We are visiting my wife's family in Lubbock (a.k.a. the "Hub City"). There was a death in the family, so we left Midland Friday evening to come to Lubbock to be supportive of her family. There is a "red flag warning" in effect back home, so we left early to avoid the high winds that are routine around West Texas. The "red flag warning" is the unconventional part. Anyway, Lubbock has a special place in my heart. Although it is much too conservative for this centrist person's taste, it plays host to my alma mater, Ŧexas Ŧech University. I didn't attend Ŧech for very long, but it was long enough that I am considered alumna and I have the credentials. It's a long, drawn out story to recollect why I did not stay in Lubbock following high school graduation to complete my degree plan at Ŧech, so I will forego that anecdote. I just feel at ease when I am in Lubbock; perhaps more for the camaraderie of the college town and for my family and friends who reside here. To say there is simplicity of living in Lubbock is an oxymoron, though. You see, if you are not white, in the upper financial echelon in society, or part of the republican party, you're probably going to get vexed really quickly if you live here or spend too much time here. I know my wife and I can only muster a couple of days of respite or vacay because the people of Lubbock can be racist, ignorant, and exptremely tribal and individualistic thinking. I have often said that the beautiful campus of my almighty Ŧexas Ŧech would be perfection were it situated smack in the middle of Austin. The beauty of our U rivals the current U in Austin, but the architecture is so much better at Ŧexas Ŧech among a myriad of other things. I do not hate UT, because I am attending one of the 14 UT System (UTS) schools: the University of Texas Permian Basin. It would be kind of contradictory for me to hate anything UTS because it has provided me a valuable education and sublime experience as both a student and employee. I have attended several events, training, and meetings at UT and have even served as a member of the UTS Student Council and been at their beautiful UT System Building and visited with the UTS Board of Regents. I have been offered a few jobs at UT, but my wie and I are not quite ready to move to Austin. Her career with DPS has taken off, and she has a salient position as the Program Supervisor / Field Operations for DPS. She manages a huge district that consists of several towns in West/Central Texas. Anyway, once again, our reason for coming to the "Hub City" this weekend was to be with family; to support them during their loss, but my wife and I also needed to get away for a couple of days. Even though Lubbock is a mere 119 miles away, it is still "out-of-town," and it is always nice to spend time with our uncle and his family. They've always been accepting of my wife and I and our relationship, and they have always been supportive. Their love and generosity have made it easy to reciprocate the support and affection; moreover, it has made it easy for us to help them out whenever the need arises. So, off to enjoy the time here. It turns out, this post is more of a rant. LOL.
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