An Epic Ballade of Texas

Dear Reader: Yes, I was just married about two weeks ago. Yes, I am having a fantastic time on our European honeymoon. I shall tell all soon, I hope. But first, a story of crime, suspense and drama. [This post is a true story; images have been re-created and/or snatched right off of Google Images.] It was a Friday night in Naples, Italy- city of pizza, knock-off purses, and population pollution. Meg and I had just watched a fairly picturesque sunset over the port of Naples, and were walking back to our hostel. This is a real picture of the real sunset, viewing Mount Vesuvius We were walking up the sidewalk of one of the few streets not choked with masses of people and weaving mopeds. In fact, the only other person in sight was a moped prepared to turn left and come down the street that we were ascending. As we prepared to cross the street we were astonished that the moped didn't cut us off to go first (aggressive mopeds are as Naples as pizza), but waited for us! In...

In just a few, very short days, I will be a married man! You can see any of the details you like at Meg and Adam's wedding page , including a countdown of the days until the wedding, should you need the reminder. Of course, it seems like I just came back from California, and that is because I did! Myself and seven other Norrises went on a backpacking trip up the Sierra Nevadas, and a good time was had by all. We all (eventually) made it up the mountain, and camped for several days near a lovely lake. There was fresh, flowing water all around us due to the large amounts of snow and snowmelt everywhere, which led to some delicious drinking water, and some lovely sights. On the way back we encountered some adventures (car troubles, a pair of elderly backpackers we picked up as hitchikers, and a stop at a gas station where a homeless woman attempted to steal my phone as it lie charging in an electrical socket.) We did make it back in one piece, thankful to sleep on soft beds again, and...