Final escape

So after a church sermon against the Houston Megachurchstrocity, Edgy and I headed out 290 to Brenham. It was a much more relaxed trip than the New Braunfels one. My suggestions if you want to visit:

• Historic Downtown: it's quaint but artsy enough to interest the 21st century shopper. Several artist guilds and studios; antiques if you're into that sort of thing; coffee shops and restaurants (note: many are not open on Sunday).
• Made in Heaven: a cafe and ice cream bar with phosphates and Blue Bell (the ice cream made right down the street); best broc and cheese soup I've ever had. It beat Wisconsin (Sorry, cheeseheads).
• Pleasant Hill Winery: The Sauvignon Blanc was actually pretty good, but the reason for going is Bob and Bob's Wife (as she's called on her parking spot); ample samples (hee hee) and a nice little tour; plus, the cellar is kept at 64 degrees, a nice escape from the Texas heat. He's a former Midwesterner, too, so that's nice.

We also hit Independence and saw the ghostly ruins of the original Baylor University. Baylor, btw, is the oldest university in Texas, so it was neat to see stone columns still standing from the mid 19th century. Also interesting is that Baylor began as a co-ed university under the leadership of Graves, until Burleson stepped in and sent the boys off to the more updated facilities. Also interesting is that Burleson is the name of several buildings on the current campus, and Graves got nothing out of the deal. Yeah, that's what forward thinkers get--nothing. The ruins are also close to Gay Hill, for those who want a photo opportunity of this irony. Down the street, one can also see the Baptist church built in the 1850s and the creek where Sam Houston was baptised, or so it says on the historical marker. There's a Baptist museum, too, but I figured I saw enough about the pink light on Glinda's blog.

Tried to stop by Chappell Hill on the way home, but the town was closed up. In fact, the only moving objects out were two, um, I'm not sure what type of animal it was, pheasant, turkey, I don't know. They were frolicking, though. Plan to go back there because there's a tobacco/coffee shop, and the combination intrigues me.

Stopped off in Hempstead on the way home at Dilorio Farms for some fresh produce. MMMM, I got some juicy red tomatoes that will be chopped into some Cranky pasta soon. Also bought some fresh green beans waiting to be snapped and steamed. Yummy!

That's it folks. Back to hell tomorrow. Wish me luck!