gridlockjoe | I had to get out of town today.

Not for any nefarious reason, mind you. I just wanted to see the countryside and reconnect with nature before Hell Week™ starts tomorrow. I drove up to Livingston, across the Alabama-Coushatta Indian Reservation to Woodville, down to what's left of Sea Rim State Park, and back up through Port Arthur and back to Houston. (Hey

wonderleafy -- yes, that's the park you stayed at. Hurricane Rita took it out. The entrance is all boarded up now with "do not enter" signs all over it, and "Park closed - No entry" painted on the boards. Looks depressing. On my way back from where Highway 87 is closed, I saw a camper van pulling into the entry, almost oblivious to the massive signage.)

This exposes part of the dichotomy that is me. I crave my alone time, and yet I'd happily trade it for some one-on-one time with a very special woman...