DFW the airport: I'm a rule follower. I'm not comfortable flagrantly not following rules so when I was studying the TSA suggestions on traveling with liquids, I ended up sending most of my stuff out via USPS but I forgot two important items - liquid eyeliner and mascara. Once I measured out my sandwich bag to see if it equals the measurements of a quart sized bag (yes, I really did that and they do..which makes me wonder at the companies that make these bags. I'm sure many people buy quart and sandwich thinking they are two different sizes. Pretty sneaky, Ziploc), I loaded up those two items and figured if I get caught sneaking on with a sandwich bag, they could just toss it and I'd visit a Walgreens when I got there. I made it through fine. Actually, I don't really have any tales to tell about flying. It was all relatively smooth, even the late departure back to DTW was corrected thanks to the tailwind. On that flight, one of the pilot's name was Kirk Crawford. Captain Kirk Crawford. Can there be a more manly pilot name than that?!? I could smell the testosterone from the moment I saw his name patch on his leather bomber jacket as I was boarding.
DFW the region: To dash Sage's hope from the get go, this particular Yankee didn't run into any problems down south. This is my 2nd visit to the area since they moved there 2 years ago and each time, I'm surprised at how Michigan-like it is. The roads are in poor condition and are patched haphazardly, there doesn't seem to be more pick up trucks than there are around here, it was snowing on Thanksgiving and I hear more southern accents in the blue collar section of the town that I live in than I do there. The first of three things that do stand out is the active railroad system. Rarely do I find myself stopped at a railroad crossing when at home. There is one about half a mile from home which Amtrak uses 2-3 times a day but I kinda miss the long waits of a freight train going by. Anyone that lives in Texas longer than a week would probably disagree with me.
The second thing that stands out is the immense size of the churches. The one that we pass quite often when out and about is The Harvest Church of Wautauga, Texas. I'm assuming it must be partly a school as well because next to this huge church is a huge football field (another thing that is pretty amazing to see but something that I knew existed thanks to the movie, Friday Night Lights). The parking lot is an amazing sight on Sundays. I have yet to run into Joel Osteen though. That may be well worth a trip to Houston. Does anyone know why megachurches began? I'm thinking there must be something more to it than wanting to touch all these lives. Is it Jim Bakker's fault that megachurches and televangelism began?
And lastly, Texas has a lot, and I mean a lot as in one every mile or so, of animal clinics. Where my brother and his family live, I don't see a lot of cattle nor do I see a lot of people out walking dogs. What and who are of these clinics servicing?
5 comments:
Did you measure how much a quart sized bag will hold? If a sandwich bag will hold a quart, I'm curious as to how much the quart will hold.
The last time I was in Texas, it still looked like the wild west except instead of a brace of pistols attached to their belts it was a cellphone and multitool. The hat and shitkickers still seem to be mandatory. Of course, I have only been out in the boondocks of Texas and never the big cities.
About the church size thing, I think it falls under the saying, "Everything is big in Texas."
I've spent more time in Dallas/Fort Worth area than I'd like to remember, maybe I should blog about it someday... Murf, no bull riding or going to Billy Bobs? Did you meet up with Kevin?
Superchurches often offer a lot of programs that small churches can't afford to do. A small example of that is bringing in the top music singers or groups.
Wow, I got busy and didn't read any blogs for a few weeks and then when I get back in the look I find out you were right around the corner.
I attended Harvest in Watauga back in the early 1990's. I guess the answer to your megachurches question is that everything is bigger in Texas. However, I work in a smaller church that only only has about 4,000 in attendance on Sundays.
Glad to hear that you didn't get bit by a rattlesnake while you were down here or get a bad case of sunburn.
Sage - I hit Billy Bob's on the previous trip as for bull riding (mechanical or otherwise), I don't think there's enough alcohol in the world. I didn't meet up with Kevin due to the holiday but hopefully on the next trip out, I can redeem the hot dogs and macaroni and cheese invitation that he extended to me a few months back.
Tim - But what becomes of the one-on-one counseling and things like that? A pastor doesn't even know everyone in his congregation so why bother getting into that field?
Kevin - Yeah, I actually got hypothermia. I had only brought a sweatshirt. Needless to say, Aunt Murf didn't play outside much with the nephews but it could have been worse...it could have been Abilene which got measurable amounts of snow during Thanksgiving. There's something just wrong about a Yankee not being able to bring her t-shirts and capri pants on a trip south.
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