Si, Se Puede!

A rental car company must be one hell of a place to work. I imagine cars are returned daily filled with an unimaginable array of items. Moreover, as an ex-consultant I am very aware of how rental cars were treated...and I thank my lucky stars the rental car companies weren't. I think. Okay, that probably isn't a true statement. I bet they are fully aware that Ford Tauruses are perfect for off-roading and driving a three speed Geo Metro at 85 is great for the engine.

Anyhow, here in Texas we are sporting around in a midnight blue Chrysler mini-van. While she doesn't have a name, for the purpose of this blog we will call her Lynnette. Lynnette has been a great sport, shuttling all eight of us and our gear through the mean streets of Houston. She has put up with being trampled upon, littered with items, and plastered with posters and flyers promoting Barack Obama. Really, Lynnette is the type of girl any guy would want to date: tough, patient, and able to wear any number of random items while still looking good.



Sunday was "Get out the Latino Vote" day for our group. We were tasked with trying to spread information about both Obama and the election in areas of town with a high concentration of Latinos. From the parking lot of a Fiesta supermarket to the stalls of a flea market, we handed out flyers and spoke a little spanish, all in support of Barack. A few things should be noted about our day. First, the Houston police are really a friendly bunch of guys. Second, it is amazing how valuable some industrial items are. Like a bald eagle or a puffin, the rarity of a gas-filled generator is mind boggling. Third, there are places here in the states that are more Latin American than Latin America.



After spreading the word and eating some tacos, we met up with our host Lizzy at a function meant to educate individuals from the Latino community about Barack and the campaign. While we only caught the end of it, there was still a palpable sense of interest and excitement. Additionally, and not completely shocking to those who know him, our own Cliff Dank gave a short speech to the crowd about our group, why we made the trek, and what we hope to accomplish. True to form, Cliff articulated our collective goals and reasons very well and made our little group very proud.



A final note: BBQ is king is Houston. Lizzy took us to Goode Co. for dinner. In between bites of beef brisket and sauce-covered ribs we laughed, recounted the day, and admired the enormous longhorn-adorned armadillo sitting in front of the bar across the street. While there we also challenged ourselves to solve the picture puzzles located under the bottle caps of Lone Star beers. Here are a few that should entertain you for the next few minutes.