Stress management

My journalism class is providing me with a fair amount of stress this weekend. Of course, on top of that, Cas has been trying to get through the thoughtful grading and feedback for his students on a pretty major assessment. Needless to say, we're both extremely busy and sufficiently stressed out. That's what made yesterday such a very good idea.

We probably should have spent our afternoon working and hit up a movie in the evening, but my last piece of celebrating his birthday just had to happen, and it's a good thing it did. We went to Fort Worth for the day and started out with lunch at his favorite barbecue restaurant. That wrapped up just in time for us to get to our Segway tour of the city. Our guide was British, and he told us all sorts of interesting facts about the city's history. I did not know until this weekend that the Water Gardens exist on the site formerly called Hell's Half Acre, and they were built there to change the reputation of a part of town which used to be a haven for drinking and gambling, etc. before cowboys would hit the trail and drive cattle to Kansas. 

Mission accomplished. I didn't see a saloon, a card table or any visible cathouse in the Water Gardens. 

The tour was great, and nobody else chose the 2:30 time slot, so we had a very personalized experience. Cas loved it. It was my fifth time to take a Segway tour, but his first. Overall, a total win. 

After that, we stopped for beers at The Flying Saucer and made our way to the rooftop deck of The Reata, a fancy restaurant for which we were seriously under dressed. We had a wonderful appetizer there and got back to the car so we could go to his favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner. The whe day went at a leisurely pace, and we had plenty of time to walk around and see what makes Dallas' neighbor city special. 

It was a welcome break for both of us, but today, it's back to work for me. Thirteen of my journalism students have never taken the class before, leaving me with three experienced writers on staff, and we go to press tomorrow. The skill levels of my new staffers vary widely. My brain is humming along in top gear trying to get them all to sound like reporters. No matter, though. The pages will be printed and the world will keep turning. 

At least I have this dorky Segway+bike helmet of me and my sweetie to make me smile.