Kiwi in Paradise: The Wrap-up
Category: Local...
Posted Monday, September 04, 2006 at 03:43 PM [GMT-6]

Whew! It was a whirlwind of a weekend, and if everything went according to plan, Rachel is now on her way back to New Zealand, by way of Dallas and then Los Angeles.

Yesterday arrived in cool and drizzly fashion and proceeded according to plan, with her attendance at church and Bible study with us in the morning, where she was doted over by many people saying "g'day mate" in Texas accent, much to her well-concealed annoyance. (Seems a lot of folks around here are geographically challenged and lump NZ in with Australia, which doesn't sit too will with Kiwis. Can't say as I blame 'em, either.) We had a very nice brunch with our friends Tommy and Toni at the Café at the Gardens, where the Labor Day weekend crowd was sparse, meaning that we had the peel-and-eat shrimp pretty much all to ourselves.

We had a couple of hours of down time, then we drove out to Tommy and Toni's place to (1) look at the airplane that we never got to fly in (Rachel did get to sit in it, which I'm sure was a big thrill) and (2) grill and eat hot dogs and burgers and then sit around sharing interminable skiing, cross-country and snowshoeing tales. To her credit, Rachel never once fell asleep from sheer boredom.

Sometime during the night, the drizzle turned to steady rain and it hasn't quit, even to this moment. Any ideas Rachel had about experiencing a desert environment were lost the minute she entered Midland airspace, as we've just come out of the wettest August on record and may be on pace for the wettest and coolest September.

Anyway, thanks to the nasty weather we were once again forced to seek our entertainment indoors, and we did so via a trip to the Petroleum Museum and then back to Barnes & Noble where Rachel bought a book recommended by MLB for the return trip. In fact, the two of them learned that they shared a fondness for mysteries and my wife was able to point Rachel to a number of authors she hadn't previously encountered. It was then time to return to the airport to begin the loooong journey home (Rach was relieved to confirm that her bags would be checked all the way through to Auckland).

Earlier today, I asked her if whatever expectations she had in coming to Midland had been met, and she said that she really had no expectations. I'm not sure I entirely believe her, and I guess we'll hear the real story via her blog after she returns and gets settled back into a routine. Regardless, we enjoyed introducing her to our state, city, and way of life, and found -- once more -- that there's a lot more that people have in common than we often think...

...even if the water in their toilets goes the other direction when flushed, and their light switches flip down for "on."

Update: Oh, I almost forgot. Rachel couldn't resist logging on today to check email and a few blogs, and she read all of your nice welcoming comments; she was quite appreciative.