He was a hard working farmboy: Tales from Our Thanksgiving Trip to WV

Fresh back from our trip to WV: tired, a bit haggard, and happy to be home. The trip was great. Yesterday while waiting at DFW for our flight to New Orleans #1 and I walked to a food court to grab some lunch, as we passed the Rosetta Stone kiosk #1 immediately began quoting an advertisement: He was a hardworking farmboy, she was an Italian supermodel, he had only one chance to impress her...

The highlights included: getting together with my best friends, the Professor & Old Philsy, seeing family, eating (yes a Tudor's biscuit was eaten), taking flowers to dad's grave, and watching my two nephews play basketball. Both of them play ball on the junior varsity squad. One evening they scrimmaged the girls varsity squad. Memory serves me that girls basketball in junior high was just getting its feet under it when I was in junior high. I could not believe the strides girls athletic programs have advanced in the ensuing years! I have always held that women are better pure shooters than men. But good heavens those girls at the scrimmage were great athletes too, even a bit mean. When the ball was on the floor they dove, dipped their shoulders and even threw a couple of punches. I could tell my nephews were a bit hesitant they were victims of an age old dilemma: if they play too aggressive their friends will say you were playing too hard against a girl, if they back off and the girl schools them then they will be made fun of for getting taken to town by a girl. Nevertheless they did a good job, and those girls were good!

Another surprising highlight was the conversation I had while in transit from New Orleans to Chicago. Apparently American Airlines changed planes from when I made my reservations to when we flew. Therefore, all of our tickets were jumbled and the ticket person scattered the First Family amongst the cabin. Thanks to some friendly folk (By the way the American Airline employees were amazing and fantastic people) we were able to reassemble close to one another. The man who moved over so I could sit on the aisle in front of my kids ended up being the dean of the Univ. of Chicago Div. School (in town for the SBL too). I have never had a nicer conversation on a plane than that. The last time I had an in-depth conversation with a person sitting next to me on a plane he told me about a crazy raccoon virus that scared the bejesus out of me!

One other story about WV. One day my mother and I went to Sams Club, I have never seen so many moustaches before in my life!

Social Networking Experiment, number 1

Today was a great day. First off the former dean of my alma mater, being in town for the SBL meeting, led the Sunday School hour and preached at SCABC. The First Family and I took the deanster, as The VOR affectionately calls him, over to The Ruby Slipper for brunch. We took him back to the hotel and then headed to the rental chateau. We packed some in preparation for our forthcoming trip to WV then headed over the Third Annual Po-Boy Preservation Festival (only in New Orleans would they hold a festival for a sandwich). The VOR and I had high hopes for the French Fried Roast Beef Po-Boy the one you too may have read about in Wed. NYTimes article. By the time we arrived at the festival, however, most of the places had sold out, the booth for Mahoney's was nowhere in sight (did they show? or did they sell out remarkably fast?) -- research shows that Mahoney's did not sell the French Fried Po-Boy.

Now here comes to my experiment. I have long held the idea that folk like The VOR more than me (no pity party here, she is a fantastic and interesting woman who thrives on sociality, I am more of an introvert than her who usually shies away from social interaction - but I will say that living in N.O. is changing that by the day.) Several days ago I began noticing how The VOR could post virtually anything and 10 people would comment. (I swear she could post I just sneezed and 15 people would say Bless You) I posted, what I considered a comment worthy post and receive nothing. So this evening I posted pictures (that I took) of our time at the Po-Boy festival onto my facebook page. An hour later The VOR came home and I proposed that she post the exact same pictures to her account. (up to this time no one had commented on my album) She copied my album and posted them. Within five minutes she had a comment!

Sure the variables are numerous - my "friends" were not home at the time, most of my friends clicked on the "Hide Travis" button months ago, my friends do not spend much time on facebook, or my friends all have a running gag never to comment on my posts. Sure...

A Catch Up Post

Life in the New city is starting to feel normal. (I especially like the new normal: shorts in November!) I was even able to make some bread the other day (only after ordering the yeast online, for a food city the grocery stores are disappointing). Turned out pretty good.

I coupled it with a cheese tray with fruit and sweet potato fries. Moving on...there was the birthday ice cream pie the VOR made, amazing:

Then there was halloween:

Furthermore, some great finds at the seminary library booksale: