After much ado about getting to Houston, it was time to chill a little bit. Unfortunately for the still thawing bodies of Bricole, temps that had just been in the 70s or even 80s had plummeted to low 40s by the time we arrived in Houston. Our bloodied noses and knuckles would have to wait to repair themselves. On the plus side, we hadn’t packed any shorts or warm weather attire, so our sweaters and jackets went right back to work.
With Bran, the Texas-based couple, having diverging work schedules and Salt, everyone’s favorite senior travel couple, making a later appearance, it was difficult to arrange activities. This was fine. The holidays can be mighty draining, and we were fine in doing nothing for once. We did, however, make a brief stop before Salt’s arrival at Bush airport by checking out Mercer Botanic Gardens. This time of year doesn’t yield the most vibrant of pops, but I still spied some butterflies and moths and things.
We rung in New Years by bundling up and sitting outside by a fire as we watched the hundreds of neighborhood fireworks light up the night. As it approached midnight, everyone faded fast. It is unclear who actually observed the transition into 2026.
With work on the near horizon, we had to make our way back to Los Angeles. None of the dozen or so flights out of Bush looked promising unless we waited until the end of the evening and flew . . . American *shudder*. And just like that, we found ourselves heading back out to Hobby. For the record, I fully expected to do some kind of ride-share to get there as it isn’t the closest airport to Bran’s residence, but they insisted.
There was a Southwest flight with about 30 seats to L.A. that seemed a sure thing. Security in Hobby was easy. We basically went through without breaking stride. Southwest was characteristically behind schedule — aided by their open seating policy which slows down boarding. Good news, though! This practice will end toward the end of January 2026 and people will no longer be able to put a hat or bag down in that middle seat as if they’re “saving” it. When it came time to board, Nicole and I took the first middle seats we found, which happened to have a wee bit of extra leg room.
There was a brief kerfuffle with one (or also multiple) people having panic attacks during the flight. I was afraid we might have to divert for a medical emergency, but the one doctor (or so he said) onboard the flight kept reassuring the patient in question that their vitals were fine and everything looked good. This doctor most definitely had to get to Los Angeles and no time for diversions. And just like that, our annual winter holiday excursions came to an end — just in time for a massive rainy weather system to hit L.A. We wouldn’t escape the winter weather just yet, but the humidity did help our hands and congestion. Hopefully 2026 yields more adventures for Bricole, everyone’s favorite celebrity couple.
passports & pepto bismol 