Leap Day 2012!

There is just something weird about a day that only shows up every four years!  When I was young, I remember hearing that Leap Day was the only day a girl could ask a boy to marry her--my how times changed!  Now, it appears it is simply another day and another excuse to have a "sale" on every single online retail website that I have contact with.  I woke up to a blizzard of emails from everyone I have ever ordered from letting me know today was the day to get something for weird discounts like 29% off or $12 for a book with $2.29 shipping in honor of 02/29/12.  The minds of marketers would be an interesting study. 

Anyway, I hope everyone reading this is having a wonderful Leap Day and if this is your first birthday in four years or anniversary or whatever, make the most of it!

South Central Texas

I know this blog is about Central Texas but I have to put in a plug about a fabulous experience I had last week in South Central Texas (San Marcos) with my youngest daughter who was having her first baby at the Central Texas Medical Center in San Marcos.  What a wonderful Women's Center they have there, with the most attentive and knowledgeable staff--made a tough labor and delivery so much more pleasant than it would have been otherwise.  The care was absolutely 5 star for both baby and mother--and they were even so caring to family members who were there as well.  I highly recommend this facility to anyone in that area who needs it.  I can't speak for the rest of the hospital, but I would think if their service is that good in the Women's Center, it is probably the same throughout the hospital. 

And now that I've done my Central Texas information, let me just tell you about my sweet new grandson--Tyler Lane, weighing in at 8.9 pounds, born Feb. 16.  He's a keeper and the newest Central Texan in our family!

Book Sale, Central Texas Style

Twice annually the auxiliary fundraising group of the Temple Public Library, Friends of the Library, holds an awesome used book sale where hardbacks can be purchased for $2 and paperbacks for $1--and they have something for EVERYONE!  Sets of books, antique books, new books, children's books, videos, audio books, you just name it, and I bet they have it.

This year's winter sale begins Wednesday, February 15, and goes through Saturday, February 18.  Hours on Wed. and Thursday are 10-8 and on Friday and Saturday, 10-4. By Saturday, the books are sold by the grocery back full for one low, low price so you can risk buying something you don't know if you will like or not.

The other semi-annual sale will be heldp on Labor Day weekend so remember it as well.  The Friends accept any of your donations throughout the year so clean off some shelves and donate the books you have read so you can make room for some you haven't yet read.

So many books....so little time!

Spanish Brass Performance

For a relatively small city, Temple, TX has a wonderful Cultural Activities Center which offers a wide variety of events, classes, exhibits, etc.  So I will be writing about some of those as time grows near to the performances or activities.  On Sunday, Feb. 19 at 4:00 p.m., the Central Texas Orchestral Society (CTOS) will be presenting the Spanish Brass from Barcelona, Spain, in concert.  This is a brass quintet with a huge variety of music in its repertoire--from formal classical to whimsical numbers.  It will be an eclectic performance by a group well known around the world.  We are so fortunate to have this caliber of musicians playing for us.  Go online to www.cacarts.org to purchase tickets.

Just another perk of living in Central Texas!

Common Courtesy

              I am a native Texan, and as such, I guess I have inherited the bragging gene!  Last night I was sitting in a gathering of about eight women and for some reason the conversation came around to courtesy.  Most of the women were not native to Texas and their comment was that although they had lived here a long time, they still couldn’t get used to such things as drivers at a four-way stop sign who would look to their right or left and signal the other guy to go ahead before them.  To them, it was such an oddity that people would not race to get through the intersection before someone else beat them to it.  The more I have thought about that conversation, the more I realized that I take that kind of courtesy for granted because I’ve never known anything else.

              Oh, of course, there are cranks anywhere, but by far, the majority of people around our area are friendly, courteous, never meet a stranger, ask if someone needs help, and are just generally full of Southern hospitality and courtesy.  I’ve decided to try to notice it more, acknowledge it, and pass it forward.  We could all benefit from a kinder, gentler world in which to live.  And I will continue to brag about my fellow Central Texans for their friendliness and kindness. 

P.S. to the Central Texas Winter Weather post

In the name of fairness and transparency in reporting Central Texas weather, I thought I should just post these photos from February 2011 to let you know that all February's aren't 79 degree days!  We seldom get snow here but it becomes an occasion when we do, and last year was one of those years.

Central Texas Winter Weather

One of my favorite things about Central Texas is the winter weather. What I'm talking about is 79 degrees on February 1! Now that's the kind of winter I can deal with every day. Shorts and flip flops in the winter, no heavy coat to put on and take off as you go in and out of buildings, nights cool enough (or even down right cold enough) to need a snuggly blanket on the bed. We do have very cold days--but the nice thing is there aren't many in a row and then the sun comes out again and we are once again in those flip flops!

Now, of course, there can be a downside to warm winter weather--mowing the grass in February, pesky insects not dying off and coming back in huge numbers in the spring, not getting many opportunities to wear cute sweaters or furs.

The mild weather also makes for less scary utility bills in the winter...and even opportunities to open windows and let fresh air into the house.

So, for my perference, I would change the words to a well-known old song from "summertime and the living is easy" to "winter time, and the living is easy" in Central Texas...because summertime is another story here which we won't think about today.

Affordable Central Texas

There is nothing more delightful than to open the newspaper and discover that your home town of Temple, TX, is ranked number 4 of most affordable cities in which to live in the WHOLE UNITED STATES!  If that isn’t reason to celebrate living in Central Texas, I’m not sure what would be.  In this time of economic woes, we are living in the “cheap seats”—in a good way.  Housing is affordable, groceries are affordable, services are affordable, medical care is abundant….

         Central Texas is an adopted homeland for me, having come from the Rolling Plains of Texas (Haskell) between Abilene and Wichita Falls. My roots are there, but I’ve come to love the Central Texas area in the 20 years I have been here.  So my desire in doing this blog is to acquaint you with all the things Central Texas has to offer, at least in the part of it in which I live.  If you are considering moving this way, you will begin to see why it is a place like no other in Texas.