Moonset

Moonset, originally uploaded by todd*.

Look for the cactus hidden in the silhouetted mountains!


We were driving home, heading West, when we saw the moon setting. I rushed to the house, grabbed my camera and tripod and zoomed back out to a desert area 1 mile from the house, setup the tripod and snapped away.

This one goes to Richard, who just bought a nice heavy tripod. The majority of photos I took had camera shake, because my tripod and mount aren't sturdy enough to hold the camera and zoom lens steady. This one, taken at 3200 iso was fast enough to avoid camera shake. My other shots were at lower iso and slower speed, resulting in significant blur.

One Light Out Update

One Light Out Update, originally uploaded by todd*.

Be sure to be vigilant and watch out for the many GM trucks (and occasionally cars) that are driving around with one of their daytime running lights burned out. It's a road hazard!

I still see many of these travesties driving around here in Phoenix. Surely y'all have noticed it in your neighborhood too?

Cute but not Pretty

Cute but not Pretty, originally uploaded by todd*.

So, on these 113-degree days here in Phoenix, the common birds need to seek a cool shelter to help endure the heat.

Where to they decide to go? Yes, here next to the nook on the back patio where the outside wall meets the foundation.

Likely there's a small (or maybe a large) amount of cool air that leaks through the space between the wall and foundation that gives them some relief.

But they are not kind. They leave me "presents" behind that aren't pretty. I need to get a power sprayer and wash down the patio, because it's not very pretty.

One light out update

Obsessed, originally uploaded by tlcub4bear.

Yesterday, while Brent was driving to and from Mom's house, I was able to snap off these pictures of trucks with one light out.

So, it seems there still is a problem with GM trucks and SUVs.

(Note, I caught one Ford with one light out too)

Z-Tejas Redeems itself

Wednesday Dinner, originally uploaded by tlcub4bear.

I wrote a while back about “The cheapening of Z-Tejas.” Well I’m happy to report, and am very willing to eat my words (and the food too), that they have redeemed themselves.

We have visited them several times in last few months, and have been completely satisfied, and actually quite surprised at their new attitude.

As first impressions are important, they made strides with their attire. The faded jeans and tired white shirts are long gone. Now they wear black shirts and slacks. The female waitresses frequently wear form-fitting lycra shirts, that accentuates their figures (not that I’m looking, mind you).

The menus are still a single sheet of paper, but the laminate is much sturdier and feels heavier than the faux pas grade-school-laminate-looking menus that got me started on my tirade a year ago.

They reduced the number of items on the menu, but have specials now and then where they bring back some of the favorites.

Now on to the wow factor that keeps us coming back… Since we are fairly regular customers, the two managers have become familiar with our faces. Normally, we eat early in the evening to avoid the rush, and we get a table fairly easily.

On one occasion, we arrived with the in laws on a Saturday night at about 7:30. Needless to say, this is the prime time where more than half of Ahwatukee is out dining. We arrived and I put in my name for a table for four. The hostess informed us of a 45 minute to an hour wait and handed us a beeper. Since we were having a good time and were able to find a seat on the “cowhide” sofa, we decided to wait it out. As the in laws were taking pictures of themselves with their cell phones, the manager came over to me, and asked me what my beeper number was. I told him, and he left. One minute later, the beeper went off. I was quite surprised. But more importantly, I made a great impression on the in laws! You see where I’m going with this.

Our 45 minute wait was reduced to 5 minutes. I felt a bit embarrassed, because I’m usually the nice guy, who will wait in line behind the slowest of grocery store Moms with coupons, or patiently follow behind the 83 year old driver, not passing her, before making that right-hand turn. Not to mention heat from the evil looks I got from the other groups of people who arrived before us. It was all a moment to take in. The rest of the night turned out wonderfully, with a delicious dinner, wine, sprits and desert. Considering the tab of the evening, no wonder why the managers like us!

Later that month, we invited our next door neighbors out for dinner. They are fairly new to the Phoenix area and had not tried Z-Tejas before. One condition of this dinner was no Tequila for the wives. Although their Chambord frozen margarita is one of the best I’ve ever tasted, I promised I wouldn’t push it on them, as doing so would surely cause alter egos and craziness to emerge unabated.

When we arrived, there was a 45 minute to 1 hour wait. As we stood in the waiting area, talking with the neighbors and having a good time, the manager came up to me, shook my hand, and our wait was graciously reduced to 5 minutes. This was going over very well, indeed, with the neighbors. The rest of the night was a blast, with good appetizers, fine spirits (no Tequila for the wives), and a delicious meal.

So, with these nice perks and the ambiance that has returned to a more classy feel, I’m quite happy to say I’m back to being a happy Z-Tejas customer, and I completely take back any bad-mouthing I’ve said about them in the past.

The Cheapening of Z-Tejas

First it was the transition from the brightly-colored shirts with dockers to the drab white shirts with blue jeans. Today it was the change to the flimsy laminated paper menus. What's in store tomorrow in the continuing cheapening of Z-Tejas?

I have been a loyal and happy customer to Z-Tejas for at least five years now. However, when I see changes to the restaurant that clearly are cuts in style, service, and attention to detail, then I begin to wonder if I should continue patronizing your restaurant.

I first was impressed with the Z-Tejas on Ray & 54th St, with its grand open ceiling and waiters in their stylish turquoise, orange, and red pressed linen shirts. The atmosphere was welcoming and the waiters and waitresses were friendly and nice to look at. The restaurant, in a word, was classy. It really attracted the "in" crowd. The food was excellent. I never had a bad meal.

Then about a year or so ago, something changed. We came to eat and have fun like we often did. But something was different. Ahhh. It was the shirts. Those brightly colored pressed-linen shirts were replaced by what seemed to me as drab and boring, plain white shirts with faded blue jeans. "What happened to prompt this?" I wondered to myself, and aloud to my group of friends. That night, too, the food seemed a bit less spicy, a tad less unique, and definitely more bland. It's almost like they threw out some of the flavor of the food along with the colorful shirts.

We continued to come to Z-Tejas over the last year or so, more out of tradition, perhaps, than enjoying the once stylish surroundings. But it seemed the waiters were somewhat tired, or lacked the spunky attractive smiling attitude they once had. In fact, I haven't heard any waiter, in the last year or so, tell us about their favorite dish, or the fact that they used to have to memorize all the entrees. It's more of a "it's just a job" attitude now. The fun seems to have gone out with the colorful shirts.

Today, when we sat down at the table, my jaw dropped and my eyes rolled when I saw the flimsy laminated single-sheet ink-jet printed menus. The menus items were crowded together in a single font, with little or no delimiting between separate items. It looked like someone typed it in Microsoft Word last night without much thought for readability or style. Yet another stylish aspect of Z-Tejas out the window with the colorful shirts and hip waiters. I felt like I was at a cheap Mexican restaurant (except the cheap Mexican restaurant at least has a tri-fold laminated menu). The menus didn't even list drinks.

When the waitress came to our table, she asked, "Do you have any questions about the menu?" My reply was "Yes, why did they replace the nice bound menus with these cheap laminated ones?" She smiled and mentioned that a lot of people have complained about that too. "I can imagine," I said, as I rolled my eyes.

So, what's the next step in the cheapening of Z-Tejas? How about replacing the linen napkins with paper napkins, replacing the silverware with pressed 12-gauge metal, and removing the candles from table. Or better yet, use plastic chairs on the 4- and 6-top tables. How about waiters in t-shirts with cigarette packs wrapped in their sleeves?

I jest, but I do that to make a point: while it may be saving expenses to use white-only shirts and blue jeans, and using laminated menus, it really does make an impression on the customer. The style is gone. The excitement is all but vanished. The fun is history. The flavor is still there, but watered down.

I miss the old Z-Tejas, and will be sorry when I feel I can no longer eat there due to the failing customer satisfaction.

Hard Times for GM: subconscious shoddiness?

Most of us have heard of the hard times that GM, one of the big-three American Auto Industries, has faced in these last several months (or perhaps longer). Their woes not only affect GM stockholders, but also a large majority of other American businesses and the overall health of the economy as well.

With that said, is there an underlying, or even subconscious reason for some of GM's troubles? I'm beginning to think so.

Bear with me while I describe my reasoning.

Every day while driving to work, which is about a 20 minute journey, I consistently see two, three or four GM vehicles with one of their running lights burnt out. The GM vehicle can be anything from a GMC truck, a Chevy Suburban, a Cadillac Escalade, a Hummer H2, as well as on occasion a smaller vehicle like a Cavalier. It seems the larger vehicles are more prone to have the one running light burnt out, but it may be only that the larger vehicles' lights are positioned higher, so I see them more easily.

Likely most people, while driving, don't pay attention to these burnt-out running lights. They are focused on driving, talking on their cell phone, or applying makeup. However, since the GM running lights are pretty bright, and having one of the lights off (burnt out), causes a significant asymmetry in the front of the vehicle, so it's almost like the vehicle is winking right at you.

For some reason my eyes are drawn to this out-of-balance look of the vehicle. Since many people are not drawn to this, but the asymmetry is significant, it likely causes a subconscious reaction. Since millions of cars pass each other every day, this small subconscious reaction (no matter how small) can add up. The asymmetry, driven deep into the brain, causes people to think less about GM vehicles; this added with the fact that many foreign vehicles (that is, Japanese) are much more reliable in the long run, only helps to stifle GM's sales.

I often wonder what causes so many GM vehicles to have this problem. Are they buying low-quality light bulbs from some manufacturer (or do they make the bulbs themselves)? Is the electrical system overdriving the bulbs, causing them to get too hot (they are pretty bright)? Is there a subtle vibration that causes the filament to gradually wear out and break? Is there an indication on the driver's panel when the light does burn out (like my Volvo does)? Is the bulb so awkwardly positioned that it makes it too difficult to change? All of these questions generally lead to a feeling of overall lack of planning or shoddiness in the design.

Lately, I've been trying to watch for other car manufacturers' daytime running lights to see if there are other cars with a similar problem. I haven't found any yet. It could be that GM is the only major manufacturer that has daytime running lights across the board for all their vehicles. In fact, I'm having a hard time recalling which vehicles (other than GM) do have running lights. I know Volvo does (since that's what I drive).

I'm not trying to bully GM (like a Ford vs. GM vs. Dodge tug-of-war), but just point out this flaw.

I would think if the CEO of GM saw three, four, or five GMs with one light burnt out on the road everyday on his drive to work (and paid attention to it), he would feel the same subtle shoddiness in his products, and would work to do something about it. (Does the CEO of GM drive his own car to work, or is he chauffeured?) It's basically like a million subtle billboards on the road saying "look at me, look at me, I'm a burnt out bulb". But, what other problems are lying beneath?

I've contemplated taking my digital camera with me on my way to work so I can post some pictures of the many "winking" GM trucks and cars out there. But it's difficult to quickly get my cheap digital camera positioned, focused and clicked, to catch a vehicle heading my way; especially when I see the car out of the corner of my eye as it passes. Often times I see a GM vehicle following me with one light out; it would be difficult to take a picture through the rear view mirror. :-) Maybe if I'm riding with someone else, I can snap off a few pictures for posting.

The next time you are driving on a two-way road, pay attention to the oncoming traffic and see if you can spot any GM vehicles (or any others) with one running light burnt out. When you find one you'll probably see two or more that same day. Give me a post with what you find!

-Todd