Living Irie In Texas

Getting Back to Business

For the past two days I have been away from my computer (a blessing in disguise), occupying my time by packing some bags and heading south to Balmorhea.

Those unaware of this gorgeous getaway, you must definitely find a way to stop on by when you’re visiting Texas.

If anybody reading this is looking for some info on this great state park, visit the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department at: 

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/parks/balmorhea/

I will have a follow up to this post later, as I am suffering from acute heatstroke, mild dehydration, and a strange bout of sleep deprivation that almost caused me to swerve my car of of Interstate 20 this morning as I headed back to town (none of these conditions were caused by Balmorhea itself, but by my own stupidity).

In the meantime, keep irie and stay upified.

Party on the Left, Party on the Right

I’m writing this as I sit inside the coffee shop I work at, sipping on a glass of ice water, listening to the strange lullaby created by the satellite radio station meshing side-by-side with the drone of the refrigerators. Perfect writing conditions if you ask me.

For the last four hours, give or take the odd minute or two, there has been a Tea Party meeting occurring directly across from me. Usually, I wouldn’t be able to hear conversations happening five yards away from me, especially in the shop (refer to the satellite radio refrigerator groove mentioned above), yet there is one gentleman in the group making sure that everybody will hear him, regardless of if they care or not. 

I’m all for free speech, sharing views and opinions with your peers, and having intelligent, political discussion, yet there is something about a hearing the back and forth from a Tea Party that just makes me wonder, “Why are you all so geared towards making your Saturday sound so stressed?” Yes, the economy is in the toilet, healthcare is the fiery debate of the presidential term, and border control is an issue, but why ruin a fair, sunny Saturday afternoon with it?

To illustrate my point, there is a fairly large, church sponsored festival happening across the street in the downtown plaza. There are at least three moon bounce houses, dozens of booths, and live music. As far as I can tell, everybody is having fun over there. Kids are playing, adults are laughing, and even a few grannies and grandpas are dancing. I could hear and see all of this as I stepped out for a smoke break (for there is only so much political discussion I can handle in a day and three plus hours is pushing it), and even started moving my hips a little to the music. I’m not exactly a huge fan of Tejano, but on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, I don’t see any reason why I shouldn’t be dancing to something.

A Tea Party meeting, citing all the worries and wrongs of the day, and a joyous little festival, where eating, dancing, and even bouncing aren’t required but appear to be de riguer, barely a block away from one another with two completely different energies. Both are loud, frantic, and teeming with passion, but only the latter is making my soul feel as if I’m being taken to a higher level.

I’ll be honest, if it wasn’t for my responsibilities as an employee, I probably would have spent this beautiful Saturday tossing a Frisbee around with some friends, jumping on my skateboard at a park, taking my girlfriend out for a casual stroll (or playing video games, whatever), or just laying down in the grass and looking at the wonderful cloud coverage. 

Perhaps this is why I have fallen out of politics. There is too much stress, too much anger, and far too many contradictions for me to believe that this could actually be worth doing. I still think everybody should vote and that that vote should go to what they believe is essentially the best for themselves and their brethren (and sistren), but to worry yourself when there is a perfectly beautiful day waiting out there for you… That I will never understand.