RGV Life

A few weeks ago, I wrote about Smokin' Aces North Barbecue adding Pitmaster J.D. Davidsmeyer to their team in order to offer some of the best barbecue in the Rio Grande Valley. Yes, you can go have some drinks at the bar; but, you absolutely must have a steak while you're there. Today, we are going to focus a little bit on the Pitmaster himself, J.D. Davidsmeyer. The question is, how does one become a Pitmaster? We all fancy ourselves great barbecue makers. We all have some technique to give us fairly edible barbecue, whether it be a barbecue sauce, a marinade, a rub, smoke, or some other trick to try to make the meat taste good. Does that make us Pitmasters? No. You don't just declare yourself a Pitmaster. To be a Pitmaster, you have to win competitions, consistently. What we are talking about is the difference between puttering around the driveway with your skateboard and winning skateboarding competitions with cash prizes. It's the difference between playing 18 h...

A couple of weeks ago, I visited Smokin' Aces North at the invitation of a friend. I did not realize what a great opportunity that was. Readers of this blog know that I Forrest Gump my way around greatness. But, before we go into my latest Gump move, know that Smokin' Aces North is currently in a transition. Aces North already had the bar part of "Bar & Grill" figured out. Now, they are working on the grill part of the Bar & Grill in a big way. Smokin' Aces North wants to bring in lunch and family dining during the daylight hours. They will then transition to the bar focus after 9 pm. The menu is expanding to include many barbecue items such as the Brisket Sundae, Xtreme 1/2 pound burger, stuffed Poblano peppers, steaks, some of those really good chicken wings I tried last time, and also meals for kids. Local diners are discovering that they can stop by Aces North during their lunch break for some delicious barbecue. Some folks are also taking the fami...

I requested suggestions for interesting people in the Rio Grande Valley. Thanks to David Cruz for sharing this post on Juan Angel Gloria, Deputy Chief at McAllen Fire Department.

Yesterday after work, a friend invited me to Smokin Aces North, a bar in McAllen near 10th Street and Martin. If you're into live music by local bands, you're probably familiar with Aces. Once upon a time, there was an Aces in Mission; but, people started complaining and things got political, so the place shut down. Still, even back then, they were big into the music scene. I think that's what's important here, that there are places for local talent to perform. My buddy,  +Richie Trevino , used have a rock band a few years back. He still writes songs here and there. It's cool to see that even though he isn't performing anymore, he supports other bands when he can. It was interesting to see that some of the other people at the bar were also performers. I didn't know that there was a community of artists in the RGV until last night. Last night, Radio on Repeat was playing some cover songs. These are some young guys with good sound. The band consists o...

Yesterday, my family and I went out to South Padre Island to cool off. The Rio Grande Valley has had weather in the 90s until these past couple weeks, which are the dog days of summer, or as you will hear called around here, "la canicula". If there ever was a time to go spend some time at the beach, it is now. You have probably heard of people in New York City who have lived there all their lives and never visited the Statue of Liberty, or any of the famous attractions. Living there, they can go any time they choose, so they don't go. I think it's the same here in South Texas with South Padre Island. Our family does not go and take advantage of this great attraction very often. It's there. We could go any time. In fact, we have typically gone to the beach at South Padre Island during the off season, closer to November. The weather is still warm and the water is still warm. More importantly, we do not have to deal with the traffic. On the way to the beach d...

I was shocked to see the temperature reach 100 degrees the other day. Shocked I say! The run of 90 degree weather we have enjoyed up to now has run out. Back are the days of 100 degrees. I had hoped we would make it through the full summer in the 90s. That would be so nice. So, what now? Well, there are some things you can do: Visit your local municipal pool for some swimming Visit your library during the hot hours. Have some quiet "me time".  Go shopping The movies have always been a good way to escape the heat. Hit the matinees. Go outdoors. Since you're going to be hot and sweaty anyway, go do some outdoor stuff. At least you'll have something to show for your perspiration. Go to South Padre Island. Sharks be damned. They can't bite everybody. You have good odds of keeping even numbers of limbs. That's all I can think of off the top of my head. Do you have any ideas?

I realize that this is a bit last-minute; but, it is important. A few days ago, I was contacted by  +Karine Aigner  regarding a campaign to save Camp Lula Sams , which is 85.7 acres of land formerly used by the Girl Scouts. The property is now up for sale, which prompted a campaign to raise money to save it.  The important thing to know about Camp Lula Sams is that it is one of those properties that is home to all manner of wildlife and flora that appeals to nature lovers, photographers, and the occasional biology nerd.  You can keep up with the campaign by liking their Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/savecamplulasams . Important Date: There is a fundraiser dinner on May 16. Yes, that is in 2 days. Tickets are $40 each. Obviously, the more tickets are sold, the more money there is to save Camp Lula Sams. Below are the details of the event. Another Important Date Being chock-full of helpfulness, I should also inform you that  f...

Lately, I have been using the  +Waze  app more and more to get around here in the Rio Grande Valley. Granted, the RGV is not quite San Antonio or Houston in terms of traffic. Still, there are areas that get congested during different times of day, which makes it frustrating at times. In case you are not familiar with Waze, it is a mobile app that calculates the fastest route between your current location and your destination. Waze does this by tracking data sent by users like myself. Their servers recognize patterns and figure out the best route to take based on data sent from others users. If traffic slows down on your route, Waze will even reroute you to a better path. Normally, you would use GPS to find places you have never visited. Waze can help you find locations like any old GPS; however, Waze is useful even when you know exactly where you are going because it is watching traffic ahead of you. For example, in the mornings and afternoons, streets near schools get c...

We are in the best time of year for the Rio Grande Valley in terms of temperature. Mornings are cool, days are warm and evenings are pleasant. This is the sort of weather that inspires one to go out for a walk to enjoy the glory of the outdoors, whether it is rural or in town. Obviously, not all is perfect with this time of year. Allergies run rampant for those who suffer them. On my part, I get leaky eyes; whereas, others in my family get the whole stuffy face and headache with their allergies. We have discovered that air purifiers are a tremendous help. Not only do the  allergy sufferers in my home sleep better, they wake up in a better mood. Coming back to the weather this time of year, I love it because the heat is not oppressive during the day like it is in summer. Summer days start off sweaty. I would say humid and hot; but, that's not how it feels. As soon as you step outside into the day, you start to sweat like a cheese with your patina of moisture, even in the morni...

Spring is almost in the air.  We are seeing blooms around the RGV.

You could learn a great deal if you have to travel between South Padre Island and Roma. I don't imagine many of us make the full drive; but many of us drive somewhere in between. Recently my work requires driving from McAllen to Rio Grande City or McAllen to Raymondville. These aren't the longest drives in the world. However, if you fire up audio books or podcasts, you can learn some things. There have been plenty of people to recommend Automobile University over the years. The idea started back in the day when you could buy a book on cassette. That later evolved to books on CD. Today's technology allows you to purchase and download an audio book in seconds. Thus, you can learn all manner of things if you put the effort into it. Personally, I use Audible for my audio books because of its tie-in with Amazon. But, there are plenty of other places where you can download some books, such as Audiobooks.com, Google Play, iTunes, and Librivox among others. If you are not int...

Signs of Spring in the RGV We have had some warm days in the 2014-2015 winter. Here we are mid-February. It is likely Spring will roll in, except for Spring Break. For some reason the weather likes to hit us with a cold front for Spring Break. Peach blossoms Blooming Aloe