Hurricane Season begins June 1st.
May 21-27 is National Hurricane Preparedness Week.

I've been routing around the NOAA site since my new purchase of the 'wind up weather radio' oh yes it also has a major torch and TV capability also.

I went to 'Loews' a competitor for 'Home Depot' a week ago, to get a new sprinkler timer head, since Jonathan fell on the other one and ripped it off the wall.

The thing about these Super Stores is that when you enter, you have no idea of the array of things you going to find that you needed and can just not live without.

Home Depot and Loews are the typical example of stores that fall into the 'dangerous store' category.
Other examples of 'dangerous stores' to enter are 'Best Buy', 'Office Depot', 'Wallmart' and 'Target'.

So I get the sprinkler head and spend a little time wandering around. (They say walking is the best exercise you can get, and a few trips around this store and I've covered several miles).

Thus I came back from this trip fitter and with a number of things that I would never had thought, or realized I needed had I stayed at home.

The prize gadget was of course a weather radio. So prized, in fact, that someone took it out of my shopping trolley/Cart whilst I was looking at something else and I had to go back to the shelf the other side of the store and pick up another one.
Always a useful to have a weather radio, and given a potentialy active storm season predicted, having a device in the house that warns you of severe storms heading your way a must in Houston. (OK we already have one but it does not have a torch nor radio that works if the power goes out. Nor is it portable)...
These weather radio provides you with warnings of storms in areas not near you but that are heading your way, or as also occurs often, the reason the rain thundering down on the roof outside, is because there is a major storm outside.. Yes you don't even have to open the blinds to look the weather radio tells you.

Of course tempted with a gadget that works also by winding the thing up if you have no batteries or power, was far too tempting to miss out on, esp with the TV and standard radio capabilities on it also.
It's bright yellow which means I will not lose it, and has lots of nobs and buttons, a key criteria for a gadget.
It takes pride of place on my desk and the TV has already proved a wonderful brain drain....

Here are some facts fromt he NOAA site

"For the 2006 north Atlantic hurricane season, NOAA is predicting 13 to 16 named storms, with 8 to 10 becoming hurricanes, of which 4 to 6 could become 'major' hurricanes of Category 3 or above"


NOAA’s outlook for 2005 indicated a 70% chance of an above-normal hurricane season, a 20% chance of a near-normal season, and only a 10% chance of a below-normal season. In 2005 there were 27 tropical Storms 15 huricanes.Of those 7 were major Hurricanes which is one less that in 1950. NOAA’s 2006 outlook indicates an 80% chance of an above-normal hurricane season, a 15% chance of a near-normal season, and only a 5% chance of a below-normal season.
The predicted 2006 activity strongly reflects an expected continuation of conditions associated with the multi-decadal signal, which has favored above-normal Atlantic hurricane seasons since 1995. These conditions include considerably warmer than normal sea surface temperatures (SSTs), lower wind shear, reduced sea level pressure, and a more conducive structure of the African easterly jet. An updated Atlantic hurricane outlook is usually issued in early August, which begins the peak months (August-October) of the hurricane season

The contiguous United States experienced its warmest April ever based on records dating back to 1895, according to scientists at NOAA's National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C. Drier-than-average conditions and severe drought persisted across large portions of the southern and southwestern United States.

Precipitation was near average for the contiguous United States, ranking 45th wettest in the 1895-2006 record. Wetter-than-normal conditions occurred in 12 states, mostly across the western and north central United States.

Good morning Sunday..
After getting to bed at 2.00am following a party next door no one was as surprised as I that I was awake for the sunrise.....






















Good evening and good night Sunday:
BBQ chicken and a glass of wine as the sun set.
85 degrees today .
A whole 10 degrees cooler than yesterday.


































All posted whilst listening and watching Led Zeppelin Live DVD 'Moby Dick' and 'Whole lotta Love' and other stuff watched on the newly purchased Flat screen linked to other computer and full sound system WOW ! Yes Hazel did come along and close the door at one point....

Tennis, Graduation and Kids off for the Summer - oh joy...!
Tennis at another country club last weekend.
Not as sophisticated as some of the Clubs that Timothy has played at, but certainly prettier than some of the faceless schools he has played tornaments at.

Tim played in the Saturday afternoon evening. He won one the first match and lost the second That meant no match on Sunday morning, a lay in possible for a change at the weekend.
I lost it with some kids driving around in a golf cart in the evening.
These kids were driving fast down narrow pathways, doing 'donuts' (spinning round in circles, not eating them), in the car park. They nearly toppled the cart over at one point. That didn't specifically bother me in fact I'd have enjoyed watching that happen, and it would have been a great Photo entry in the blog but, it was not to be. A couple of times they were driving too fast and nearly hit me, and a few other people.
When they nearly ran Timothy down after his second match, I just had to let them know how I felt, and there was one of the Managers in earshot. Often better to let things out I think rather than bottle up emotions. So I did..... " You bloody idiot, you nearly hit my son, do I need to report you to someone before you start driving carefully , you've been driving around like an idiot all day, donuts in the car park nearly hitting me several times, when you going to stop when you actually injury someone?" The question was rhetorical I didn't expect and answer.

Hazel restrained me (verbally) from going into the Golf Club to find a manager or someone else to tell, and did hear the boy say that it was the first time he had driven the cart all day.
At that point the word 'Wanker' slipped out of my mouth..

Thats just a great word to use at times like these, especially over here, as not many people hear that word nor understand what it means.
I felt a little better and refrained from following up any more.

Anyway the Club was pretty here are some photos from the grounds.

.................................................................................................

Mid week and Timothy Graduated from 5th Grade.

An evening of speeches and presentations.

And the next day was the last day of school.






The last day of 5th grade and the beginning of Timothy and Jonathans 100 % time out of school, and potentially home all day...for months...









The Start of the Summer Holidays...

So far been to see " Over the Hedge" at the new 'watch whilst you Eat Movie Theater' round the corner from us. (pizza and beer for me). Hazel had an $8.99 Mudslide that was more like an Avalanche,or Mt. St Helens eruption, than a mudslide you should have seen the size of that thing...

Tennis for Timothy today, as well as him making more home movies with Kaylie next door.
Jonathan took the Jeep and went for a shopping trip for clothes with a friend of his (girl), and its only day one.
He's off to the movies tonight... (different people).

At the beginning of July Hazel takes Timothy to the UK for 5 weeks and Jonathan will go to join them for the last 2 - 3 weeks after he finishes summer school.
I may be travelling with work so will likely not get back to the UK this year.

A walk on the Wild Side. Just beyond the garden lines, the confines of the garden fence is a whole other world, especially in the spring before they cut down the grasses and wild flowers. .
A walk around the back of the house last week to see the flowers and I find I'm a matter of hours too late.

They already mowed down the grasses and wild flowers that afternoon.
The little bit of wild countryside behind my garden now looking sparce, as birds sit and wonder where their nests went and the copious feeding stock of insects and seedlings, they lived on in the grass and flowers gone, and really all now very boring it all looks.

Our cookie cutter homes, our cookie cutter gardens, our manicured lawns and flower beds and prestine streets.
Give me the chaos of nature to stimulate the brain please.
















I look for the wild nature left in our suburbs and Master planned Communities, and long for the randomness of plants and grasses intertwined. Each has its place.Each trying to out grow the other for light, food and water.





I found some wild flowers and grasses along the edges of where the main areas of the creek had been mowed down.

The beauty of wild flowers along the creek, become weed in our flower beds, but there is beauty in the randomness and chaos as everthying stuggles to survive.

Nature encroaches everywhere if you look, and for me every little living bit is fascinating.


There are limits of course.
The 'Fire Ant insurgents' in my bed several years ago (yes not flower bed but sleeping bed inside), all had to die, as do their terrorist friends regularly when I find a Fire Ant nest in my garden. (boy did I have bites, many bites in all areas, the biting is what woke me up...ouch).

When gardening, finding your hand or foot suddenly covered with what you thought was bits of loose soil. Then suddenly, as if they sense that they have been spotted, all at the same time they pierce the skin and bite, pumping some acid like stuff into you, as you try to speedily wipe them off.
It stings and itches at the same time, and what you are left with are small red spots that if you resist scratching, they turn into white pussy spots and itch terribly for days and weeks.
If you do scratch them, you end up with open red sores that itch for days and weeks and can leave small scars.
It's a lose, lose situation, but there is that thing called revenge and a little Fire Ant killer on their loose soil mounds and if by majic that nest dies....
I now cover my garden each year with a preventative 'Fire Ant' killer solution.

Texas is one place where in the DIY stores, there is something to kill anything. There are more shelves full of various insect,vermin killing,and deterrant toxins available to purchase, than there are shelves of light fittings, batteries or bath fixtures put together..
Compare that to the UK where your lucky to find a general fly swat on a stick, let alone a spray bottle made to kill any one specific named insect.

Anyway Fire Ants are the 'bastard terrorists' of the insect world here in Texas in my view, and they deserve all they get.

The large red wasps get the occasional 'flying insect spray' on their nests before they get aggressive defending their young. I have been chased around the garden by several of these inch long red bug-gers that I accidentally disturbed in a shrub.
Hazel actually got chased and bitten once, and that left a mammoth red swollen sting bite mark on her leg.

The black Widow Spider in the back screened porch startled me a little being so close to where I sit and relax, she got sprayed and then I used my past experience as a young teenage insect enthusiast, and pinned her up and displayed her in the study until a year or so later her legs started falling off, and she ended up in the dustbin, taken away by the trash man.
She was a full sized Black Widow and commanded some respect from me, even dead.



Mosquiotes are up there with the Fire Ants as 'Insect Terrorist' status. Come near me and your 'dead' no questions asked.
After my walk the other evening I was covered in several spots of blood from mosquitos I'd squished on me. I spray myself normally before walking but forgot that evening.

The occasional large cockroach that enters the house ends up on its back poisoned through its feet, from the stuff the bug man sprays around the edge of the house.
Yes, I guess we are pretty toxic all in all....



On the more natural side there are loads of Lizards and Gekkos, and Toads are plentiful and help keep the problem bugs at bay.


The ants that live out the back of the garden along the creek are my heros.






These nests having been there many, many years are between 1 to 2 feet across and who knows how deep they go, or how many ants live in the colonies.
They cut down grasses in a circle around their nest and you can see tracks spreading out in all directions where troups of ants rush back and forth clearing out waste and bringing home food to keep the colony alive.
These ants would probably be viewed as a pest in the garden but should be praised as heroes in my book as where you see these, for many, many yards around no other ants survive they fight and kill them, and with the deadly Fire Ant around these large forager ants are certainly welcome and facinating to watch.

There is more birdlife around the garden than there used to be in years past, now that there are more maturing trees and shrubs and climbers, is very evident.
Mocking birds are very tame flying around catching bugs and then in the Spring at night they sit on the chimney and sing loudly down the Chimney keeping us awake.

They kill large bugs and unfortunataly also lizards, and pull leaves off the trees to impale their catch on the twigs, by way of storage larder. When dried out they come back and consume them. No idea why . I'd prefer fresh meat I think.
The red Cardnial is still a resident around the house, despite having fallen down the chimney once. (previous blog entry).

Lots of variety of other birds.
We also have Whistling Ducks, Oyster catchers, Herons, Sanderling, Night Hawks, Vultures, Red Winged Hawks, Owls, Egrets, Woodpeckers and Blue Jays.
Summer brings the territorial Humming birds.

Beautiful but watch and seen on many occasions one try to take nectar from another male humming birds favorite flowers and you have a mega fight on your hands.

Then there is the noisy hustling bustling Grackle. They line themselves up endlessly yet not quietly along the power lines and in trees at dusk.



















I'm convinced they are looking around saying to each other , where's a good place to shit , seen any newly cleaned cars lately?

or sharing stories of good target hits from the day...

" Remember that clean Jeep under the trees in the Wallmart Car park ? ...yes 45 hits in one evening, and 5 direct on the windscreen...sqwark whistle Sqwuark.."


Ever tried using windscreen washers on thet stuff, it's like stick glue.....smears everywhere....