Corpus Christi

Welcome to Corpus Christi, Texas. Nora's hometown is also home to Whataburger, Selena, and actress Eva Longoria. Nora and I rode down there yesterday to look around and try to find a place I can stay for the six weeks I'll be interning there in July. It's about a four-hour ride from Houston unless you speed (everyone does) and there's not much in between Houston and Corpus Christi.

Upon arrival we first located the Court of Appeals for the Thirteenth District. It's a pleasant, modern building surrounded by palm trees. When we walked up to the door there was a shirtless man who saw us and quickly threw a shirt on. He and a woman were sitting by the entrance, crouched in a shaded corner with their small dog, some cans of Dr Pepper and peanut butter crackers. They were obviously homeless, and when they learned we were from Houston they asked us whether the police in Houston were more friendly to the homeless than in Corpus. We rather awkwardly explained that we had no idea. The building was locked but I took a picture of the inside.


After we left there we drove down to the apartments I had decided would be the best bet as a place to stay. When we got there the staff gave us a tour but couldn't approve my application until Monday. (Long story). Hopefully it will work out because most other places in town (at least the ones we saw) are ratty and expensive. We checked several places, from one end of Corpus to the other. Inexplicably, several of them had very rude Indian managers. One of them even met us at the door before we could walk into the office and asked me what I wanted. I explained I was needing housing in July and August and was looking for a place. He told me to come back in July and shut the door. Another place was $1,450 for a month. They had availability but the building was run down and they didn't offer internet access. The two roaches we saw flipped over on their backs didn't help, either.

Finally we decided to just go and hope that the first place worked out. Nora's son wanted some seafood from a place called Boat n' Net so we stopped and bought an ice chest and some ice. Then we went to Boat n' Net. People from Corpus Christi all know about this place. It's a run-down drive-in akin to Sonic, selling shrimp, fish and chicken. Nora said it's good, it's cheap, and everyone eats there. When we arrived at the drive-thru order station, I found myself staring into a large box with a PVC pipe attached to the back of it. No speakers, just that pipe. The pipe ran up to the ceiling and along the side to the order window, where the other end opened up right by the order taker. It reminded me of those cans attached by a string. I pointed it out to Nora, and she just laughed. "I told you this place was a little different!" she said. So I yelled my order into the pipe and she told me to pull forward. The drive-thru window was screened from the sun, not with window tint as you might expect, but with brown paper bags taped to the window. The young woman who opened the window had on black eyeshadow and her hair was done up in a horrible bun that erupted from the top of her head. She looked like the Bride of Frankenstein. The food must be good, though--the owner, a Korean named Woo Sung Lee, has been so successful financially that he is a known and respected donor to the local Texas A&M campus. There's even a Lee Park on the campus. I know I'll have to come back and eat here sometime.