Big = Better?: Getting in to the festive spirit!

Well it's been a few weeks since our last post, mainly because not too many exciting things have been happening. I thought that we best post an update pre-Christmas because I am sure post-Christmas we will have plenty to tell you!

The Big Report - A Texans love of Guns!!!

As you will have all seen in the news Americans in general love their second amendment rights to bare arms and Texans are one of the strongest supporters. For those of you who don't know it is legal to carry concealed weapon in Texas and in one of our neighbouring states it is legal to carry a visible gun in a holster like the old western days. For us this is a bizarre concept and one which I cannot comprehend. What is even more bizarre is the fact that you can purchase any type of gun you like including an assault rifle capable of firing hundreds of rounds in seconds. Recently we ventured into "Dicks Sporting Goods" to buy something foreign to Texans, sporting goods in the form of tennis rackets. To our surprise 1/3 of the shop was dedicated to guns, camouflage stuff, hunting towers and other similar things. As long as we did not have a criminal record we could simply get a licence and purchase our own arsenal. Guns were displayed the same as we would display a cricket bat in Rebel Sports.
The most puzzling thing is Americans don't understand why they have so many mass killings. Some believe that it is because not enough people carry guns to stop those who want to hurt others??? Recently I have had heated discussions with some gun owners, who confess that they need their guns to ensure the safety of their home and family. That they would not hesitate to shoot someone who was trespassing. Following their justifications that they are needed for personal safety I then ask the question of how many guns you have? Commonly they have multiple and some semi automatic weapons. I ask are these necessary to protect yourself and the answer is if you are attacked by someone with an assault rifle you need the same or better to defend yourself, not surprisingly the sale of assault refiles has increased since the recent shooting. When will some people learn??????

The weeks leading up to Christmas.

Well the past few weeks have flown by and we have now been residing in the U.S. of A. for three months. Now for our Mums that means three months closer to being back in Australia, for us it means further assimilating to the American ways. Since our last blog the largest change we have experienced has been the purchase of our little car. This has changed our lives in many ways. No longer do we spend half a day each week walking between the supermarket and our home, laden with our weekly shopping. We now drive! This has meant trips to other shopping centres outside of our neighborhood (if I am putting you to sleep I apologise) which has broadened our shopping experience greatly. The car has also meant that I have not been catching the train to work. This is both good and bad, good as I get to work in half the time, bad because I don't get any walking in. My bike is still out of action after my crash, but we have all the parts now so hopefully will start riding again this week.

We had a little snow early last week. We thought the car was iced up, but it turned out that it had snowed over night. A lovely surprise. Despite being in the Northern Hemisphere we both were expecting milder conditions in Dallas, and whilst it is mild most of the time (22 today!) the cold is bitter, for this Queenslander at heart!

Aaron has continued his career at Urban and as you can all imagine is working hard in the weeks leading up to Christmas.