I married Jesse Smith, the love of my life, and the most wonderful man I know, 17 days ago. Three months ago the company he worked for in Canby, OR (they build big, fancy, expensive rifles) began opening another shop in Texas. About a month ago, after alot of back and forth, maybe you should move, maybe you shouldn't, we're going, we're staying, nobody knows! he unofficially turned down the unofficial offer to move to Texas and be a part of the enterprise. The day after we got back from our honeymoon, they handed him a rifle and his last check. A few days later they called him and asked him to come to Texas for two weeks to help with training. "Bring the wife!" they said. Three days ago we got on a plane at 6 am in Portland, and were picked up in the company car at the Abilene airport at nearly 5 pm. From there we drove to Breckenridge, a little Podunk town sporting a drive-through beer barn, which is the new home of Bold Ideas Texas and a handful of adventurous Oregonians.
As we drove across the great expanse that is only a part of the lone star state, tired and stiff, I thought from the backseat "wow. I could live here." I had to tell myself that the offer was off the table, to stop day dreaming, and remember that I am only here for a week; I have a job and a dance team to get back to that I have already taken too much time away from. But regardless of all those things, I couldn't help admiring the desolate beauty of the wind turbines and the cacti, to say nothing of the big blue sky. We pulled into town, rather bigger than I expected, and eventually found ourselves in the company's sprawling house that we are sharing with Dave and the two Davis brothers, and Nicole, when she gets hungry. It was a little awkward at first, all of us sitting silently around the living room playing games or craigslisting rental houses and cheap boats on our phones, but since that first evening, I have come to appreciate the strange little family that we have. As the only non-Breckenridge-natives, we must stick together, after all. There's nothing else to do, especially when you don't have a car.
But I digress. The next day, Sunday, we spent most of the day on a 2000-acre ranch owned by Kent, the local supervisor, shooting things and driving around the property in his club car. Southern hospitality began to show when he announced that we were all family, asked us to just lock everything up when we left, and let him know later how many people were coming over to swim, because he was going to make burgers. We took him at his word, and spent the next few hours working up an appetite by driving around looking for jack rabbits or hogs or anything else the boys could shoot. Jesse shot a rabbit three times before it went down, and Ryan emptied his magazine into a group of hogs, but let everyone down when they all got way. The escapade ended when we punched holes in two of the tires on the club car, but fix-a-flat works wonders! We stopped at WalMart to buy a swimsuit, went home, showered, and walked over in the rain to Kent's shortly after, most carrying a 6-pack of their preferred beer.
We spent the rest of our evening swimming in the heated salt water pool and eating. Wow, Texans can eat! We started out with chips and dip because the ribs, which were the appetizers, weren't quite ready yet, and later moved on the giant cheeseburgers and more chips. Our host, who is sixth generation Breckenridge, told stories about dove season, when groups will gather 300 birds in the first hour of hunting, and the local cops. He shared disconcerting accounts of "unsolved suicides", and advised that if any of us gets pulled over for drunk driving, to tell the cop "I'm from out of town, will you follow me home?" Nicole is engaged, and Kent's girlfriend Tracy offered their backyard for the wedding and told stories about their friend, a judge, who could perform the ceremony. They further displayed their hospitality by telling everyone that they will be out of town this weekend, but Matt has a key to everything on the ranch, and knows how to get in the back to use the pool and hot tub.
Of course, after that the work week started and has been less adventurous for me, but still an enjoyable time. I have spent most of my days reading and writing thank you cards from the wedding. I have also spent hours trying to learn about local dance teams and studios, but I am convinced that no one in Texas has a website, and it has been tedious work. It is nice to have everyone come home and tell work stories, past and present. We all made and ate dinner together last night, and the shop is close enough that the boys came home and brought calzones for lunch, though they were only able to stay five minutes or so.
And that brings you up to date on our Texas adventure. I sit here in a recliner, tired of reading and short on ingredients for cookies, waiting for the gang to get off work.
Yesterday they told Jesse that at the end of the trip they want to sit down and talk money. We are facing a bit of a conundrum, here. Our families and my job are in Oregon, but it is hard to turn down an opportunity like the one that could possibly be coming our way! Currently, our Texas adventure could end in a week and a half, or it could last the rest of our lives, which serves to make it that much more exciting, and in my mind, well worth chronicling! It may not be terribly interesting to anyone else, but I at least will be amused to look back one day and remember our first (if not only) few days in Breckenridge.
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