I was recently put in touch with the fine folks over at Cedar Creek Jet Ski Rentals and wanted to share my experience. Cedar Creek is a good-sized lake about an hour southeast of Dallas and jet skis are, well, jet skis. 

Cedar Creek Reservoir is a reservoir located in Henderson and Kaufman Counties, Texas, 50 miles southeast of Dallas. It is built on Cedar Creek, which flows into the Trinity River. Floodwaters are discharged through a gated spillway into a discharge channel that connects to the Trinity River, according to Wikipedia.

I rented a Yamaha jet ski from Cedar Creek Jet Ski Rentals and had a blast. I also got sunburned in the process but that's par for the course AND TOTALLY WORTH IT. The day rate was very reasonable and they can accommodate large groups and events such as graduation parties. Booking of these water crafts should be done as early as possible as their availability fills up fast.

If you are looking for an awesome jet ski rental service in the Cedar Creek lake area of Dallas and DFW, look no further. Their main service area includes the towns of Mabank, Kemp, Seven Points, Gun Barrel City, Roddy, Tool, Mankin, Ruth Springs, Enchanted Oaks and other fun little towns along the shoreline. Book a jet ski here and go have some fun before the lake water gets too cold. And if you're looking for a jet ski rental in the Lake Ray Hubbard area, check out North Texas Water Rentals.

I bought a gently used pair of (deep breath) Nike ZoomX VaporFly Next% mens running shoes on eBay. No way I was paying the fully TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHTY DOLLARS for what is apparently the craziest and most advanced fancy-ass running shoe the people at Nike have ever created. 

Seriously, someone set a marathon time world record in these things or some such. 

So do they live up to the hype? Yes and no.

These are extremely well made running shoes with TONS of cushioning. The average distance runner might find it a little jarring at first. THE SOLE IS HUUUUGE. I cannot stress this enough, it's like walking in high heels or something. On the plus side, they do make you taller.

There's also a crazy amount of bounce to these things. And an air bubble. When running in them, you definitely feel propelled forward in a way that no other shoe I've found can match. If you're a serious distance runner these are definitely worth a look.

The bad? These shoes are very narrow. They are also somewhat awkward when moving side to side and were definitely made for the one sole (pun intended) purpose of running long distances in a straight line. They are quite comfy.

​Recommended but expensive and not for amateurs.

Book review time? Book review time! I recently got suckered into buying a short novel called Gothic Violence by author Mike Ma. I initially assumed the last name "Ma" was asian but apparently it's not. Or it's a nom-de-plum (sp?) or some such. 

Gothic Violence has been the subject of some kind of viral marketing campaign on various "anonymous online message forums" and features a decidedly-edgy cover, which I will not be posting here. Supposedly it's an even better novel than Ma's first book, Harassment Architecture. Ma certinaly deserves credit for interesting book titles and covers. But I digress.

What is the plot of Gothic Violence, you ask? Not much. The tagline is something about "a gang of jihadist surfers (?) take down the power grid using insider trading profits (?) and capture the state of Florida amidst the panic." That sounds interesting, I suppose, until you read the book and realize the plot is secondary to a bunch of random, pseudo-self-improvement rants the author goes on chapter-by-chapter in lieu of a proper narrative.

To me, Gothic Violence reads like a young novelist's attempt at some sort of Fight Club meets Glamorama style edgy thriller. Celebrities are name-dropped early and often. The surfer gang's mission is vaguely defined. And the middle of the novel is basically Ma ranting about stuff.

Then the book ends around 200 pages or so. There's even a mention to deceased internet icon Zyzz along the way.

Gothic Violence certainly isn't a bad novel but it's clearly written by someone in his 20s who is still developing as a writer. Thumbs decidedly in the middle for this one. I wish the plot was more fleshed-out.