“One thing you gotta have here are pretty toes,” said Ashley, “because in this part of Texas you’re going to be seeing them a lot!” Ashley and Stephanie told us this as they showed off their carefully pedicured digits, just before we shoved off in our canoes to float down […]
The name Rao’s Bakery Cafe brings a smile to anyone’s face who lives in Beaumont. There are four such establishments here in town and one in Houston. We met Jake Tortorice Jr, the owner of them all when we stopped by for a groaning plate of his goodies…kolache, spicy sausages […]
This man told us about the fishing, and how for three years there was nothing. He suggested we take this photo and blow it up big and use it to promote Southeast Texas in one of them bro-chures. He spoke with the thick accent of Louisiana and Texas. People here […]
In conversation after conversation here in Southeast Texas, the topic of hurricanes Rita and Ike comes up. So many lives were uprooted, and nature was changed in such profound ways, I learned. We spent the morning today on the Village Creek, with water the color of weak tea and downed […]
I interrupt this continual coverage of my trip to Southeast Texas for a poignant reminder that the world close to us is indeed not free. I just got an email from a man whose first name is Rolando, who lives in Cuba. I had noticed that someone was sending out […]
We beached our canoes and kayaks on a sandbar on Village Creek, a tributary of the Neches river here in Southeast Texas. It was time for lunch and stories. Our guide had plenty of both, we soon found out. The day was sunny and the paddling along this gorgeous stretch […]
Last night we got a chance to visit one of Beaumont’s favorite restaurants, which is known for being easy. Wayne and Karen Ingwerson opened up Easy’s six years ago on the main drag, Calder St. here in this oil city. “We wanted to attract an older crowd, and be a […]
On the plane to Houston, I sat next to a contractor from Rindge, NH. He told me he was on his way to a fishing tournament sponsored by McDonalds. Ironically, most of the work he does is remodeling their restaurants so they can serve their new McCafe offerings, making the […]
I’m at the gate at Logan, having just consumed a delicious bowl of Starbucks instant oatmeal. They give you packets of nuts and fruits so it’s all in all a lot better than a fatty croissant or an even fattier meat-filled breakfast sandie. I gotta hand it to the battered […]
I’ve been on a roll lately watching documentaries about the adult video business. It’s surprisingly easy to shoot these docs, because all they consist of is interspersing 8-10 interviews with people in the business, and throwing in some scenes of them hard at work to make it more interesting. The […]
Continuing my series on life’s little joys, I get to a topic that is lighting up talk radio and the pages of the Boston Herald this week. It’s about the Mass Pike and Fastlane passes. I’ve had one of these little white boxes just above my car mirror for many […]
Uh oh. Being green is starting to mean not reading that ‘free’ newspaper that’s left at the door of every Marriot and Holiday Inn across the land. Reuters reports that they get a huge discount from publishers so it’s not the money. I remember meeting a woman at a conference […]