Home from San Anton
I have been on the road for three weeks. Hence, the light blogging activity is explained. I spent three weeks in San Antonio with a brief jolt home for visit with my family and to participate in the Low Country Heart Walk on the weekend of September 24th. It was an interesting trip for several reasons. One was a great family that I met. Another was due to the extreme heat in San Antonio. And finally, it was interesting to witness the local reactions to the pending hurricane that threatened to hit Texas square in the middle of the state’s coast line.
The family that I met happened due to a conversation with a fellow passenger on a flight from Atlanta to San Antonio. I shared some facts about my son Caden with this lady. I told her about the book I have been writing. Well, I guess I can still consider myself writing since I did put pen to paper in the past few weeks. Anyway, this lady ultimately invited me to join her, her husband, and some friends for dinner while in San Antonio. I was amazed at this for several reasons. These folks did not know me from a man on the moon. Of course, I did not know them either, but I have always had a pretty good sense for people. I am kind of like a cat in that if I am not comfortable with a person on a first impression then you might want to take note. I used to compare my house guests outward appearing character by whether my cat would have anything to do with them or not. I am here to write about the great experience so obviously there was no reason to worry about going to dinner with a group of complete strangers in a neighborhood that I had never been in. Actually the neighborhood was gorgeous and the people were even more pleasant. If all of folks in San Antonio are like these people, then Charleston, SC will never be voted the friendliest city in the US again.
My second point of amazement during my trip was the heat. It was over 100 degrees for most of my stay in San Antonio. I had not been to San Antonio since Air Force basic training in 1986. I don’t remember it being that hot and humid in late September. I broke out in a sweat just thinking about going outside last week. The heat and humidity made me appreciate Charleston a little more this past week.
My last point of interest was related to how the folks of San Antonio reacted when they thought Hurricane Rita might strict the central Texas coast an drive right up I-37 into San Antonio. Not only did Rita miss them, but the city did not get a drop of rain as a result of Hurricane Rita. It was entertaining to watch the residents try to guess how the hurricane would affect them. There were a few who seemed pretty realistic and knew that their major worry would be flooding due tot he rain if the storm struck in a way to bring hard fast rain fall to the city. There were others who thought that this city that over 100 mile inland would be devastated as if they were on the coast. Ultimately the storm did more to drive those evacuating into San Antonio. The gas pump lines got long and the hotel filled up fast. It was much like a town in the upstate of SC when the coast of SC gets evacuated due to a storm.
While my trip and my posting about it may not be the most exciting thing you read today, I am back and will be posting more soon.