reverse shock in the only public space left...the mall

Still overwhelmed by the amount of space here. I can't believe that I can walk through department stores and not bump into a single individual or smell their perfume or B.O. because they never pass that close.

Why are they all talking to me? I'm fine, dammit, let me buy what I want without you getting up in my face, trying to sign me onto a credit card when I just told you 1) I don't want a credit card and 2) I don't have a U.S. address. Then she asks ' do you know someone here whose address you can use?' I'm flabbergasted. Credit card nation and trillion dollar debts flash across the marquee of my mind.

And stop TOUCHING me. Why are they all touching me?!?! 90% of this room is empty space and yet they still feel it necessary to come around from the counter (my lovely friend, the counter), put an arm around my shoulder or a hand on my arm, and call me 'honey'. My reaction goes something like this: flinch, then stare, then scramble for a response, then smile without looking too shell-shocked.

They've been bursting my urban space bubble, those insidious Texas town ladies with Ann Taylor sweaters, pearl necklaces and over-highlighted hair.


My head still hurts. Note to self: Do not mix wine and mexican martinis.

San Antonio and the Matrix

Long(er) days, sunny days, tea that tastes like it should because it is made with water from Edward's Aquifer, women with nasally voices wearing sweats and Louis Vuitton bags, adverts every 10 minutes, half for lawyers half for pharmaceuticals, a new mall in La Cantera that appears more a pavilion and boasts Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom. My, San Antonio is coming up in the world. That 'mall' was freaking me out truth be told. Me fellow Texans will understand when I describe it as an upscale shopping development, a posh strip mall with the landscaping and hand-cut stone walkways of nicer apartment complexes in the lonestar state. Perhaps I've spent too much time in the city - several thousand people ambling at a leisurely pace in the sunny walkways amid the sounds of water fountains and the most non-offensive muzak possible seemed somehow off kilter. And as we landed into Dallas/Ft Worth, I thought to myself 'I don't remember this place being a desert..' Imagine landing into Delhi at dusk or dawn, when the sky is that hazy blue that merges seamlessly into the land, a flat wash of dusty sable. Delhi-Dallas-Delhi-Dallas. Coincidence? I think not.

So now, protected by my red metal bubble on wheels I scream and curse at mindless people speaking on mobiles while driving ridiculously large trucks that get 8 miles a gallon, watch Fox news in bemused disbelief, and scramble wildly to prod two horrible bureaucracies - the state department and UCL - into action so that the work permit will be mildly less stressful. The job transition, the end of the student age, hit yesterday. When conversation focuses on pensions, passports, contract litigation, health insurance, double taxation, mortgages, and holiday planning one year in advance, it can only mean one thing. The matrix has you. The matrix has me!

But there is solace in the details. Take Mexican food. Ahhh, that savoury ambrosia of Texas. After shovelling a chicken enchilada slathered in salsa verde and monterrey jack cheese into my mouth in record time, I slumped over and sighed deeply. Oh yeah, that's the stuff.

random return

So I'm coming home. On Thursday. For two weeks.

Old friends, independent coffee and Mexican food are a given. Looking forward to taking photos of the house, rifling through old clothes and prints, walking attention-starved Nike, seeing the brother's first purchased place of abode, playing with new tech gadgets, and watching endless DVDs on a 6-foot screen.

happy days

Since I'm at a loss for snide remarks and rants, I'll put my business education to some good use. I learned how to use them bullet points good.

Highlights from the past week:

* Cracking open a Vino Nobile di Montepulciano for no better reason than enjoying some fine wine with other wine gluttons
* Yet another thanksgiving dinner, thanks to Wonderwoman and company. Included in that are: true gravy made from giblets, access to a clothes dryer for the first time in 3 months, learning the concept of a dental dam
* Prosecco, Chinese take-away, and pizza while watching 'Buffalo 66' and discussing the death penalty and drug trafficking with Ozzies
* Late night ice skating at Somerset House with R (and a colour-coordinated bruise to boot)
* Pleasing friends with culinary know-how (lemon chicken and taleggio gnocchi bake)
* Coffee and pain au chocolat at a French patisserie, overlooking Newington Green on a sunny winter morning
* Learning that the Bank wants me to start ASAP. The upside is that I may get to visit Austin much sooner than expected. The downside? I won't see my mother for a very long time and I may not make it to a certain wedding in April (don't kill me!)