Reunions

It's been a crazy week of catching up with old friends. Thursday, Talen flew in from Hawaii for a conference in town, which gave us an opportunity to catch up over drinks. We went to high school in Houston and through the Mech E program together at UT. We kind of lost touch after we graduated. He ended up going to med school, had a private practice in Tyler for 10 years, and finally moved his family to Maui about 5 years ago where he now works.

Friday through Sunday, I was in West Texas for a wedding in Marathon. Alison and I showed up late for the star gazing party, so when I met the groom, it was pretty dark outside. He was introduced to me as Robert, but as I walked away, I thought his voice sounded very familiar. Then I asked what Robert's last name was. Well, it turns out I lived across from him my sophomore year at UT. We were both at the Castilian. There were a few other people in town for the wedding from my Castilian days also. So it turned from an event where I thought I didn't know anyone to an event where I knew a number of people. Pretty cool.

Tthe Gage Hotel in Marathon

The happy couple

Castilian reunion circa 1983

The wedding was Saturday night, so we had a chance to bum around Marfa during the day. Alison caught up with friends in town, while I enjoyed the laid back surroundings. Marfa continues to be hip, trendy, and expensive. But I hear it's a good place to move to if you have a plan and penchant for hard work.





Leaving Marathon Sunday, we drove through Fort Davis and the McDonald observatory - on the highest road in Texas. As expected, the views were spectacular.

Orange who?

Orange you glad I didn't say banana...

Just got back from another 24 hour trip to Houston. Had some business I had to take care of, but I also had time to visit the folks. Their orange tree is fully loaded with fruit right now. Fruiting fruit trees always make me smile.



What also makes me smile is the passage of the 3 feet ordinance by Austin city council earlier today. Pamela LeBlanc of the Statesman has a positive take on the whole thing.

Call to action

Today was a beautiful day to bike downtown. The Austin city council votes on the 3 feet passing ordinance this coming Thursday. You can register your support for the measure using the electronic kiosks in the lobby of Austin City Hall between now and the vote.

It's not a perfect solution, but I think anything that heightens motorists' attention to cyclists and peds is a good thing.

The real me

In case you missed Pearl Jam at ACL a couple of weeks ago, this weekend the band released the show as part of their authorized bootlegs series. It's only $9.99 for the mp3 download version. Definitely worth it if only for their cover of the Who's "The Real Me."


This weekend was also Megan and Chris' wedding and Sean's birthday. Congrats all!

Waiting on a train

Cap Metro was test running their new commuter trains again today. They look great to me - so let's get them on-line already.


The 80's continue to haunt me. Hold me.







You ask, "What is Alannah Currie doing these days?" She's making furniture. Freaky furniture. Very freaky.

Transitions - I

Stopped by BSS today to pick up a bike they packed for me. Was helped by my favorite tattooed wrench in their repair department. She asked if I had a brother that looked nothing like me. "Why, yes, I do" - I replied. She went on to say that she hadn't seen him in a while and that he used to come in all the time. I thought it was nice that she remembered and asked about him. My takeaway is - bro, you should come up and say hi back to her.

Anyway, I've been moving a lot of bikes these past few weeks. BSS packed up my Ti Racer X, which went out today. But I've also sold my Vicious Cycles Cross and DeSalvo custom lugged frames recently.




Next up are my Serotta CDA and Titus Motolite.



Hey, here's a pic of my ducks checking out the basil I'm trying to root. The adage about a watched pot never boiling holds for cut herbs also.

Lake Alvin

If you read my prior post, you know my house was floating 2 inches higher than normal recently. That caused a host of problems. Thankfully, a carpenter took care of my front porch gaps (and removed all the ginger breading on my porch posts that I hated).


Unfortunately, that was the easy part. Another problem with raising the house 2 inches is that the workers dug up around my concrete piers to place their leveling jacks. However, they didn't put the dirt back when they were done. Bad thing is, they dug under my concrete skirting also, which created a hole where water from the recent storms created a lake under my house.


That took an afternoon under my house crawling in the mud to fill those holes back in. And you thought ACL was muddy. Ha!

Speaking of ACL, I only attended Sunday this year - mostly to see Pearl Jam (and The Dead Weather). Eddie V (not to be confused with this Eddie V) and crew did not disappoint. Ben Harper and Perry Farrell joined in for encores.




Is it me or do others also feel Mr. Farrell should stick to singing and not dancing.

Naughty

I've been eating well balanced meals all week. It sucks. Tonight, I wanted something bad. I had to make trips to two fine dining establishments, but I think you'll agree it was definitely worth it. Feast your eyes on my feast.


Oh, and here are some pics of my up-in-the-air, floating house.