I finally decided what I like about Lubbock, or at least why I find myself generally happy here. It's a town that doesn't have much pretense. Yes, it's conservative, and people care passionately and give each other a hard time sometimes. But it's genuine. It doesn't pretend to be one thing, and then go off and do another.

The weather is kind of wacky. It's been steady 20-30 mile wind with no rain, clear blue sky, and sometimes dust in your teeth, and this has been going on all spring. Finally tonight it rained a little. It's been kind of a drought. Most years, we have two or three inches by now; apparently, so far, we only have one and a half, maybe. But it hasn't been so bad. For one thing, plenty of rain last year has left things green, and that holds down the dust. So, less dust in your teeth this year. Same steady wind, but less dust. I kind of like it. It changes all the time, and the wind is really the thing to watch and get familiar with - the wind even determines how fast the water dries that you sprinkle on your lawn. In this kind of northbound steady dry heat, watering your lawn seems especially hopeless. But, when the dust rises, you're glad for every little stump of grass that's holding out in the great outdoors.

Saw a t-shirt today that said "Dust City Hooligans," and seemed to be a soccer team. I was surprised, Dust City is another name for Lubbock; this was news to me. Dust City, somehow, sounds better than Hub City. The only good thing about being Hub City is that you can get from places like Littlefield and Plainview to places like Brownfield and Levelland - all roads go through Lubbock. Boston, too, used to be "Hub City." It struck me as nothing special. Maybe I'll rethink it somehow, so I have a good logo which I can then use on this blog.

A semester ended, and I'm free for a spell. I might be contributing here a little bit. I actually like the place - yet I have no idea what I could say that would make any difference. I'll work on it, promise. And, I haven't stopped taking pictures.