burgers and brew

Katy with the best popcorn in the world

Brandon and me

I hate that my phone doesn't have a flash, but in this picture I was actually glad because I look way too sad to be seen very clearly. I am sad to be leaving my boys and Square Burger. Tonight while drinking a little brew with the best popcorn in the world sitting in front of me, Tammy and I got the opportunity in the world to chat with Craig for a change. He was out of the kitchen for a change and standing by the taps talking to us.

We came up with a game plan to keep Craig, Brandon, and Gnoc in our lives. We're going to open up a Bare Burger in Santa Fe and then the Strip Burger in Evergreen, Colorado. You know, while I type those names I'm thinking you may be getting the wrong impression about those names. It's not people that will be bare, but the burgers, and the strip has nothing to do with lack of clothing, but the kind of street it would be on.

So, as Tammy and I make our way westward we're taking Square Burger with us. There's just no reason to be without the best food in the world or the people responsible for putting it here. I love you guys, and I'm not going where I can't take you with me. Brandon's just waiting for me to give him a big check that will actually not bounce. There's just too much money out there to not land in the appropriate hands that can make this venture of ours possible. Really, what else does Bill Gates have to do anyway??

Strip Burger

Nathan with a sweet potato fry that escaped

I went to Square Burger for the first time in a million years last night. God knows I got plenty of grief from the owner, Brandon Horrocks, for not being as regular as I once was. The truth is that I still see Brandon on a regular basis, but just haven't bellied up to the bar like I used to until last night. A friend of mine from Colorado came into town and there was nothing else we could do but go to Square Burger. He'd read enough about the place in my blogs. It was a must, so Larry and I, along with Tammy, bellied up to the bar in Square Burger last night.

Nothing like a Square Burger pickle



So, the first thing I had to do was introduce Larry to Square Burger crack, better known as popcorn, as only Craig and Gnoc can make it. After finishing off several bowls of that, he had to test drive the fried pickles. They must've been to his liking because he ordered another batch along with the sweet potato fries.

Sweet potato fries

Brandon (left) and Larry (right)

Now you're just going to have to take my word for it when I tell you that the above picture shows Brandon and Larry talking to each other because it's hard for me to even decipher their identities. No flash on the phone camera and that's as good as it gets that late at night.

So, the topic of conversation was that Brandon contends that Larry is the reason I'm moving away from McKinney. I have told Brandon from the beginning that it's not true. I do not move for men, any man. And, now I'm not moving back to Colorado. I'm stopping first in Santa Fe for a tour, and I don't know how long that adventure will last there. However, that being said, it proves that I am not moving because of Larry. I am moving because it's the right next step for me. It was Larry however, who spent 3.25 hours at $450/hour consulting fee, telling me why I was making a mistake by choosing Santa Fe over Evergreen, CO. (Good thing I wasn't paying....) The conclusion my boys came to was that I really was moving because of Larry because number one, I was protesting too much, and two, because according to Larry you can track the switch in my blogs from writing about McKinney to Colorado right after he'd sent me a picture of Evergreen.

What's the truth? The truth is that I'm making my decisions according to how I feel. Right now it feels right to move to Santa Fe with Tammy and begin what we consider to be the first of our healing facilities. Our intention is to eventually land in Evergreen, but right now the energy takes us to Santa Fe.

The other truth is that I will miss Brandon and Square Burger and everyone else there so very much. Brandon's made a home for me there at the bar. Brandon has become one of my dearest friends who I love very much. It's always a better day for having seen him and hugged him. Since June 14th this year I've looked forward to seeing his face and wrapping my arms around him every single day.

 

So, Brandon, just so you know, wherever I go I take my memories of you with me. You are part of my family, and there will hardly be a day that goes by that I won't think of you and wish I was sitting at your bar. Larry wants a Strip Burger in Evergreen.Since there's no square and only a strip in that town, that's the name of the restaurant he wants to put together with you and Craig and my big check I hand over to him to get that party started. See, Brandon, I'm not leaving you; I'm taking you with me.

a little brew

signs

Friday afternoon I was driving down Louisiana when I saw a sign. Now, I've driven and walked down Louisiana more times than I could ever count, and have never, not once, seen this sign, but I did last Friday.

Right after seeing this sign, I ran into a man I'd been involved with, but hadn't seen in months. He got into the vehicle I was driving, and I drove to a parking lot where we could talk. We hugged and kissed and cried over our sadness in how the relationship had turned out. He had chosen to cut me out of his life because I didn't want what he wanted. We could no longer even be friends. It was over. Totally. Finally, and sadly over. I was sad to lose a dear friend, and he was sad to lose a lover.

Saturday morning I had to pick up my daughter at her friend's house. As I parked the car across the street from his house, I noticed a sign in the neighbor's yard that read: "Protected by Smith," and just hours later I was out with my daughter's friend's father talking until 2 in the morning about everything from flying small aircraft to how a man can open up a woman with his eyes. He got to show me that last one.

We kissed and hugged and touched for the next three hours. It was the most rapturous experience imaginable, that is until I had a vision of this man I'm fond of in Colorado pop into my head. And, at that point I was having difficulty not calling my date by another's name. 

The next day the friend's father texted me, and when I hit the reply button, it wouldn't respond. I hit it three more times and it went directly to texts I'd received from my friend in Colorado.

Now, by this time I'm looking at all the synchronicities of how this Colorado man has popped up at all the most interesting times. You see, his last name is Smith. And, on Facebook a friend of mine posted this tidbit of information: one definition of 'smith' is: 'one who makes or effects anything' ..... 'effect' being the key word here, and I responded with: Effect -- the power to influence a result.

Hm, my events with some absolutely wonderful kissable men came to abrupt halts after seeing Smith signs, and not just the ones posted outside buildings, but also the inability to reply to the man I had been kissing on for three hours, and instead get sent to Mr. Smith's texts. What????

And now, I'm looking at the time and realizing that the three-hour-kiss-fest man was supposed to call me about an hour ago, and he hasn't. How can he? I'm writing about being secured and protected by Smith.

What's Not to LOVE About McKinney?

I've just had the most amazing day of my life right here in McKinney.

It started when I was driving my car out onto W. Virginia from my daughter's office, RejuveNation LifeSpa and two police officers on horseback pulled me over into a parking lot. Looking out of my rolled-down window high up to the face of the sweetest looking police officer, and I mean that in oh so many ways, I told him I knew why he pulled me over. Expired registration and expired inspection. Two citations later, they asked me if I had a driver's license because it wasn't coming up on the Texas site. Well...it's still Colorado, not even Steamboat Springs, but Longmont, where I lived another lifetime ago. Hey, listen, my license says it expires in 2012, why do I need another one? I didn't leave the country, just the state. I've lived in Colorado most of my adult life. I've had a Texas license for the two years I drove in Texas and ever since it's been Colorado. Oh lord...

So, after not being hand cuffed or arrested for a felony, which is what bribing a police officer is in this state, I spent my afternoon getting my car legal again in Texas. The people that work here are extraordinary! Lesleigh at the registration place was nice and friendly and just wonderful enough to hug if it weren't for the plate glass that divided us. And then there was Heather at the place I had to go to pay the citations. She apologized for the wait and then let me know she couldn't take care of me today because the tickets hadn't been processed. So, she's going to call me after they are and I'll give her a credit card number so I don't have to come back in! How nice is that???

Let's not forget the guy at FastLane who engineered my inspection. He made sure we were in and out of there so my daughter could get back to do her surgery at 2:15. She's a chiropractor and surgery with a scalpel wasn't on her list to do today, but it sure did hurry up the inspection and I did get her to her office for the next patient.

And then I went to the Department of Public Safety to get my license. When I handed the clerk my driver's license, she was floored that it was a Longmont one. She used to own a shop in Longmont. She told me which one. I told her where it was located because I was one of her customers!!! Right then and there we bonded like long-lost sisters.

And to think, it all started with the mounted patrolmen. They are also the ones in my daughter's photograph that hangs in her spa. These women tried for at least a half hour to just get their rhythm down, and they just couldn't do it. That is, until the two horses and the riders stepped across W. Virginia. It was a proud moment for all.

And even after receiving the tickets, I told the officers to come see my daughter for massages and chiropractic adjustments on the house. This time though my offer was not considered a felony. The citations were already in my hand.

McKinney Porches

I have never lived in such a beautiful community like this one. I am mesmerized by the houses as I take my morning walks. And there is truly nothing like wondering the streets at night with lights on inside the houses and seeing the gorgeous rooms of the most magnificent homes anywhere!

Hm...am I just a tad bit partial to my neighborhood? Could be, but just take a look at some of these pictures I've captured and see for yourself. It was a bright day so the pictures are a bit washed out, but still you cannot deny the beauty these people have put into their homes. To each and every homeowner, I say thank you. What a privilege it is to call this town my home!!

Who doesn't want to rock away the morning on this porch. Give me a mint julep on this bad boy and I could wile away some hours in deep pleasure!

You've got to admit how sweet and inviting this is. I wish I could show you all my pictures and all the houses. They each have something to shout to the world. Look at me. Just look at me. And more importantly, stay awhile...

I couldn't resist this one. I just love the little bistro table and chairs. I've begun a series of fiber art depicting some of these porches. I'll post my artwork on Jill Luigs Art as soon as I get all the pieces done. These porches have been such great inspiration for me.

And to my Colorado friends, you would not believe the prices of houses around here. They're selling for less than what we would consider a down payment!

I call this one the Alice in Wonderland house. What a gift to be able to call this neighborhood home. I am so very, very blessed. Thank you, McKinney!

Also, click onto ExpressiveHart (a blog by a dear friend of mine, Silky Hart Michero) to see more front porches in McKinney.

magical, miraculous McKinney

I moved to McKinney, Texas for many reasons, but one of the main ones was to get away from the snow, the feet of snow I had shovelled in Steamboat Springs. I grew up in the Dallas area, and I knew that snow didn't last but a few hours here. Not so this time.
Just a couple of nights ago here's what the downtown looked like.

There was no getting away from being outside at 10:30 at night to start a snowball fight with the only people brave enough to play in the snow. Let me just say that those were by far the hardest snowballs I've ever encountered. They might as well have been paint balls shot from guns.

It was romantic and juicy, so beautiful and alive. The air crackled with every breath. It was everything I ever thought snow could be, even though I'd been living in a state for 34 years that got plenty of it. There's nothing so magical as receiving such a gift when it's so unexpected though, and this truly was unexpected.

And, of course, it wasn't real until a snowman was born. Okay, maybe "man" is an exaggeration, but it was at least something made of snow that held twigs for its arms. It stayed vertical until morning, so that in itself qualifies as a miracle here in McKinney, Texas.

Days later, the snow is still on the ground, along with tree limbs and bush twigs. The sun has finally come out, and I plan to open a bottle of red wine, pour myself a glass, and toast to such an amazingly magical place that I now call home.

Dr. Alyssa Summey

If I had her baby pictures on my computer, I'd upload some of her adjusting her dad and her stuffed animals when she was two and three years old. Everybody had to get adjusted before going to bed at night. And yes, I knew that was her way of delaying going to bed herself, but it was just too darn cute to not let her go through her ritual.

This is my daughter, Dr. Alyssa Summey. When she was in trouble, I called her Alyssa Michelle, and it wasn't in a very endearing way, I might add.

She was extraordinary from birth. The first time I looked at her I saw a very wise old soul, and she's proved to be just that throughout the years. She has been one of my greatest teachers, and I am so grateful we chose to play together in this lifetime.

These pictures were taken at her new office at 120 W. Virginia behind the photographer's studio just west one block from the square. There's a side entrance from the alley, but I think most people come through the studio.

Alyssa was born and raised in Colorado. I was raised in Texas. Never in a million years did I think she'd end up coming back to the state I fled from after high school. And seriously, I never thought I'd be living here again either, especially after living in Colorado, but McKinney is a land of enchantment. The people here are warm and friendly. It's a place to come to when you want to renew and rejuvenate, to grow with like-minded people, and to enjoy the company of the friendliest people on earth. People here want to help others become successful. They love to network and grow businesses. I've just never seen anything like it. The Chamber of Commerce is the most amazing one I've ever witnessed. McKinney rocks like no other place on earth! The downtown square is quaint and inviting. Alyssa and I never get around the square quickly. There's just too many people to speak with.


Alyssa's coming up on her first year anniversary of practicing in McKinney. She convinced me to come and visit last October. I ended up moving here in November. I want to thank Alyssa from the bottom of my heart for sharing her life with me and to those in McKinney for opening your town to me. It is so precious, and I don't take the privilege of living here lightly. I treasure my time here, and am so excited to see what every day has in store.

Also, don't forget to vote for Dr. Alyssa Summey as your favorite chiropractor at http://www.mckinneyliving.com/.