Fourth of July -- Beach-Style

So, what were the big weekend plans mentioned earlier? Well, we were able to get away for a long weekend with some new friends to celebrate Canada Day and US Independence Day, as well as explore some previously uncharted (by us) Texan territory. Where did we go? Port Aransas, which is along the Texas coast of the Gulf of Mexico, just east of Corpus Christi.

We're thankful to have had the opportunity to go. Some friends, Chris and Angela Wilke, called us up earlier and invited us to join them and 2 other couples (Matt and Amy Faulkner and Jeremy and Megan Stewart) for the weekend at Angela's co-worker's beach house (which was actually a short drive from the beach). (Sidebar: we actually had to break into the house. The key was supposed to be in an unlocked screen porch. However, when we went to open the screen door, we found to our dismay that it was locked, which meant we couldn't get to the key. Thankfully, a neighbour lent us a screwdriver, so we could take off some of the frame of the screen door, which allowed us to get into the screen porch, and, alas, the much needed key!) The beach was nice, the water warm, and the sun hot (although Barb spent more time at the beach than I did, so she can attest to all this better than I). One of the great elements of the weekend was the opportunity to spend time relaxing and visiting with some folks we previously hadn't spent much time with. By the end of the weekend, we had developed several great new friendships.


[Clockwise from left: Barb, Angela, Chris, Matt, Amy, Megan, Jeremy]

Some highlights: On Friday night, Chris and Angela and Barb and I went out to eat at a restaurant called the Crazy Cajun. (The others were still making the trek south.) This place was pretty cool! All the tables were covered in butcher paper and when the food was brought out, the waiter simply dumped our order on the table! We ordered a couple servings of the 'Hungry Cajun', which was filled with crab legs, shrimp, crawfish, sausage, and corn. The only utensil we were given was a hammer -- used to crack open the shellfish. It was a great night of food, drink, and fun. If you're ever in Port A, check it out!

Also, we were introduced by Matt and Amy to a new Playstation game: Dance Dance Revolution Max 2 (DDR for short). Hands down, DDR consumed 50% of our waking hours; it's quite addictive! It works like this: instead of controllers, each player uses a large footmat with left, right, up, and down arrows. A song is played and arrows scroll up the screen to indicate where to place your feet. The end result is a hilarious attempt to 'dance' while following along on the TV! This is a definite must for large, uninhibited groups!

Finally, I found out that Matt and Amy were Settlers players. (I had only encountered one other person down here who has actually played the game, but he doesn't own a board.) Once this became known, it was inevitable (from my perspective anyway) that a few rounds of settling would have to take place. And settling we did, late into the night both Saturday and Sunday! It was great to finally scratch that nagging itch to play!

All in all, it was a great weekend; a great way to celebrate our first Fourth of July as pseudo-Americans (in addition to our first out-of-country Canada Day).