The tube trip has been 86ed. As it turns out, the river is super low cause, not sure if you know it, we're in a drought right now. No rain, no run-off, no river -- or at least, not much of one. We found out from some folks that we'd most likely be dragging our innertubes more than actually floating on them, so, scrap it. What now, brown cow? Port Aransas. Also known as the Texas Riviera. Whoever named it that couldn't have been more stoned or drunk or both when they did. It is neither glitzy nor quaint like the French and Italian Rivieras. This is the Gulf of Mexico - Texas coast. You can't see to the bottom in 4 inches of water. There's a good chance that there is something gross in the water and that it's gonna touch you and all you can do is hope that it's not a floating diaper. It's murky and you have to do the sting-ray shuffle so that you don't step on something that's going to make you wish someone would cut off your foot. Despite all that, it promises to be a rollicking good time. Here's the run down: Drive many hours to smaller metropolis to meet up with folx. Pack 5 people plus one medium-sized puppy into the Tan Sedan and then cruise to Port Aransas stopping only to pick up breakfast tacos. Stay overnight, and then head back to smaller metropolis to drop the folx off, and then head home to snobby uber-city. It's not so much that we enjoy torturing ourselves as we have come to expect it and nothing else.