Friday, July 28, 2006
20 Coolest Things about West Oaks
Ripping off the idea from Chris, I get my mail addressed to Houston, but I live in unincorporated Harris County. I can throw a rock and hit the city, and I do sometimes just for fun, but my neighborhood is probably best described as West Oaks. Some say Mission Bend, but that's a Census designated place that ends at Alief-Clodine Road. Some say Alief, and we are in Alief ISD, but Alief is a superneighborhood within the city of Houston. I like calling it West Oaks. Hard to believe there are 20 cool things about an area this small, but what the heck.
I'd define West Oaks' boundaries, but that's too limiting. I'll just go.
1. Super Wal-Mart - at Highway 6 and Westpark.
The heart of West Oaks is a cross-section of the world. Vietnamese and Chinese immigrants, gang-bangers from New Orleans, rednecks with mullets and no teeth, cowboys from Katy who got lost, black families after church on Sunday, more Mexicans and other central America Hispanics than you can shake a stick at, and some old Kven guy who hums Thelonious Monk songs while buying Night Hawk frozen dinners for $1.72 and vats of Gallo Burgundy for $8.84. I hate shopping, but I got to eat and buy ammo, so this is the place to be. (Winchester 9mm box of 100 for $13.)
A strange thing lately, the check out people are getting nice. They used to be churn and burn, but now we've had actual conversations with the girls behind the registers.
2. Alamo Draft House
Uncle Rob can watch a movie, eat, and drink one or five of their microbrews. Now that I don't smoke, Alamo has everything I need.
Don't go there on a Friday or Saturday if it's the first weekend for a big movie. Cold food a couple of times.
3. Liquor Store
Can't remember the name, but it's on Westheimer on the NW side of West Oaks mall. The guy is the brother of my neighbor, so I try to buy the missus her vodka there. I pay a buck or two more, but the guy is friendly and nice. Plus I run into his brother there sometimes and he's good for neighborhood news.
4. Diversity is Beauty
So many bed-wetters get all bleary-eyed over stuff like this, but I really do think it's cool that our Fourth of July community picnic meal was hot dogs (cooked by an Hispanic guy on the grill), fried rice (Vietnamese style), watermelon, and Budweiser.
Funny moment - The missus ran to the house and came back. She mentioned that she told a couple of the basketball-playing kids that they should come by. One of the guys at the picnic asked why the kids didn't just come on their own, we had food. The missus deadpanned, "They thought it was a family reunion." The black gentleman looked around the multiracial crowd confused for a minute, then realized that the missus was pulling his leg. We laughed.
5. Albright Family
I have no reason to suck up to my very rare co-blogger, but the Albright family are the salt-of-the-earth people who are just plain nice to know. Matt would give you the shirt off his back, Emily ought to be exhausted from homeschooling all the kids, but she's still super friendly; the kids are never getting spanked in the Wal-Mart because they are that well-behaved, all "yes-sirs" and "no-ma'ams."
Need to see more of them.
6. West Oaks Mall
OK, so I don't shop unless I'm forced to, but I hear the mall is better after the makeover. I guess I'll find out after I make my yearly trek at Christmas.
7. Home Depot
The Wal-Mart crowd is there in full force all the time, buying every imaginable thing under the sun. If I need a stud finder, they're there.
You don't have to worry about any salespeople bugging you. They won't even acknowledge you're there. Heck, you could jump up and down with a hundred-dollar bill screaming, "I'll give this to the first person who will tell me where the garage door openers are," and you won't hear a thing.
Come to think of it, I resolved to quit going there and start driving to Lowe's. Scratch this one from the list.
8. Westpark Tollway
I can fly over all you riff-raff on Harwin when I go downtown. Which is almost never, but still. It is my fastest commute home. Except for all the Katy people getting on at the Sam Houston Tollway. Need to charge you all a surcharge.
9. Rapid Repair Auto Center
My first time in there, one of the customers waiting said they were the most honest car-repair people he'd met. I think they've been square with me.
Plus, they had a big screen TV. One of the guys running the place said they bought it just to watch the World Cup. I actually watched some of the World Cup over there.
10. Pastor Jonker
When I worked elections at Grace Assembly, free donuts, thanks to Pastor Jonker. He is always there with a helping hand.
11. The nice voters
Some, almost all really, of the people in 0814 who voted were nice to me when I was judge. There were always a couple of knuckleheads who ruined my day, but 95% of the folks were real cool.
I particularly remember the women from Middle Eastern countries for whom this was their first time to vote. Tears-in-the-eyes time. For them not for me, I just had something in my eye.
12. Barnes and Noble
I still like going to an actual bookstore and grabbing books at random from the shelves to look at. I go to Amazon when I know what I want but I go to B&N when I want to browse.
13. Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Chili's, Logan's Roadhouse, Applebee's
All of America's blandization of cuisine is here. Although if you know what to order you can get a good meal in these places.
14. Los Mariachis
A restaurant in a class by itself. Good, solid Tex-Mex, with one amazing feature. You order your food. The waiter walks to place the order. Then, seemingly, he walks directly to the kitchen to pick it up and bring it to you.
When you want to linger over your food, you have to force them to take their time, but we're almost always in a hurry.
15. West Oaks Geriatric Center
This is where Nana spent the last years of her life. It's not the nicest-looking nursing home, but the staff and the care were top notch. I was there once a week, if not more.
16.Parkwest Apartment Homes
This project is not here because we finally said enough with dumping Houston's lower-income folks in our neighborhood.
17. The old guy at the Citgo
The gruff old white guy works for the Chinese guys who own the place. Whenever I see him I think, "Run his fingers through seventy years of livin'." He refuses to wish us luck when we buy Lotto tickets. He will get friendly when you get him talking baseball though.
18. Big Daddy's BBQ
The best cue in the world? No. Near my house? Yep. Serve Bock? Yep. All-you-can-eat special? Hell, yeah. Fried okra as a side!
19. My house
We've got a pool and big back yard. In the late afternoon, there's a good deal of shade on the deck. I can drink wine and watch the palm trees grow.
Someone's got to do it.
20. The Missus lives in West Oaks
I love my little woman very much and whereever she is is where I want to be.
I'd define West Oaks' boundaries, but that's too limiting. I'll just go.
1. Super Wal-Mart - at Highway 6 and Westpark.
The heart of West Oaks is a cross-section of the world. Vietnamese and Chinese immigrants, gang-bangers from New Orleans, rednecks with mullets and no teeth, cowboys from Katy who got lost, black families after church on Sunday, more Mexicans and other central America Hispanics than you can shake a stick at, and some old Kven guy who hums Thelonious Monk songs while buying Night Hawk frozen dinners for $1.72 and vats of Gallo Burgundy for $8.84. I hate shopping, but I got to eat and buy ammo, so this is the place to be. (Winchester 9mm box of 100 for $13.)
A strange thing lately, the check out people are getting nice. They used to be churn and burn, but now we've had actual conversations with the girls behind the registers.
2. Alamo Draft House
Uncle Rob can watch a movie, eat, and drink one or five of their microbrews. Now that I don't smoke, Alamo has everything I need.
Don't go there on a Friday or Saturday if it's the first weekend for a big movie. Cold food a couple of times.
3. Liquor Store
Can't remember the name, but it's on Westheimer on the NW side of West Oaks mall. The guy is the brother of my neighbor, so I try to buy the missus her vodka there. I pay a buck or two more, but the guy is friendly and nice. Plus I run into his brother there sometimes and he's good for neighborhood news.
4. Diversity is Beauty
So many bed-wetters get all bleary-eyed over stuff like this, but I really do think it's cool that our Fourth of July community picnic meal was hot dogs (cooked by an Hispanic guy on the grill), fried rice (Vietnamese style), watermelon, and Budweiser.
Funny moment - The missus ran to the house and came back. She mentioned that she told a couple of the basketball-playing kids that they should come by. One of the guys at the picnic asked why the kids didn't just come on their own, we had food. The missus deadpanned, "They thought it was a family reunion." The black gentleman looked around the multiracial crowd confused for a minute, then realized that the missus was pulling his leg. We laughed.
5. Albright Family
I have no reason to suck up to my very rare co-blogger, but the Albright family are the salt-of-the-earth people who are just plain nice to know. Matt would give you the shirt off his back, Emily ought to be exhausted from homeschooling all the kids, but she's still super friendly; the kids are never getting spanked in the Wal-Mart because they are that well-behaved, all "yes-sirs" and "no-ma'ams."
Need to see more of them.
6. West Oaks Mall
OK, so I don't shop unless I'm forced to, but I hear the mall is better after the makeover. I guess I'll find out after I make my yearly trek at Christmas.
7. Home Depot
The Wal-Mart crowd is there in full force all the time, buying every imaginable thing under the sun. If I need a stud finder, they're there.
You don't have to worry about any salespeople bugging you. They won't even acknowledge you're there. Heck, you could jump up and down with a hundred-dollar bill screaming, "I'll give this to the first person who will tell me where the garage door openers are," and you won't hear a thing.
Come to think of it, I resolved to quit going there and start driving to Lowe's. Scratch this one from the list.
8. Westpark Tollway
I can fly over all you riff-raff on Harwin when I go downtown. Which is almost never, but still. It is my fastest commute home. Except for all the Katy people getting on at the Sam Houston Tollway. Need to charge you all a surcharge.
9. Rapid Repair Auto Center
My first time in there, one of the customers waiting said they were the most honest car-repair people he'd met. I think they've been square with me.
Plus, they had a big screen TV. One of the guys running the place said they bought it just to watch the World Cup. I actually watched some of the World Cup over there.
10. Pastor Jonker
When I worked elections at Grace Assembly, free donuts, thanks to Pastor Jonker. He is always there with a helping hand.
11. The nice voters
Some, almost all really, of the people in 0814 who voted were nice to me when I was judge. There were always a couple of knuckleheads who ruined my day, but 95% of the folks were real cool.
I particularly remember the women from Middle Eastern countries for whom this was their first time to vote. Tears-in-the-eyes time. For them not for me, I just had something in my eye.
12. Barnes and Noble
I still like going to an actual bookstore and grabbing books at random from the shelves to look at. I go to Amazon when I know what I want but I go to B&N when I want to browse.
13. Olive Garden, Red Lobster, Chili's, Logan's Roadhouse, Applebee's
All of America's blandization of cuisine is here. Although if you know what to order you can get a good meal in these places.
14. Los Mariachis
A restaurant in a class by itself. Good, solid Tex-Mex, with one amazing feature. You order your food. The waiter walks to place the order. Then, seemingly, he walks directly to the kitchen to pick it up and bring it to you.
When you want to linger over your food, you have to force them to take their time, but we're almost always in a hurry.
15. West Oaks Geriatric Center
This is where Nana spent the last years of her life. It's not the nicest-looking nursing home, but the staff and the care were top notch. I was there once a week, if not more.
16.
This project is not here because we finally said enough with dumping Houston's lower-income folks in our neighborhood.
17. The old guy at the Citgo
The gruff old white guy works for the Chinese guys who own the place. Whenever I see him I think, "Run his fingers through seventy years of livin'." He refuses to wish us luck when we buy Lotto tickets. He will get friendly when you get him talking baseball though.
18. Big Daddy's BBQ
The best cue in the world? No. Near my house? Yep. Serve Bock? Yep. All-you-can-eat special? Hell, yeah. Fried okra as a side!
19. My house
We've got a pool and big back yard. In the late afternoon, there's a good deal of shade on the deck. I can drink wine and watch the palm trees grow.
Someone's got to do it.
20. The Missus lives in West Oaks
I love my little woman very much and whereever she is is where I want to be.
posted by Rob Booth, 7/28/2006
2 Comments:
Ditto,honey!
21. Shish-Kabob
22. Bollywood Cinema
21. Shish-Kabob
22. Bollywood Cinema
You should do more list
Beats the hell out of who you listened to while you worked out.
Beats the hell out of who you listened to while you worked out.
