Houston

So I'm here now. It sprawls as I remember it did, much like the other parts of Texas I've visited more recently, like Brownsville. One of the guys I was at dinner with suggested that anyone who'd been here more than 10 years should have bought a concrete plant since everything's a strip mall. It's strange to notice that new strip malls are being built without the old ones being completely full yet. Has strip mall occupancy echoed the .com era or the public's passing fancies where the newest and shiniest (storefront in this case) was the one to head towards, leaving the currently available and accessible resources unused?

Sprawl is about waste, unfortunately. More trash, more used space, just more, more, MORE. It is kinda sad that our nation is running down this track at a faster clip than it should be. Most likely, it's about the attention span that the populace has for the current "hot topic." Sprawl may have been the issue a few years ago, but now it's Anna Nicole, Britney, and hybrids. I'd mention Iraq, but that's been a constant for more than 6 months, so it's faded into the greenery in the minds of many. Besides, the news media, our lovely 5th Estate (or is it the 4th?) can sell more ads with bimbos than bodies, so Britney is at the top of the cycle, following Anna Nicole, Paris Hilton, and any other dimbette that you can name. Dimbette, though seemingly centered on women, actually applies to men as well like K-Fed or J-Lake or any male American Idol contestant. Unfortunately, the masculine of something like that just sounds like another female-oriented term, i.e. dimbo, and not something that is easily identified as gender-neutral. Perhaps it's compliment is the standard dimbulb, long a staple in my house for describing the questionable actions of my very loving and loveable but less than sharp dogs.

If there's a linguist out there who cares to weigh in, by all means, leave a comment.

Anyhow, time for bed, since I'll need to be on-site at 9 local time with breakfast at 8. Considering it's past midnight, I best get to steppin'.