I stopped by the Lucy’s last week, the one in the Budget Motel on Mesa.

Since 1972

Normally I get the Machaca plate but today I felt like some Tacos Al Carbon.  Good stuff!

Tacos, AL CARBON!!!

I don’t use salt, which is good because a small plastic shark had taken up residence inside of the shaker.

Excuse me, there is a shark in my salt!

Pro tip: it keeps the salt from clumping. Much more whimsical than rice.

I found a postcard scan of El Paso from about 92 or so:

El Paso from about 1992

For comparison here’s a similar shot from 2006:

El Paso from 2006

And here’s from a week ago:

El Paso from 2011

Yeah, I didn’t notice anything different either 🙂 That’s unfortunate because a lot has changed down there.  In that same time we got a couple of new museums, a handful of buildings have been revitalized and the Plaza Theater has been reopened.  The makings of an art scene have begun and there are many new restaurants and clubs that have opened.    To the casual visitor who may only stop at scenic drive for that 4000 foot view, downtown looks exactly the same as it has for years.  You know what though, that may be a bonus to the vendors who have stockpiles of El Paso postcards.

What to do, what to do. Three day weekends are a tricky, there is a ton of things do but trying to find that balance of activities that are fun and sandwiching it all between lunch and dinner can be a challenge with kids. We started the festivities on Saturday with a trip to the farmers market, bowling on Sunday and the El Paso Zoo on Monday. The Zoo has several new additions including zebras, giraffes , lions and a very lively sea lion. To accommodate all these new animals the zoo expanded into the area where the old Dudley field once was, home of the Diablos.

Oh Hi there!

We ended the day with a walk by the river. The boys dig walking along the jogging path and with it being so close to the house there is no excuse not to do it.

Big tree at sunset