AUSTIN: Part 2

Woke up in the tent to discover my newly covered in Chigger Bites feet.  Ugh.  This was going to hurt for quite awhile.

We broke camp, and headed to town.  Our first stop: Aranda's #2 for breakfast tacos.  I got my usual Bacon/Egg/Cheese/fresh Pico, and a big ass glass of Horchata.
Horchata is a Rice drink with cinnamon and ice that is cool and refreshing.  Jerimiah had never experienced it before, and tried it before asking what it was.  He was blown away by it, and confessed he'd never thought he'd like a Rice Milk drink.

After a kick ass breakfast, we headed to our 7th floor high rise accomodations downtown, thanx to my former employer, The Good Dr.
We unloaded our two scooters from the Honda Element, and hit the road.
I took Jerimiah for a cruise, and he mentioned we should stop by the Magnolia Cafe' on S. Congress to see if his friend Jenn was working.  She was, and it was a great surprise, because once we were seated, we found out Jenn was going to be our server. 
The look on her face when she saw Jerimiah was priceless.  We hung there for a bit, and soon after hooked up with Jerimiah's other friend Brit, who then lead us to their apartment for some A/C and downtime.  It was decided that we should hit up the "Pitch and Putt" course downtown, and have some outdoor fun with clubs and balls.

I haven't swung a club in years, and it showed.  Your only clubs consist of a Pitching Wedge, and a Putter.  9 holes. 

It was hot.  It was sunny.  I was unprepared.  Generally, I would have not done this activity in the middle of the afternoon to start with, but, we were on the fly... I also did not have water, sunscreen or a hat.  These things are critical to Texas living.  I'm lucky not to have died at hole 7.








Later on, it was time to hit up the event I came here for.  The Residents.  That obscure cultish band that has been cranking out music since 1972.
It was a great show, I got to see some old friends, and Jerimiah saw a show unlike he'd ever seen.
My musical heroes did a great job, and I'm glad to have seen them again. 

 

After the show, we cruised around town some more, and then headed back to our digs.  The skyline was great, and it was a big comfort just to be in Austin again.

AUSTIN: Part 1

The prospect of going to Austin for a week was both joyous and worrisome.  Being that it's one of my most favorite places to be, it would be very difficult to get my fill in 7 days.
Also, I was bring my friend Jerimiah who had never been to, nor even liked Texas.  He was born and raised in Estes Park, and had a certain view of Texans as a tourist colony.

Since Jerimiah and I have the common bond of our love for film, one of the main focuses on this trip was a "Alamo Drafthouse Field Trip", as well as introducing him to a few of my film maker friends who seem to be moving right along in their goals.

The other focus of this trip was to see The Residents play live at the Mohawk.
I can't even get into details of The Alamo, or The Residents without needing a few pages for information, so I'll just leave it at that.

We packed up the Honda Element with very little camping gear, a 50cc Yamaha Vino Scooter, and a 125cc Yamaha Vino, camera gear, and a bag of clothing each.  Packing light, and having the scooters was mandatory.

We left Estes Park exactly at 5am on Tuesday.  It was to be a 16 hour drive straight to Pace Bend Campgrounds.

The farther we went, the warmer it got.
I'm always happy to see the changing terrain on that trip.  I don't mind the flat texas landscapes of the N.W. areas.  I don't mind cruising thru Texline, Dalhart, Dumas, Amarillo, Lubbock, Lamesa, San Angelo, Brady, and Llano.  It's better than Nebraska and Kansas, that's for sure.

Along the way, we stopped in Lamesa when we saw an old Drive In Theater coming up.  Had to.  It's our job. 
That Theater was our only major stop along the route other than gas and toilet stops.  Once we got to the Hill Country, I stepped on the gas and made my way to Pace Bend at 90mph in the dark sure that I would take out many deer that night.  We got to the lake, set up camp, but were too amped up from the ride to just hit the hay.  Took a stroll around the lake, and managed to pick up some chiggers.  Oh yes.. the thing I hate as much as Guns and Roses...  Chiggers.  The little biting bastards got me good.  I wouldn't know how good until I got up the next morning.
The next morning...  I woke up to a NASTY itchy madness, but it was overshadowed by the complete JOY of being at my favorite spot, in my favorite town.  Things were going to be good.
The next move: Head into town, and set up base camp at the good Dr's place on the 7th floor downtown.. right were we needed to be.. right next to everything.