The husband and I went to the new Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark this past Friday.  We picked up Steak Fajita Cabana Bowls and enjoyed the unusually cool July evening weather while watching skaters take turns attempting tricks.

“The Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark is a state-of-the-art 30,000 square foot in-ground public facility, known to contain the largest cradle in the world. Houston’s new skateboarding facility will provide the first world-class, in-ground skatepark in our region, and vault the city to the forefront of American venues for this fast-growing, dynamic sport. The park will have areas for skaters of all levels, from the seasoned pro to the beginner – skaters can work on their kick flip, ollie, fakie big spin…or simply learn to stay balanced!”

It was a really neat place.  It was fun to see parents cheering on their kids and it was great to see kids and teenagers cheering each other on.  It was also entertaining to see grown men put on their kneepads and helmets and brave the cradle.  It’s wonderful to know that the city and some wealthy donors felt it was worthwhile to give skaters a place to hang out and a way to have fun doing what they do without getting in trouble for trespassing or skating in prohibited spaces.  It was also nice to see so many kids enjoying the outdoors and physical activity instead of sitting behind their Xbox 360s and PS3s playing Tony Hawk.  We stayed for quite awhile, watching the skaters and also watching the sun set over the downtown skyline as the buildings slowly lit up the night sky.

Here are some photos I took (I regretted not bringing my flash, I apologize in advance for the blurry photos):

Summer Hours of Operation: June 2 – September 1, 2008

Monday - Saturday: 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Sunday: 1:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Make sure you bring your own food and drinks, they don’t have any vending machines there.  You might consider bringing a blanket or lawn chairs as there aren’t chairs for watching the skate action, just a cement wall and a grassy hill.

Most people hate Martha Stewart.

I don’t.  I’m kind of fascinated by her.  I know she’s rumored to have a horrendous temper towards her staff and she did participate in the whole stock selling scandal.  But she’s got a pretty incredible biography and I respect anyone that’s been able to make a successful living off of what they love doing.  And I really like people who are at the top of their game.  You don’t have to like someone to give respect.  She’s a business-guru and I know Oprah gets a lot of attention for being one of the most powerful businesswomen out there but I’d venture to guess that Martha’s got Oprah beat when it comes to business.  (Oprah’s interview with Martha.)

I really liked her Blueprint magazine before it shutdown and I still subscribe to the Bluelines blog which has something to do with that.  I’ve recently started reading her personal blog (The Martha Blog).  It’s surprisingly personal and I like that she takes mediocre photos of her vacations and her 4th of July weekend with Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon on her boat.

Here’s a fun blooper reel of Martha Bloopers:

And here’s a fun segment that her production crew put together:

Through Bluelines I also discovered Dinner Tonight which has different recipes and food ideas for you to try.  I’m making Chicken Lettuce Wraps tonight.

Part of me feels like I need to train up to be a better wife and a better future mom.  And practicing these recipes and home ideas will help somehow?

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I went to WaMu this morning to withdraw some cash and they have a new system where you complete your transaction at the pod counter with the teller and then the teller hands you a receipt and you get your cash from the cash pickup station.  This way the tellers do not have access to the cash and they can’t get robbed.  I think it’s a pretty smart system.

A little over a month ago, my Facebook status read: Becky is busy until April 12.

I wasn’t kidding. This weekend will be my first free weekend in awhile and I’m really looking forward to it. The husband asked if I wanted to go to Austin this weekend but I told him I didn’t want to because I really just wanted to have a weekend to ourselves.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s been a really great kind of busy. Not the kind where I take my laptop home to work on Excel spreadsheets or where I stay late at work to prepare presentations for executives and vice presidents.

School has been wrapping up really well and I am enjoying my time at school getting to know my classmates better and making friendships that I really hope will last beyond graduation.

This past weekend was the Social Welfare Action Alliance National Conference. There were a lot of interesting workshops and lectures such as Deaf Youth in Foster Care, Immigration Patterns from Colombia and Japan, Healthcare Justice, and many more. There was a luncheon yesterday with one of the leading immigrant activists in Houston, Maria Jimenez and it was an interesting glimpse into the world of activism and political struggle. She made a poignant statement about how when people are most oppressed, people start making jokes. It’s like a natural human reaction to seek humor in dire circumstances I suppose. I’m still slowly plowing my way through From Beirut to Jerusalem and it also speaks a lot of the jokes that are passed around in tremendously horrific times of war. I think that’s really interesting.

Last night was spent at Bohemeo’s for a fundraising concert and it was great. One of our professors from school, Susan Robbins a.k.a. Susan Martin, headlined and invited some of her buddies on stage to play with her. We especially enjoyed the Lloyds and Bill Ward. The shrimp tacos and fish tacos were fresh and spicy, the music was mellow and the company was great as always. I especially liked when they ended the night with Lean on Me (total cheese, I know) and the whole bar sang it together.

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We revisited Bayou City Seafood & Pasta today and the crawfish was not as good as it was last weekend. It was disappointing. So consistency obviously isn’t their strong point. But! We each got a cup of gumbo (after we devoured two pounds of crawfish each) to cheer ourselves up and I’m happy to report that the gumbo is as amazing as the restaurant reviews suggest. I like that they serve the rice on the side and you get to mix it in yourself so the rice isn’t soggy.

Judy and Lawrence took us to a really cool store/nursery called Gardens this past weekend in Austin.

I really liked the way they set the store up in such an organic way without really well defined sections but more the way a house is decorated and filled with trinkets.

Here’s a picture of the inside of the building from their website gallery:

The nursery part of the place is scattered throughout the building. Inside there are seeds, bulbs, and gardening tools in various nooks and crannies. And outside in the back there’s a mini-nursery with grown plants that you can buy.

I really liked the feel of the place. It was modern but still inviting– which is sometimes a difficult balance to maintain.

Makes ya wanna go, don’t it?

I picked up one of my girlfriends from the airport yesterday and I had the pleasure of watching the international arrivals lobby during the beginning of the Christmas Holiday season.

It was beautiful.

Large families with handmade, cardboard welcome-home signs, nervous parents checking the flight screens every fifteen minutes, European men embracing their friends with cheek kisses, and my favorite:

the people who can’t wait for their loved ones to walk down the pathway so they run to greet them and they stop right there in the middle of all the traffic of people and hug and hug and cause a huge backup and don’t care.

I love it when emotions make people do funny things.

It’s really quite entertaining to watch people come through the doors because you’ve been waiting in the lobby with the same people for the past hour or so and you try to predict who’s with who.

It’s also fun to watch the people who come off the planes and are met with limo drivers and you try to guess if they’re rich or famous– or both.

But the people that are my favorite to watch are the singles who don’t have anyone to pick them up. It’s weird because after a few touching family reunions, you get in the habit of watching the people who come off the plane and anticipate their family rushing to meet them. So when a person gets off the plane with no one to greet them, everyone’s watching that person. And they know all eyes are on them. So they squint a bit, look into the crowds, and try to keep a cool stride. I like watching social discomfort.

One weird thing that happens when you’re picking someone up from the airport and you’re waiting for them for awhile, you start second guessing whether you know exactly what they look like. What will they be wearing? What will their hair look like? Is that her? Oh wait, no, that girl’s not even the same race. How about that girl? Nope, not her.

And when the person you’re picking up finally comes out, it’s such a great moment. It’s like spotting your luggage in baggage claim– but better, of course, because it’s your person, and not your suitcase.

You know what I mean.