Sending Shannon on her way

Austin isn't perfect, but it's a good place to call home. Good enough that when people like Blythe and now Shannon move away, people can't seem to understand why.

And they might not have understood it entirely, but they knew they had to go. So they went. Blythe a few years ago to Colorado, and now Shannon, with her sweet son, to Florida.

Oh, Florida.

Shannon's mom is there, which will help with Z over the next few years. I've always been in awe of her ability to manage life as a single mom. No one plans it to be that way. Sometimes it just happens. Rather than letting it defeat her, or even slow her down, Shannon pushed on. She and Z lived the most fulfilling Austin life, the kind you try to keep living each year after that first magical Year in Austin. Hyde Park was the perfect hood to bike around. She let us come along to play on the greenest of greens at the golf course and in her most magical backyard forest.

Z always had the best toys, and Shannon always made the best tea. "You gotta get a Thermos," she'd tell me as we sipped her homemade chai. Every once in a while, I'd get lucky and she'd give me a mini yoga lesson. I still can't imagine my stiff body as fluid as hers, but it's fun to roll out the mat and try.


We made dinner last week. Broccoli and potatoes roasted with olive oil and garlic, served with grass-fed beef. We sat on the carpet and didn't even spill our wine. Z and Jules watched a movie, and we just hung out, enjoying the last dinner. I know I'll see them again, but it's still the end of a chapter.

Chapters big and small end all the time, and I'm learning to deal with that better. It feels good to send her off with a proper goodbye. Chapters rarely end that way.

There are lots of farewells that didn't happen. For whatever reason. And then time passes.

I tend to take the quiet route, letting leaves rest where they fall. It's easier that way. But thankfully, I got one-on-one time with both Shannon and Blythe before that predetermined time they each picked to move arrives and it's time to go.

There are such things as nice goodbyes.

Ramen noodles, anoles and meatball cars

For the past week, we've been eating ramen noodles every day for a story that's coming out this Wednesday. Yes, that's right. Seven days of ramen noodles. It's been a challenge, but a fun experiment in creativity. By the end, we were eating meatballs and red sauce with ramen or thai basil pesto ramen topped with a fried egg.


Julian was a trooper; he didn't complain once about the incessant curly noodles. But I think I speak for us all that we'll be happy not to eat ramen noodles for a while.

We've had the most incredible weather in recent days. Mid-70s and lots of sun. We've had so much rain lately that our yard finally turned green again. I wasn't sure it would ever be anything but dirt after this summer. But just a few weeks of good, hearty rain and we're among the rest of the universe that has to mow their lawn (up until this week, we'd only had to mow one time this year).

Julian and Ian set out to make a meatball car, which apparently delivers meatballs. I imagine this is in conjunction with Julian's desire to be a meatball man for Halloween.



We've had the best weekend. Two great days together, enjoying the weather and each other. And more ramen than I've eaten in a long, long time.

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Speaking of what used to be our backyard of dirt, I just found this video I think I forgot to post. It's of one of the first rains we got after this crazy dry summer, and you can see what a mess our yard was.

That's one big grub

One of the biggest grubs I've seen. A soon-to-be rhino beetle, I think. Apparently, it's like the one Bear Grylls ate during an episode of "Man v. Wild." Ian gets the point for this one; he found it while digging his plot of the garden.

Just hanging around

on a lazy Saturday.

Watching over the game

Statesman photographer Ralph Barrera took this picture during a football game at House Park, a high school stadium near our billboard on Lamar Boulevard. "High school football game will never look the same to me now," he says.

Getting away from the Austin City Limits

The massive three-day festival that is the Austin City Limits Music Festival was in town last weekend. Last year, I worked one day of the festival, but this year, I steered clear of volunteering to work the long days amid the big crowds.

There was a strong chance of rain, but we decided to go camping anyway. We went to Colorado Bend State Park, northwest of Austin, and had a fantastic time. When it rained on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, we just stayed in our big brand new tent and played Yahtzee.

I blogged about our Dutch oven adventures over on Relish Austin.

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Apologies for the length between posts recently. It's been a busy few weeks. What can I say?

Smile, you're on tv. Again.

Here's the second part of the Statesman's marketing campaign: a commercial with restaurant critic Mike Sutter and me.



Life in Austin just keeps getting weirder...

On a billboard near you...

My very first billboard. Who would have ever thought? It kinda freaks me out, but here it is. Me and Mike Sutter, the Statesman's restaurant critic who is hidden behind a coffee urn. Near 12th and Lamar in Austin. I think it'll be up for at least a few weeks. I'll try to get a better picture before my billboard glory is over....

We barbecue; it rains

The few times we've actually felt warm drops of water falling from the sky this summer are also the nights we happen to try to grill food in our backyard. After three times, it seemed almost a surefire way to get some relief. We cooked in the rain, and it was an experience to marvel in this the driest and hottest summer I've weathered.

Even though the heat has backed off (the highs are only in the 93-97 range) and we're still dry as a cotton ball, I planted a few seeds for our fall garden last weekend. I'll be posting a garden update on Relish Austin soon, but in the meantime, here are some highlights from around the house from the past few weeks.



One of Julian's first real representational drawings. "It's an elephant, Mama."

Hitting the beach while it's still summer

We've had the best luck today, including finding this cute Port Aransas hotel that fit our budget and we didn't even know it had a kitchenette with a stove and a full-sized fridge.

Good thing we had a pork roast in our cooler and a bag of leftovers from this weekend's feast.

We bought a few supplies at the grocery store nearby: milk -- to go with the Lucky Charms the cleaning lady gave us (I promise it isn't as weird as it sounds.), a deli salad, assorted chocolates, butter (just in case) and plates and utensils.

You can imagine the fun we're having.

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We're in the hotel now (which has a kitchenette but no dishes!), after a few hours playing at the beach while a storm came in. Now we get to watch Planet Earth and cook a pork roast in our tiny oven. Ian and I have decided it's the most fun little beach adventure we've been on in Texas.

Julian is on to this gratitude thing. He's playing phone with our (disconnected) hotel phone. Not sure who he's talking to, but the past few calls, he's ended with "Thank you for this trip!"

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