Home a Day Early

I'm trying to resolve some difficult maneuvers on my "Interim Data Warehouse (IDW)" project, so peace and quiet is high on my list of needs at the moment. So, I left Houston yesterday after work and headed home. All of the corn and milo fields have been harvested now, so the drive had a little different look to it. The cotton is blooming nicely, I noticed, so that harvest will be coming up soon.

When I got to the loop around Palacios, I called Leo to see if he wanted to meet for supper. We met up at our favorite "Mexico Tipico" and enjoyed an item called the "Monterrey" which consists of two beef enchiladas, a piece of flank steak, rice, beans (Leo only, strangely, I don't "do" beans...never have), and guacamole. It was SO GOOD!

I had a nice surprise waiting for me when I got home...JESSIE'S HOME! Jessie and Grace have been gone for about 6-weeks, spending some time at their place in New Mexico with their son Trevor, then a fun weekend at the family reunion with the rest of their clan. Although we're happy the Jess had a really good time with friends and family, we are THRILLED to have him back here with us. (Note: This also means that my break from work today will include fishing from the pier!)

But wait...my surprises weren't finished yet. When I finally got home I discovered that Leo finished painting my office. Although he used the same gray that is on the walls in the living room, because there is a lot less natural light in the office, it looks very different. I can see right now that my office is going to be beautiful! We were both so very pleased with the results.

Another thing that Leo and I have been discussing is moving our bed out of its temporary location and into the Master Bedroom. We first set up in the temporary bedroom when Leo was working at Formosa. Working shiftwork, he really needed it to be dark when he slept, and with only one north-facing window, that room is easier to darken. Hmm...now that I think of it, the other reason we set up in that bedroom was that it was the only one with air conditioning (a window unit) for years. My, oh my...how things have changed!

Anyway, as soon as I got into the house and found our bed in its place in the Master Bedroom, I had to try things out. The fan over the bed is a beautiful little thing, but even on its highest setting it is quiet and appears to be turning rather slowly. When I mentioned this to Leo, he told me to go to the middle of the room, or better yet, lie down on the bed. Wowser! That little guy puts out quite the breeze!! I decided right then that I will be buying two more of these fans for placement in my office, and maybe one more after that for the old bedroom, which is going to be Leo's room (aviation stuff, workout stuff, music, television, etc.)

So the bed in place and the fan were a wonderful surprise, but here's the biggest one of all...the view. Let me explain. The Master Bedroom was first framed out with the door facing the living room right next to the front door. There was a cool angled wall in the Master that we liked the look of, but couldn't quite figure out what to do with to take full advantage. Over the years, the more I looked at the arrangement, the less I liked it. So a few years ago, I talked Leo and Jessie into changing things around (no little task!) I talked them in the closing up the original doorway into the living room and opening up a double-door opening on the angled wall. This wall goes all the way to the vaulted ceiling at an angle. It was a real trip for them to lay out originally, and here I was asking them to do it again! But they love me, obviously, so they did as I wished.

Here's the thing, though. Ever since then, the room has been, at various times, full of scaffolding, drywall, paint buckets, table saws, plastic-covered furniture, boxes and more. With all this, I really had to imagine what it would be like with a king-sized bed in it. Well...no more imagining. It looks fabulous! There is plenty of room for a nice sized headboard (I'm relatively sure I'm going to design it and the guys will build it for me), a chest at the foot of the bed, the television on the perfect wall for viewing any time of the day or night. But I finally got to try out the part that I had been imagining for years...the view. Our bed is not one of those low-rider European things (although they look cool, I always preferred the huge fluffy-looking things!) It was not until I laid down on the bed that I knew how perfect the view was. Sitting up, I can see everything from my side! I can see the water, the sky, the pier, boats, birds, and more. But even lying down I can see so much! With the new setting, I woke up several times in the night. Once I could see someone fishing along the bank with a small light in their boat. Another time, I could see the lights of Formosa shining across the water. (You'll have to trust me on this one...even big ole' ugly chemical plants can look beautiful across the water when they are 5 miles away!)

Now it's time for me to put in my 12-hours of work, but when I get done and am ready for bed, only a few steps away and WOW!. Thanks so much Leo! Everything is PERFECT!