 to the other. Lovely.

I was a little tired when pulled up to the McRacky residence. Imagine Clock's surprise as he held back the dog and opened the door. As for Stacky, well, she's fat. :P Oh, alright, it's pregnant, but still, there's a big round thing protruding from her belly area. That's when i got the surprise. Stacky's mom was there and they were waiting for the arrival of her aunt and cousin and her daughter. There was good natured talk about the coming baby and about the niceness of all the intar-web friends and whatnot. I'm sure Stacky thought that I was going to talk a lot of crap about them, but they're nice enough (though I can see how different she is from them) so I have nothing bad to say about any of them (unless the story Stacky told me about her cousin and her husband is true, in which case, well, her cousin isn't too bright). After they all slipped away, I sat with the McRackys and even had dinner with them, spaghetti made with turkey (a repast provided by the aunt) and pumpkin pie (which I didn't indulge in). We sat and talked and talked and sat. To sum up, Clock is a hard worker and everyone loves him. Stacky is feeling much better and has discernible ankles again. They are both dreading (and perhaps secretly enjoying) Stacky's ginormously large bust, but you can't see it because everything looks small next to her child bulge (that and my woman is so endowed I only see "OK" [D-DD cup], "big" [DD+] and "small" [C on down {though, the C cup works well occasionally on the right woman. It's really about the whole package}]). It was fun. And then I changed for the show and headed out.

I-45 is a little annoying going south but I pity all the fools going north on it. Hit downtown, got my ticket, seated myself and it was show time. The show was pretty funny, though, the Basingstoke thing would have much funnier if it had not been explained in the program, though I guess very few other people would have gotten it themselves (one of my fondest memories of London is Theophile Escargot saying to me "Basingstoke? Why on Earth would you want to go to Basingstoke?!?!"). Our own Riceowlguy was quite good and his turn as the spectral cardinal was not to be missed. Hell, he should get them to let him keep the robes. :) I must admit that I'm looking forward to the next production in Houston since I hear their G&S-fu is quite strong and I have yet to be disappointed. I caught up with him in the green room where you could tell that he was, as the Brits would say, "knackered". We chatted for a while, but not for long since he had to hobnob with the viewers and I had to head back home. Hopefully we can hang this week sometime when he's here though my schedule, now that I look at it, is a little crowded but I'm sure we can find something.

So I set back out. This time I took I-10. This titan runs the length of the entire country. Well, except for where they blocked it off in Houston. Yes, they blocked off I-10 about 2 miles outside of downtown Houston so I ended up going on what seemed like a bizarre detour to get back on it at a further point. So I drove and drove and drove. Somewhere in there I got some food and then drove some more. When I got to the junction for 71, I turned off toward scenic La Grange, Fayetteville, Bastrop and, eventually, Austin. Notice, I didn't mention Smithville. Too bad, because that's where I got my ticket. I was cruising along the highway doing 85 and when I passed the cop who was in the far left turn lane, I hoped he wasn't looking and took my foot off the accelerator to slow down. When I saw his headlights jump over a couple lanes, I knew he got me. It was short and sweet (and by "sweet", I mean he didn't drag me out of the car, beat me to death and sprinkle some crack on me). I was on my way again in 15 minutes. Guess I'm going to be going to Smithville to fight a ticket. Yeah, I did it, but that doesn't mean I won't fight it.

I made it home. I snuggled up to my woman but only after she chided me laughingly for my ticket. We slept the sleep that only two people in love can have (elbows and tossing included).

Sunday I stayed around the house. I watched a Charlie Brown movie from Netflix and generally lounged and relaxed, giving up Beckett and a Cosmic game in the process. I also cleaned both the bathrooms which now means I'm totally owning Welsh Girl at Chore Wars. Throw in some B5 episodes and a trip to paint the high window sills of a friend's place and that was pretty much my night. Well, actually, the neighborhood transformers went out so I guess that wasn't actually all. Welsh Girl dragged me outside for a walk around the complex to check on people and whatnot and then we went home and went to bed. Power came back on in the middle of the night so we didn't die or lose our food or anything, just in case you were wondering.

And that's my entire weekend. Selah.

Postscript: Welsh Girl and I are going to catch Fahrenheit 451/Slaughterhouse 5 at the Paramount on Friday night and E.T./Close Encounters on Saturday and if we (and by "we" I mean "she" 'cause I'm always down) feels hardcore enough, we'll stay for Metropolis Saturday, too. Anyone want to join us? All are welcome...

That really is all..