Last night we watched the movie "Gandhi" for the yth time. I enjoy seeing it periodically, just as I enjoy reading "lord of the rings" periodically. I looked up a lot of information via the internet on the "real history" of Gandhi, Tagore, Mirabehn, Reginald Dyer (I was irritated to find that Kipling was behind the relief fund for this war criminal), and Charles F. Andrews. We also watched my favorite network tv show "A Gifted Man" and ate home-made hamburgers my wife cooked with aplomb.
This morning my young friend and I headed to Kolache Station in Plano for jalapeno kolaches. Then we went to Arbor Hills Nature Preserve in Plano. I liked when the very attractive jogger with the white rat-like terrier was telling an interested couple about him. "Go to her website, and when you contact her, tell her you really liked E.J.", she said, as they adored E.J. I like dogs named E.J. and the website-friendly world in which we live. I also liked the dad who walked with his autistic son who showed not an ounce of self-consciousness about what an outsider might consider his son's public challenges in relating to his environment, but kept showing his son the joyful things to see all around.
Here is what Arbor Hills looks like in winter, taken from one of the very few marginally high places in Plano, a small tower on a tiny hill:
We had a great time hiking, and then we went to Half-price books, where we bought used CDs (I got a Naxos CD of an the Ambache Chamber group playing Louise Talma, a good recording; my friend got an album by the avant-classical-hair-rock-band group Motley Crue. Then we went to Radio
Shack, to get some AA and AAA batteries. A twentysomething blonde woman with a bit too much mascara on (according to my little-read imaginary formbook for mascara use) tried to turn a simple battery selling opportunity into a phone-selling opportunity with the curious pick-up line "how is the battery on that phone doing?". We listened politely to a long banter about dropped calls, and left unscathed.
Then we went to Hibachi Grill for an amazing Chinese buffet--both healthy and scrumptious. We headed to Escape Coffee shop to get on the internet, and listened to music and the like. Then we headed to Yogurtville yogurt shop. Here is a picture of my banana creme pie yogurt with
marshmallows and graham cracker crumbs:
I dropped my young friend off at his house. On the bridge over Lake Lavon on the way home, I took this picture that is completely unremarkable unless you realize that two weeks ago
this part of Lake Lavon was nearly dry:
I stopped by Bethany Lakes Park on the way home, and captured, after an imperfect fashion. this charming mockingbird:
In other news, my hopes are up, the drought is over, my blood pressure is down, and I am pleased to report I saw sulphur butterflies on the wing today.