9 December 2009

I snapped this photo of the pretty sunset as I drove (yes, while driving; hence the not-so-good photo quality) back home from a whirlwind erranding trip to the big shopping zone in Arlington known as the Highlands. Four errands: one successful, three, not so much. Grrr. But, Kat and I spent some fun girl time together, and that’s a good thing. And, at home, I got a lot more housecleaning accomplished. The truck is totally unpacked and I am no longer in possession of the stuff I needed to ship back to Nicole. Every day I get a little more control over the chaos of October and November and Dickens.

~MB

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8 December 2009

Ever since Kyle upgraded my XM radio to one that is mounted in the truck, I’ve used some silly method to cover it up, rather than deal with removing it when leaving the truck. For the longest time, I used a little penny candy-sized paper sack that brought small hardware home from the Ace store down the road. Kyle hung a baseball cap over it for a while, but I have a thing about not liking baseball caps. It gave me the idea, though, that a hat was a good plan. So, all through the fall, I’ve been using my straw “cowgirl” hat. I like to wear it, and I always get compliments when I do. But, when I’m not wearing it, my radio is.

This is a photo of the feathery bits I’ve attached to the side of the hat. I love close-ups of feathers!

It was another cold day in north Texas as I began unloading all of the Dickens stuff from my truck. In fact, it was cold enough that I didn’t really get too far in the process. I did a lot of housecleaning instead. And I got to go to the PubGuys recording session at Firehouse Grill. Maybe tomorrow will be warmer!

~MB

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7 December 2009

After a wonderful weekend of Victorian fun, our group gathered in the newly redecorated restaurant at the Tremont for one more meal together before we headed back to our twenty-first century lives. No longer limited to a small period reticule for a purse, or encumbered by gloves, I had my camera at the ready.

We toured the large Tremont Ballroom, again with an eye on wedding planning and a larger Gingerbread ball in the future. We packed out, did our goodbyes with hugs and kisses and eventually scattered toward home. It was another beautiful Dickens weekend, but unfortunately . . . it was over.

For this year. Next year’s gonna rock!

~MB

I took this photo from the gas station we stopped at on the way off the island.  Does anyone know what this contraption is?

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6 December 2009

I was feeling really guilty about the fact that I didn’t take a photo on Sunday. In fact, I am pretty sure that is the subconcious reason I fell so far behind in posting to the KRuMB. I mean, here I am at what is arguably the most picturesque annual event in Texas, and I, daily photo blogger, didn’t take photos.

But, after beating myself up over it for a while, I have realized that the reason I didn’t take photos was that I was too busy having fun!

Our weekend at Dickens on the Strand is our one guaranteed “holiday weekend” of the year. Ever since the first time Kyle and I attended—I believe the year was 1995—we have made it a point to be there. And we try to introduce new people to it, almost every year. We collect Victorian costuming to properly dress for each part of the weekend. We expanded the official event to include a fancy dinner and ball the night before it really starts. It is an event we look forward to, we plan for, we spend lots of money on, and we can’t really imagine missing. And one of our own loves it so much, that she’s planning her wedding to be a part of the event next year.

I guess it stands to reason I have fun. And in the grand scheme of things, my photos won’t be missed. Ginger and Kyle and Clay and dozens of others took photos and are already sharing them on Facebook and I am grateful. So, here’s to fun—even without my camera!

~MB

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5 December 2009

It is much-acknowledged that our weekend of fun at Dickens on the Strand involves the contents of various bottles, cups, goblets and flasks. Kyle and I are fortunate to be the consistent occupants of a wonderful room at the Tremont with a huge wet bar area. This is that area—after we’ve moved in! I love the walls of mirrors.

It was a great day of playing in the cold weather in Galveston. We’d been promised snow, but that didn’t happen. With just an extra layer or two of clothing, including leg warmers, I did fine! Kyle and I had a delightful lunch, just the two of us, at one of our favourite places—Bistro LeCroy. And in the process of leaving, we noticed an upstairs event facility there in the Trolley Building. We inquired and in a beautiful display of serendipity, met the charming man who owns the building. He gladly showed us the lovely ballroom and agreed to show it to us again the next day when we could bring the bride!

We made the most of our day, staying on the cold streets until after dark. We changed for dinner, caught our ride in a horse-drawn carriage and dined at Rudy and Paco’s. Amazing food in a very busy dining room complete with the concert service we fell in love with three years ago.

It was a full, rewarding day, and tomorrow, I get to put the corset and the frilly clothes back on, look in the mirror and and do it again!

~MB

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4 December 2009

After a year of changes forced by Ike, this weekend at Dickens on the Strand promises to return things to (the new) normal. The Gingerbread Ball happened tonight, just like it should.

My photo is of my beautiful husband all dressed to the nines despite having a foot injury that kept him from dancing. Sadly, he was not the only one in attendance who was not up to dancing, and that list of folks was only slightly smaller than the list of folks who would normally have been at the ball, but this year had to stay home for one reason or another. We missed you all!

Remember: next year, you won’t want to miss this weekend! Kelly and John are getting hitched!

~MB

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3 December 2009

To Galveston!

The week has been an insane whirlwind of boxes and bins and hangers and bottles. Lifting, moving, packing, unpacking, repacking—navigating through our house cluttered with piles of faire stuff and Dickens stuff. But, when we were fully loaded and freshly showered, and on the road by 10:30 a.m. today, it was all worthwhile!

The drive was easy, and involved a delightful stop for lunch at Gilberto’s in Fairfield on the way down. We are both suckers for a new Tex Mex experience, and this one was well worth the stop, since not only was the food good, and the margaritas available in a size as big as my head, but they even have Buzztime Trivia!

Unfortunately, I didn’t take my camera into the restaurant, but I did take this offhand snapshot of the Moody Gardens area from the moving truck as we came off the causeway and entered Galveston Island.

It’s official! We’re on the island . . . let the fun begin!

~MB

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2 December 2009

Today . . . cold, rainy, icky . . . even a few snowflakes in the air . . . and yet the truck had to be loaded up for Dickens. Packing in the rain and cold is so much fun . . . not. But, I guess I’d rather be cold than hot when I’m working so hard!

This is the view out our front door when I sent Kyle off to work and realized what sort of day I was about to have. Did I mention it was cold?

~MB

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3 December 2009
Our annual trip to Galveston begins with a 5 hour drive. But, never let it be said that a little drive would prevent my wife from getting necessary work done.

Cheers.

~KR (Written on 12 December 2009)

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.002 sec (1/500)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 80
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Auto, Did not fire

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2 December 2009
Last minute photo as the day closes and no photo taken. My corporate job is consuming me and rarely do I even have a second thought toward photography during the day. It’s sad, but true.
This little bear sits next to the night lamp in our bedroom.

Cheers.

~KR (Written on 12 December 2009)

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.067 sec (1/15)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: +1/3 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire

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