Storms over Texas and sadness over Georgia

Image by {Wes} via Flickr

Storms arrived into Southern Texas on Saturday and continued throughout Sunday. Starting out as mostly thunder, followed by huge rain drops but a foot apart ! Then later there was some really heavy rain which was badly needed. I then did what all good Texans do when it rains heavily… I reversed the car out of the Garage. This I’m told is a Texas Car Wash !

Now I know Fr Jimmy has prayed for rain for months and his prayers have been answered despite some cynics /doubters on Twitter, but I did say a little prayer myself that the sun reappears if only until I vacate the State at the end of the month. If we in Ireland could export our rain to Texas we’d all be wealthy and tell the Troika to F Off. I can now say that my prayer was answered and we’re enjoying a great spell of weather again. There is a God after all.

Well, Mass on Sunday with Fr Jimmy was as exciting as ever. That man can really keep your attention, is very witty but gets his point across. His Masses last nearly two hours and later people queue up just to thank him and shake his hand. My daughter was one of these and gave him a Big Hug. She says of him that he is ‘A Priest like my Grandad would have liked. A real connection with God’. So prayers said, we all headed to Jim’s for Breakfast. ‘There’s always something good cookin’ at Jim’s !’ is written across the top of the Menu. It seems the founder opened a Bicycle Rental Business in 1947 and placed a Watermelon Stand outside. You guessed, it developed into the Chain of Restaurants today known as Jims and is now a great favourite here in San Antonio for breakfast. The gentleman serving us was a kind and gentle man. Slightly older than me. An ex-teacher he told us. He’d taken a break from the School system and now couldn’t get back in. Now he was working at Jims. He said his name was Ealy but that his ancestors who came to America from Ireland, had been called Healy. He went on to say that the family were divided into two groups. One being Artists while the other were Thieves. He believed it was the latter group who ventured to America. The alternative history of the Healys he said, was that Mr Healy married a Mexican woman and moved to Mexico. It seems they have no ‘H’ in Mexico so Healy became Ealy ! Having been up for hours and sat through two hours of Fr Jimmy I was now starving so ordered The Rustlers Roundup..3 Eggs,Sausage,Grilled ham and bacon, served with Hash browns or Grits and toast or flaky biscuits $7.69. I did say I was hungry. My daughters put in their separate orders while Toes had Texas French Toast:…Three Texas-sized slices hand-dipped, grilled and served with syrup and powdered sugar $4.79 and of course, Milk. Where Toes put the food I have no idea. I didn’t hang around to find out anyway as with his mother on hand, I felt his nappies were her business ! Well after that feast it was back home and a quiet day in front of the TV. Starting with The Disney Channel then later my daughters choice. I now hate MTV !

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While I write this piece, I’m saddened to hear of the execution of Troy Davis in Georgia. Despite the apparent production of evidence which suggested a miscarriage of justice, the State nonetheless executed him. I abhor violence of any kind and violence inflicted by The State is, to my way of thinking, the worst possible kind. The premeditated murder in such clinical circumstances is wrong. Scripture says ‘vengeance is mine says The Lord’. Well I believe that. The execution of a human being by The State is not justice, it’s vengeance. I take no pride in the fact that here in Texas the State seems the worst offender in this regard. On too regular a basis I see on the News stories about the latest person to have been executed. Governor Perry obviously is a strong believer in Capital Punishment. While I respect him as Governor I do take issue with some of his policies and on this one we’ll never agree. Just think of the poor families who arrive at the Prison of Execution to collect the Body Bag containing the remains of their Father, Son, Brother or other relative. Absolutely horrific. I’m not a soft Liberal like some Republicans may suggest but I do not believe in the Old Testament where it demands ‘a tooth for a tooth’. I am a lawyer practising for over 30 years now and I am a firm believer in the concept of  justice. I condemn those who murder, rape and terrorise our Citizens and believe the State has a role to play in removing from society, those criminals responsible for such heinous acts. You won’t find me soft on these issues. But C’mon Governor Perry. Here in Texas, where we have a predominant Christian Society, please, where is your compassion? Justice is not directing vengeance on the victim and his/her family. If it is then you and me need to talk as The Christ I believe in obviously differs somewhat from yours.

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Finally, I’d like to remember the mother of a close friend of my son who died suddenly from a Brain Hemorrhage. Jean Carley. May she rest in peace.

 LegalEagleStar , San Antonio , Texas , Thursday , 22nd. September , 2011 .

Vacation in Texas continues, not uninterrupted…

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Enjoying myself at home from home here in the Great State of Texas. That was until I’m woken up at 5AM local time, this morning by a call from the Office. “Hi Tom, it’s ‘G’ here. I didn’t see your Blog on Super injunctions appear yet.”  Half asleep I attempted to persuade my ‘friend’ that while it was early in the morning here in Texas that I was indeed keeping an eye on developments from here as things were moving at a fast rate on the Super injunctions front. “No” I said, “I’ll do that in the next few weeks.” “Right, well what did you do then?” I replied that I was chilling and relaxing myself. She laughed and then said the phone was ringing and she’d phone me back. Before I could say NO! she was gone. So, 5AM it was. Mind now attempting to work, slowly. The Morning news on KSAT starts at 5AM. A lot over here starts at 5AM. I don’t. So back to bed it was for me…. until about 5:30AM

”Hi Tom, it’s ‘G’ again. We’re busy over here. Isn’t it well for you off there in Texas having a Great Time. ‘S’ said to say Hi and will be in touch later.” This time I said… well can she make it much later please as I want, need more sleep. It’s nearly 100 degrees here, or it will be in a few hours time, according to The Weather Channel. So again, back to bed but this time I couldn’t sleep. My Grandson was awake. He has few words, none actually except AArrssee and the odd time he says YEEsss. So guess who ends up babysitting until Mammy or Daddy gets up later? You’ve guessed it. So Disney Channel, Mickey Mouse Club House it was for me for next several hours. The moment I saw said Child’s father taking a swim while I remained indoors with said Grandchild was enough to ignite our first and probably shortest row. ”You, inside now!’‘ was the start and finish of our encounter. No doubt he had a lovely, uninterrupted sleep. I think I’m starting to take a dislike to him. Yes, definitely so !

Office email arrived later. ”Sorry to phone you so early. I really needed to talk with you so hope I’m forgiven. ‘G’ ”  Now I’m worried. What did she phone me to talk about that was so urgent that I have clearly now forgotten or else have suffered memory loss ??  Where’s me bottle of Shiner, to restore my sanity? It’s not Guinness but it’s good.

LegalEagleStar  Wednesday, 25th. May, 2011.
San Antonio, Texas.

On vacation, I think…

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I headed to Texas last week on holidays, as I thought. Well yes, some family members are here with me. Usually we come over a few times a year and rest up. Watch whatever TV is available, drive to local iHop and sit in the car outside just to connect with the internet and respond to emails.

On arrival my man on the spot, so to speak, who looks after the place for me told me that as regards TV, we were down to just a few local stations. Cool was my reply. Not really, I was told. But sure I’m used to ‘Friends’ followed by ‘David Letterman’, followed by ‘Craig Ferguson’. That’s all we seemed to watch for the last number of years. Ensured early to bed, early to rise and all that. No, I was told. You need to follow the Soccer. But sure the season is over I informed all and sundry. Our American Soccer ! OK, how could I be diplomatic ? Anyway, how selfish was I not having The Disney Junior Channel for my young Grandson, I was told. OK then. So a guy armed with a satellite dish arrived and I now have the privilege of watching Junior Disney, Mickey Mouse etc. for several hours each day with my beloved grandson….

This year’s vacation would I thought be no different to those delightful times we all remember. How mistaken was I. Well after a couple of days I sent a Text to my Office in Dublin… ‘Hi Michael. Everything OK?’  I got the following reply… ”Office burned down, M’s other eye fell out and S is pregnant with triplets..Nothing we can’t handle 🙂 just kidding. Everything fine but too busy.”  I laughed but then realised in second text that they wanted me ‘contactable’ on the internet. Wonder whose bright idea that was seeing as how I’m the Boss ! What was wrong with phoning or texting me? I was advised that they ‘might’ want to get me to look at a communication that was urgent. So, I agreed. I was being selfish really as I missed my Twitter Pals. Alerts were sent by me out on Twitter (courtesy of iHop) among other places seeking a Service Provider. So, to cut a long story short, on Tuesday afternoon another guy armed with yet another Satellite Dish arrived. The end result is that we now have internet at our Ranch and for A Few Dollars More, into said guy’s pocket, we now have the entire Hacienda live with WiFi.

Oh yes, my Office telephoned (yes, the old-fashioned method) me about 10 minutes after the Internet Guy had WiFi-ed us, to ask me why they hadn’t seen my Blog earlier. I said I was on Vacation but that didn’t wash at all. They wanted to know where my piece on Super Injunctions was. I was only a few moments linked up, so to speak, don’t they understand that I need a computer and more? I had thought, maybe naively as it turns out, that I was free for a couple of weeks. No, it seemed not. It would appear  they really were concerned with me sitting out here in the wilds of Texas with nothing to do. So, I’ve now started working on my next Blog as aforesaid on son’s MacBook computer. Then… email arrives asking me what I thought of the email they had just received? I said I didn’t know what they were talking about ..to be informed that as I usually view all emails both in and out of the office that I’d obviously still be doing that. Well, I did have internet now and sure what else would I be doing !!

I was once an advocate for the Virtual Office and suchlike. Now, I’m not so sure.

LegalEagleStar ,  Thursday 19th May 2011

San Antonio, Texas.