The Original Beach Peach. Since 2007

Main Entry: Kael

Pronunciation: \Kay-el\

Function: Proper Noun

Etymology: Irish. Form of Cael.

abundant, at ease, available, casual, comfortable, comfy, cushy, easygoing, effortless, elementary, facile, gentle, gradual, hands-down, leisurely, lenient, light, loose, painless, pleasing, prosperous, simple, simplified, smooth, soft, tardily, unchaste, uncomplicated, undemanding, unhurried, unproblematic, wanton, well-fixed, well-heeled, well-off, well-situated...except of course when he's not (as the above is usually completely negated just before nap time)! ;0)

Proper usage:

The Kael 's easygoing, casual personality won over his nursery colleagues in record time.

Gentle Kael simplified his closet space by leisurely donating his duplicate & even triplicate Happy Meal toys to the local Goodwill much to the delight of his parents.

Kael's light, soft & smooth skin was due to his unhurried shave from his manful Gillette Sensor Excell razor for men.

Kael's undemanding & lenient mood could only be explained by his deep slumber, or preoccupation with his vanilla milk shake from Sonic Drive-In.

Kael's early twentieth century jazz guitar solo was effortless & unhurried, & his interpretation on the musical body of work was most pleasing.

;0)

Happy Birthday Kael. We love you dearly.

Tuesdays At Jake's

They say nothing ever lasts forever. Whoever "They" is would be correct. I find myself no exception to this rule in my closing days as a South Houston resident. So lately I've been combating my anxiety by seeking out the familiar & routine I so desperately crave, since all of my normal surroundings continue to crumble around me (& then be promptly wrapped in newspaper & thrown in a box).

Which brings me to Jake's Grill, of Friendswood, Texas. Over the past several years I have spent many a Tuesday evening in this cordial eating establishment while gazing at the outside water fountain sparkling in the brilliant sunset, the massive amounts of old license plates clustered together on the wall that proudly form the familiar shape of Texas, & the arcade area that always seems to draw my sons in like flies to honey.

All the while Johny Cash's "Ring of Fire" & The Eagle's "Hotel California" boom softly in the background. In fact, it is only after we've heard these timeless classics that my wife & I feel we have sufficiently concluded our dining experience. No Cash? No Henley? No Exiting the premises! No exceptions! ;0)

But it's not even the relaxed atmosphere, the jumpin' juke box, or the best Chicken Fried steak with mashed potatoes & green beans this side of the Mississippi that make us repeat clientele.

It's the unpretentiousness. It's the great product in a timely manner at a can't beat price. But most importantly, it's the way we are greeted & treated during our visit.

In this age of plentiful heartless corporations, forgettable franchise burger joints every ten feet, & "Chotchkies" type restaurant chains that cult favorite "Office Space" so poignantly ridiculed, we seem to have lost the art of valuing & nurturing the customer to employee relationship.

We all know what it's like to have a pushy waiter smile through gritted teeth & assure us "Oh there's no hurry folks!" when nothing could be further from the truth. So when I stumble on a place that extends even the slightest amount of warmth & honesty to myself & family, well... I'm hooked.

So to all the exceptional employee's at Jake's Grill, in Friendswood, Texas, I say thank you for the wonderful service you have consistently given my family through these lean years of medical school. Rest assured our Tuesday evenings will never be the same. Dios está con usted hasta encuentra otra vez!

Anxiety's Moment

Awoke this morning to the cries of my oldest son's discomfort. He was doubled over in pain on our bathroom floor while trying to get ready for school. So a trip to the emergency room soon followed. Emotionally spent. It would appear the days of my life are spiraling out of control more quickly & erratically than I would prefer. Am certain I am not unique in that regard.

Sometimes I catch myself wondering if there are more days behind me now than in front of me because words like "mundane, routine, & placid" that were such a turn off in my youth, sound more & more attractive with the passing of each day. Those words will not apply to me anytime soon though. Days like today remind me of that old saying "A ship in harbor is safe-but that is not what ships are built for." As I write my son is on his way home now for which I am exceedingly grateful. Here's hoping for momentary calm seas.

Pictured: The bow of our sailing vessel from several years ago in the Bay of Galveston, TX. My two oldest even got to navigate! Sail boats are much quieter than motor boats which is an enormous plus in my book when trying to take in the natural beauty of the water & waves. Great memories.

Gimme Gimme

Well....I can't possibly acknowledge Champlin without giving homage to Lamm now can I? The Yin & the Yang that was Chicago for so many years. Gimme Gimme is a work from Lamm's wonderful cagey solo project entitled "Subtly & Passion". Plus where else are ya gonna find a chick jazz trombone player on the touring circuit? Chess King gives a resounding two thumbs up! Enjoy!

Robert Lamm's "Subtly & Passion" as well as Bill Champlin's newest solo album "No Place Left to Fall" is available at amazon.com

Please Hold On

Oh how I adore this song. From the hands down finest album ever produced: Chicago XVII. Thank you Bill Champlin for taking this song out on tour with you. Such wonderful memories. Such righteous vocals & delicious groove. You are the King of cool. There are no words. I'm getting all Verklempt now. Talk amongst yourselves... ;0)

The Crossing

A strange & eerie fog of which the likes no one had ever seen or encountered before, moved steadily across the shoreline blanketing the entire west end of the island.

As if the situation was not grim enough, now untimely, inclement weather would add its paralyzing insult to injury in the final fleeting hours of this harrowing conflict.

Heavy winds & rain promptly ensued.

It was now only a matter of time, as the opposition carefully surrounded its prey, fully realizing it was not only severely weakened, but pinned, with no means of escape.

Was this the end?

Surely years of unspeakeable torment & sacrifice had not been endured in vain, only to be lost in this most desperate of hours.

Darkness soon fell on the remaining forces as their leadership assembled to ruminate any possible hope of survival.

Though it was a long shot & not without enormous risk, an idea was suggested that just maybe, this strange & unseasonal weather might possibly be used to their advantage.

And so a plan was hatched.

It would be so secretive that even those directly affected were not told of their destination.

With dense fog as their cloak, punishing rain as a convenient sound barrier, & high winds restraining enemy transports, the mother of all evacuations began.

All through the night, small life boats ferried back & forth moving more than 9,000 troops, tents, artillery, & supplies safely across the river.

By late morning, August 30th, the fog had lifted, the rain had ceased, & the winds subsided.

Warships quickly moved in as orders were dispatched to "Finish the job!".

Soon General Howe arrived on the battlefront. It was there he became shocked & enraged to find his prey to be nowhere in sight.

How could this be?

Any attempt of escape in the night would have easily been detected by the finest naval armada in the world!

Nevertheless, a golden opportunity had slipped through the general's fingers to crush this rebellion once & for all.

And so, a rag-tag assembly of mostly farmers, untrained in the art of modern warfare, & led by General George Washington, survived the battle of Long Island in 1776 & kept their costly dreams of an American Revolution alive.

Who says God isn't on our side? :0)

Things That Go Puke In the Night

During the wee small hours of the morning I found myself in the most precarious of circumstances...for me at least. It would appear I have fallen ill. But out of respect for my legions of faithful readers (Val), I will spare you the gruesome details. That being said, I found my only solace in our couch, a brown comforter, a hot cup-o-joe, ( and here's where it gets hoyty-toyty) & a movie for the life of me I still can't believe I sat through. I can't bring myself to tell you the name of it (& no it wasn't HBO after hours reow-reOW!) but I will tell you it was the mother of all chick flicks. That in & of itself doesn't bother me because a.) My first dvd purchase EVER...was "You've Got Mail" (which we all know was a rehash of Sleepless in Seattle) and b.) As I blogged about in an earlier entry, Seagall & Stallone just aren't cuttin' it for me anymore (See: Cup O' Joe, Hold the Show).

So perhaps it was the drama that drew me in. I dunno. Perhaps it was the stomach virus clouding my otherwise impeccable discernment. All I know is this flick goes against every value/lifestyle I believe in. Yet there I was watching away curled up with a fresh cup of Starbuck's House Blend go figure. Weirder than fiction. The movie? I'll never tell.