On rain and flooding

When it rains in Houston, it really rains. No middling showers here; we get torrents of rain, complete with extreme flooding. Today the Katy Freeway was affected, along with several Interstate underpasses. This I know not because I was out and about (I had sense enough not to drive) but because Gary took his parents out to see more of Houston. I stayed home under the pretext of having work to do.

Which, in truth, I did. More importantly, I wanted — needed — some time to myself. I vacuumed, did some laundry, did some actual work (yes, it's true), caught up on one TiVo'd show ... a good day.

The humidity is back up to, oh, 99 percent. On went the AC. You'd think that by mid-October we'd be done, but no-o-o-o ... tomorrow is supposed to be 90 degrees. Yikes.

Went to neighborhood ladies night Friday, sponsored by the Witches of Ormonde Crossing Drive. Her outside decorations exceeded ours, that's for sure. And inside? She — Andrea, the hostess — had cranked it up a notch. Or 10. Cobwebs hung from the chandeliers; light bulbs were replaced with purple bulbs and black lights. The walls were draped with fabric and more cobwebs, some yielding actual spiders. The bathroom played screechy music; the dining room table was set with creepy place settings, also covered in cobwebs. Lights accented the stairway and railings.

And that does not even begin to capture the ambience therein. Mostly it was a fun evening. I chatted with all the women in the neighborhood, some whom I know, some I'd never met before. (For the record, networking and cocktail party chatter are not my strong suit ... but I did it.) Lots of people commented and had questions about the magazine, all very positive. Wore my Halloween T-shirt and ghost earrings. Had fun. Jell-o shots were served — man, I thought, brownies with pot and this would feel just like college ... all in all, a pretty good time.

So, today I am watching the rain. I need to take some books back to the library, but I'm not sure I'm ready to venture out. But I will, eventually. Some would say it's just rain, but here that just isn't true. Like everything in Texas, even a little rain is big. So big.