ON THE BEATEN PATH--TEXAS WILDFLOWERS

I have a three day weekend this week. Easter weekend. Religious and patriotic considerations aside, this is a much better holiday than Memorial Day, Fourth of July or Labor Day here in Houston. At Easter the weather is lovely--perfect for a picnic or driving a sports car with the top down or walking on the beach. By the end of May, temperatures will rise to the nineties--low if we're lucky and high if we're not. July 4th will be very hot and humid--it always is. By Labor Day the long hot summer will have beat the city into exhaustion and still won't be over. But March and April in this part of Texas are usually glorious.

This is the weekend of the Round Top Antiques Fair, which started many years ago in a tent in the tiny town of Round Top between Houston and Austin and has expanded to towns throughout the local countryside. For years I helped my friend, Maria, haul her rugs there to sell in one of the tents or even in a booth at a prime roadside location. Each year the fair grew. What began as an antiques fair attracted vendors selling collectibles, crafts and what the French poetically call brocante--aka flee-market junk.

It's been several years since my husband and I took the drive up and many more since Maria stopped selling her wares, but every year we consider going just one more time to wander around in the sunshine and enjoy the people watching. Thanks to the recent rains, the wild flowers are in full blown along the way--bluebonnets have turned entire fields a stunning blue with Indian paintbrush, Mexican poppies and daisies adding a bit of variety. There's even a website called Wild About Texas Wildflowers with maps of the best routes for viewing nature's extravaganza.

Braving the crowds at the fair isn't on our agenda this year, but there are closer places we can venture to enjoy the outdoors--Memorial Park, Herman Park, Clearlake--each with its own special charm. Wildflowers have popped up on medians, railroad right-of-ways and in dedicated areas of local parks throughout the city. They won't be hard to find.

So if you happen to be in Texas this weekend, be sure to look for the wildflowers wherever you are and enjoy the lovely spring weather. Even a walk in an April shower can be a wonderful way to spend your afternoon. Happy Easter!

What are you doing for the weekend? Any big plans?